The Los Angeles Galaxy will play for a trophy for the first time since 2002, advancing to the final of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup thanks to a 5-2 win against USL First Division side Minnesota Thunder at The Home Depot Center on Wednesday night.
Herculez Gomez scored a pair of goals, and Cobi Jones picked up a pair of assists to pace the Galaxy to the win. Tyrone Marshall, Landon Donovan, and Joseph Ngwenya rounded out the scoring for the home side.
The seemingly one-sided victory brought an end to the giant-killing run of the Thunder, who reached the semifinals by knocking off MLS sides Real Salt Lake, Colorado, and Kansas City. The game was actually close for the first 70 minutes, but Minnesota ran out of gas down the stretch.
Yet it seemed as if the Cinderella march would continue, as in the second minute Pablo Chinchilla's indecision in front of his own goal cost him possession when Johnny Menyongar stripped the ball off his foot and took it to goal. Chinchilla then hauled down the striker, earning himself a yellow card and the Thunder a penalty kick.
Melvin Tarley, the leading goalscorer in the competition who was recently acquired by Real Salt Lake, stepped up to take the shot, but failed to put it on frame, sending the penalty well over the crossbar.
The game bogged down in a midfield stalemate, but the Galaxy started to find their way. The close calls started when Donovan hit a shot from a low cross that was barely deflected over the bar by Minnesota 'keeper Joe Warren. Minutes later, Donovan sent Gomez loose on a breakaway, but again Warren came up huge, kicking the Gomez shot wide of the net.
Finally in the 29th minute, Jones connected with Donovan on a cross from the left side. Donovan, standing near the penalty spot, hit a first time volley with the inside of his foot that found side netting for the game's first goal.
Minnesota countered quickly after the goal. Just two minutes after the Donovan goal, Tarley was kept onside by Chinchilla, and went in on a long breakaway. Kevin Hartman made the initial save for the Galaxy, but the ball deflected back off of Tarley and bounded towards goal. Chinchilla redeemed himself for his earlier indiscretion, clearing the ball off the line for a corner kick.
Just after Jones missed with a first-time volley from a difficult angle, Donovan picked out Gomez with a long ball with no defender in sight. Warren charged off his line to try and close Gomez down, but the young Galaxy striker simply lofted the ball over the head of the onrushing keeper and into the net to double the L.A. lead.
Down by a pair of goals, the visitors still came out the aggressors after the break. In the 49th minute Jeff Matteo picked up a poor touch from Menyongar and ripped a shot that beat Hartman only to rattle the crossbar.
Five minutes later, the Thunder pulled a goal back. Jay Alberts fed a through ball to Menyongar who broke in alone on Hartman. The Galaxy 'keeper slid out to challenge the attacker, but Menyongar lifted the ball over him and into the back of the net to halve the Galaxy lead.
But just as in the first half, after a long quiet stretch, the Galaxy burst into a threatening force. First Tyrone Marshall headed a Chinchilla cross high and wide while completely unmarked, then Donovan and Jones nearly made a carbon copy of the first goal, but this time Donovan's shot sailed high.
Then, in the 77th minute, Marshall made amends for his earlier miss, weaving his way through a slew of defenders into the Minnesota penalty area. The big Jamaican defender got just enough on his left-footed shot to roll it past Warren and into the net.
The home team added another in the 81st minute. Guillermo Ramirez, who came on to start the second half, picked out Gomez with a pass and he used his speed to break in alone. Warren made the initial save, but the rebound fell right to Gomez who buried the second chance into the back of the empty net.
With that, the floodgates opened, and Jones picked up another assist, this time to Ngwenya. The MLS original again sent a great ball in from the wing and Ngwenya sent home a diving header from close range to bring the Galaxy goal total to five.
Chad Dombrowski scored a late consolation goal for the Thunder with a close-range header off of a corner kick in the 85th minute.
With the victory, the Galaxy will now host the battle for the Dewar Trophy on Sept. 28 at The Home Depot Center when they take on FC Dallas, 1-0 winners against the Chicago Fire earlier on Wednesday.
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP SEMIFINAL
Wed., Sept. 14, 2005, The Home Depot Center (Carson, Calif.)
SCORING:
LA: Landon DONOVAN (Cobi JONES) 29
LA: Herculez GOMEZ (Landon DONOVAN) 44
MIN: John MENYONGAR (Jay ALBERTS) 54
LA: Tyrone MARSHALL (unassisted) 77
LA: Herculez GOMEZ (unassisted) 81
LA: Joseph NGWENYA (Cobi JONES) 82
MIN: Chad DOMBROWSKI (Jeff MATTEO) 85
DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY:
LA: Pablo CHINCHILLA (Caution) 2
LA: Cobi JONES (Caution) 41
MIN: Godfrey TENOFF (Caution) 52
MIN: Chad DOMBROWSKI (Caution) 68
| STATS | L.A. | MINNESOTA |
|---|---|---|
| Shots | 22 (9) | 11 (5) |
| Shots on goal | 10 (5) | 4 (1) |
| Saves | 2 (1) | 5 (3) |
| Fouls | 13 (7) | 11 (6) |
| Corner Kicks | 6 (2) | 3 (2) |
| Offsides | 2 (2) | 4 (1) |
LINEUPS:
LOS ANGELES:
Kevin HARTMAN; Michael UMANA, Chris ALBRIGHT, Tyrone MARSHALL, Pablo CHINCHILLA (Troy ROBERTS 71); Peter VAGENAS (Joseph NGWENYA 66), Ned GRABAVOY (Guillermo RAMIREZ 46), Cobi JONES, Paulo NAGAMURA; Landon DONOVAN, Herculez GOMEZ (Alan GORDON 85)
Subs not used: Steve CRONIN, Ugo IHEMELU, Michael ENFIELD
MINNESOTA: Joe WARREN; Nathan KNOX, Chris BRUNT, Chad DOMBROWSKI (Michael WILSON 88); Freddy JUAREZ (Aaron PAYE 78), Jeff MATTEO, Godfrey TENOFF (Tighe DOMBROWSKI 58), Jay ALBERTS, Matt SCHMIDT (Kevin FRIEDLAND 74); John MENYONGAR, Melvin TARLEY
Subs not used: Nicolas PLATTER; Brett BRANAN, Kiki LARA
Referee: Jair Marrufo
Assistant Referee: Jose Corro
Assistant Referee: Emiliano Monje
4th Official: Ramon Hernandez
Official Attendance: 4,373
Weather: Clear, 69 degrees
