After a tight, scoreless opening hour, the New York Red Bulls and LA Galaxy traded two-goal flurries to split the points in a contentious 2-2 draw at StubHub Center on Sunday night.
Following goals from substitute Gonzalo Veron and Sean Davis, it appeared the Red Bulls were poised to win just their second road game of the season, but the Galaxy fought back and narrowed the margin via Mike Magee in the 80th minute before Ashley Cole lashed home a close-range effort one minute from time.
Red Bulls head coach Jesse Marsch was ejected in the late going after protesting two PK no-calls in the 85th and 90th minutes. New York were forced to use all three of their substitutions after 47 minutes following injuries to Damien Perrinelle, Connor Lade and Bradley Wright-Phillips.
Box Score
- 68' -- NY -- Gonzalo Veron (Sacha Kljestan, Felipe)
- 74' -- NY -- Sean Davis (Felipe, Mike Grella)
- 80' -- LA -- Mike Magee (Steven Gerrard, Giovani dos Santos)
- 89' -- Ashley Cole
- Full Box Score
- Stats
- Watch Highlights
Three things
1. PULLING THE STRINGS:Sacha Kljestan continued his torrid form on Sunday night, assisting on Veron's opener and asking questions of the Galaxy backline all night with his pinpoint through balls and clever movement. Kljestan leads MLS in assists with 13 and is one away from tying the mark for the most in Red Bulls history, now shared by Tanque Hurtado (1998), Thierry Henry (2014) and Kljestan (2015) himself.
2. A FIRST FOR ASHLEY: Arsenal, Chelsea and England stalwart Ashley Cole scored his first MLS goal for the Galaxy, chesting down a clearance attempt and smashing the ball between Luis Robles' legs in the 89th minute to give his team a point.
3. MARSCH SENT OFF: The Red Bulls weren't happy with a Jeff Larentowicz tackle in the first half that saw Perrinelle forced off because of injury, and they were even more upset about a pair of PK no-calls from referee Hilario Grajeda in the final five minutes of regulation. Alex Muyl and Veron both appealed for spot kicks following collisions with LA goalkeeper Brian Rowe, but Grajeda waved play on both times. Marsch was eventually ejected for his protestations, but made his feelings clear before leaving the field.
Next up
- LA: Wednesday, Aug. 10 vs. FC Dallas in a US Open Cup semifinal, 10 pm ET (ESPN2)
- SKC: Saturday, Aug. 13 vs. Montreal Impact, 7 pm ET (MLS LIVE)
