Recap, Matchday #8: Los Angeles Galaxy avoid a home loss against Houston Dynamo | OneFootball

Saturday evening's contest between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Houston Dynamo started rough for the defending champs. The defending champions allowed a goal in the 14th minute.

LA Galaxy goalkeeper was unable to stop the blast from Ezequiel Ponce. The Dynamo's Amani Bassi was credited with the assist.

Things only got worse in the first half for the Galaxy. It is a miracle that the team did not suffer their sixth loss of the season.

Why the LA Galaxy are lucky to come out of this one with a 1-1 draw?

Being down 1-0 early in the first half is never favorable. Also, being down a player is even worse. The LA Galaxy have only won once in the previous five games against the Dynamo.

Mathias Jorgensen (Zanka) was issued a red card at the 28th minute of the game. Carlos Garces and Edwin Cerrillo had been issued yellow cards before that. One more to either player would have resulted in a send-off for them, too.

The Los Angeles Galaxy had to play conservatively but had the one-man disadvantage for the remainder of the game with only 10 players on the field. Fortunately for the six-time MLS Cup winners, Houston could not capitalize.

Not only did the Dynamo not score the rest of the game, but the LA Galaxy were able to score in the 57th minute. Midfielder Diego Fagundez netted his first goal of the 2025 regular season.

Fagundez's free kick found the top right corner of the net and went past Dynamo keeper Blake Gillingham. Houston's goalie Andrew Tarbell normally is the starter but is out the rest of the season.

Thus, the Dynamo signed former LA Galaxy keeper Jonathan Bond to fill the spot. However, the former Watford FC player did not see action on Saturday against his former team.

On Saturday, both soccer clubs elected to play with a 4-2-3-1 formation. The Dynamo had possession for more than 57% of the game, thanks in part to the one-man advantage. Despite committing more than 20 fouls, Houston had seven corner kicks and twice as many shot attempts.

The 1-1 draw still keeps the 2024 MLS Cup champions at the bottom of the MLS Western Conference standings. The LA Galaxy will face the Houston Dynamo again on the road during a Friday night game in late July.