Galaxy Grabs the Spotlight in 2-1 Victory Over Fusion : MLS: L.A. clinches playoff berth in game that marks Wynalda’s debut with Miami.
FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. — In the postgame chaos that invariably follows Major League Soccer games, Eric Wynalda and Mauricio Cienfuegos were standing close together, signing autographs for the usual throng of screaming kids.
Wynalda, sensing a chance to do some mischief, sneaked behind Cienfuegos and started to write his name on the Salvadoran midfielder’s jersey.
Startled, Cienfuegos shook his shoulder and spun around, then grinned when he saw who it was. They have battled long and hard for club and country, these two veterans, but on Saturday night it was Cienfuegos, not Wynalda, who left his signature on the game.
His superb chip over the Miami Fusion defense in the 48th minute presented a glorious scoring chance for Cobi Jones and the Galaxy forward grabbed it eagerly. He looped a header over Fusion goalkeeper Garth Lagerwey for the winning goal in a 2-1 victory that clinched a playoff spot for Los Angeles.
But it wasn’t easy.
The Galaxy (17-9) had to overcome the Fusion and MLS season debut of Wynalda, the U.S. national team’s all-time leading goal scorer; a bizarre own goal by Ezra Hendrickson; some determined play by the Fusion (10-17) in the late going, and a miserable performance by referee Paul Tamberino.
First, Wynalda, who had been sidelined for six months after knee surgery.
“I’m a ways away from being 100%, that’s pretty clear,” he said. “My touch was all right. I struggled with the hardness of the field. It was a little bit harder on my knee than I anticipated. I’m unhappy with the result, obviously, but it was a great goal by Cobi to beat us.”
The closest Wynalda came to scoring was when he sent a glancing header off a pass from Welton flashing just wide of the right post with 14:21 to play.
“I don’t know if it was my touch or my haircut,” joked Wynalda, who sported a close-cropped look.
The Galaxy drew first blood, taking the crowd of 14,421 out of the game early. Greg Vanney sent a corner kick in from the left wing and Danny Pena, unmarked, stooped to head the ball in from close range in the 10th minute.
“We gave up a goal on a set piece,” said Ivo Wortmann, the Brazilian coach whose Fusion team has now lost four in a row. “The players know who they [should] mark.”
Wortmann was more surprised by Jones’ headed goal than by Pena’s.
“He’s a great player but not a tall guy to make goal by header,” he said. “After that, it was tough for us. We were not smart in the game.”
And Wynalda’s play?
“The only way for him to get better is to play games,” he answered diplomatically.
The Galaxy was in control until a strange play in which Hendrickson put the ball in his own net. It happened in the 27th minute after a foul on Welton by Vanney in the right corner.
Henry Gutierrez sent the free kick into the goalmouth and in the melee the ball was propelled straight up in the air, dropping right at the crossbar. With Galaxy goalkeeper Hartman stranded, having gone out for the initial free kick, Hendrickson tried to head it away but succeeded only in nodding it into the net.
“I don’t know, man,” Hendrickson said. “It was just unfortunate what happened. I’d have felt really bad if we lost that game.”
Instead, all that was lost was Hartman’s chance for his ninth shutout of the season.
The Galaxy might have been under less pressure in the closing minutes had Tamberino not been the only person in the stadium not to see Jones tripped up in the penalty area by Leo Cullen. It was the worst of a series of missed calls by the referee.
“Not many calls went our way tonight,” Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid said, “but I was proud of the way we stood up to the pressure.”
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In other MLS games:
Columbus 2, Colorado 1--Robert Warzycha scored off a rebound of his own missed shot to lead the Crew past the Rapids (16-9) before 19,521 at Columbus, Ohio. The Crew’s win, combined with losses by New England and Miami, put it in the playoffs for the fourth time in the league’s four-year history. Columbus (16-10) also set a franchise record for victories.
Tampa Bay 5, New England 1--Manuel Lagos scored the first two goals of his career and set up two more as the Mutiny (13-14) won before 30,564 at Foxboro, Mass. The game was part of a doubleheader involving the U.S. women’s national team and Ireland. The U.S. won, 5-0. The Revolution (9-17) has one victory in its last 10 games.
Washington 4, Dallas 1--Marco Etcheverry scored two goals and Jamie Moreno added a goal and three assists as the United won its eighth straight MLS game before 12,093 at Washington. Roy Lassiter added two assists for United (20-7), which prevented Dallas (14-13) from moving into third place in the Western Conference. Lassiter scored his 41st and 42nd points, snapping a tie for first place in league scoring with the Burn’s Jason Kreis, who was shut out.
San Jose 2, Kansas City 0--Alejandro Sequeira and Jimmy Conrad scored for the Clash before 9,296 in San Jose.
