Column: Galaxy coach Greg Vanney’s changes spark Chicharito’s goal explosion
The mark of his character is more in what he hasn’t said than what he has.
Javier “Chicharito” Hernández has refrained from blaming anyone other than himself for his disastrous first year with the Galaxy, but the first two games of the new season point to how the team’s shortcomings on the sideline were as, if not more, problematic than anything Hernández did or didn’t do on the field.
Hernández fired three more goals during a 3-2 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Sunday, as new coach Greg Vanney has done what predecessor Guillermo Barros Schelotto couldn’t, placing the team’s other players in positions from which they can deliver the ball to the Mexican striker.
Javier “Chicharito” Hernández scores three goals in the Galaxy’s 3-2 win over the New York Red Bulls on Sunday.
“You want to put yourself in the correct position [but], of course, sometimes the ball needs to come,” Hernández said. “Thankfully, that’s happening because of all the great work that we’re doing.”
With a league-leading five goals, Hernández has already more than doubled his total from last year.
In the wake of Argentine attacker Cristian Pavón’s departure, the Galaxy arguably have less talent on their roster than they did last season, and yet the team is now 2-0 for the first time since 2010.
If Curt Onalfo represented a step back from where the Galaxy were under Bruce Arena, and Schelotto another, Vanney symbolizes several strides forward.
As he did during his previous job with Toronto FC, Vanney has established a philosophical framework and demonstrated an ability to make in-game adjustments, qualities that were almost entirely absent for the Galaxy under Schelotto.
“That’s why he did what he did in Toronto,” Hernández said. “Now, he’s trying to do it over here. He’s a fantastic manager.”
Javier “Chicharito” Hernández struggled throughout the 2020 season and vowed to come out strong for the Galaxy in 2021. So far, he’s delivered.
When the Galaxy failed to capitalize on their overwhelming advantage in possession early in their season opener in Miami last week, Vanney inserted a second striker in Ethan Zubak and switched from a 4-2-3-1 formation to a 4-4-2.
Hernández scored twice after the change.
Zubak was in the starting lineup against the Red Bulls as a replacement for the suspended Sebastian Lleget on the right side of the midfield. But his role gradually shifted into what it was against Inter Miami, when his primary function was to clear space for Hernández.
Hernández’s second goal against the Red Bulls was made possible, in part, by Zubak’s off-the-ball movement, which pulled a defender away from the Mexican star. Playmaker Victor Vázquez whipped a ball from the left sideline over the head of Red Bulls defender Sean Nealis to a wide-open Hernández at the top of the penalty box.
“The pass by Victor was fantastic, you know?” Hernández said. “[Christian] Pulisic does it, or [Mesut] Ozil — only [certain] players around the world. It’s incredible, to have that vision, to have the technique to put it over there. The only thing I need to do is have the correct touch and put it in the net.”
Ten former USC Song Girls described to The Times a toxic culture within the famed collegiate dance team that included longtime former coach Lori Nelson rebuking women publicly for their eating habits, personal appearance and sex lives.
Hernández did, blasting a shot through the legs of goalkeeper Carlos Coronel.
The sequence was an example of the Galaxy maintaining their width and using the flanks to avoid the game of bumper cars initiated by the physical Red Bulls, who employed a disruptive high press. The Galaxy’s third goal also came on a play down the flanks, as overlapping right back Julian Araujo slanted a ball that was barely missed by a sliding Vázquez and scissor-kicked home by Hernández.
“It wasn’t about possession,” Vanney said. ‘It was a day of opportunistic actions more than it was anything else.”
Including one that was created by a calculated gamble by left back Jorge Villafaña in the ninth minute that resulted in Hernández’s first goal.
“Working with Greg, it’s a little different than what I’ve been doing my entire career,” Villafaña said in Spanish. “I used to be characterized as an outside back that joined the attack. I still go forward, but what Greg wants is for me to be more in the middle and play sometimes as a third center back or like an extra defensive midfielder.”
Take a closer look at the 2021 L.A. Galaxy players, and check back all season for video highlights of goals they score.
So when Red Bulls wing back Florian Valot collected a loose ball in his team’s half of the field, Villafaña was ready to pounce on him. Villafaña advanced the ball to Zubak, who carried it into the penalty box and uncorked a left-footed shot. The deflected shot was met at the far post by a sliding Hernández.
Which isn’t to say the Galaxy are without problems. The team has conceded four goals in two games, including a pair against the Red Bulls that were particularly soft. The optimistic view is that Vanney’s team was well-organized throughout the game on Sunday, which is a sign its defense should improve once it makes upgrades at center back.
Hernández’s resurgence is the story of the season so far, and rightfully so. But what’s made that possible is the structure and adaptability introduced by Vanney. The Galaxy now have direction and Hernández is the greatest beneficiary.
