Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
Greg Vanney said there was “anger and disappointment” in his LA Galaxy players after being thumped by St. Louis City SC, and he wants his team to respond quickly.
The Galaxy were beaten 6-2 at Energizer Park, with Carlo Holse’s 21-minute hat-trick proving too much for the visitors to bounce back from.
St. Louis’ extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 20 matches, while the Galaxy’s hopes of reaching the playoffs remain in the balance.
Vanney’s side are ninth in the Western Conference and three points ahead of 10th-place Portland Timbers, who are their next opponents in the MLS in midweek.
And while Vanney said the defeat was not the end of the world because of other results, he was determined to see his team bounce back to get their season back on track.
“I feel like [this game] lights a fire under some people and under the group. That was the emotion that I went into in the locker room,” Vanney said.
“There was certainly anger and disappointment, but I also felt a recognition that there’s a big week still ahead of us.
“Those games are going to be at home, and they are what our focus is on. I feel like there will be a good bounce back. It’s important that everybody bounces back.
“I just have to keep an eye on maybe a couple of guys, but in general, I think the group is going to be resilient and excited to be back at home in front of the crowd.
“We didn’t make up ground on the teams in front of us, and we didn’t separate ourselves from the teams behind us. In not doing so, we didn’t lose a lot of ground on what’s behind us, but we know the importance of what’s in front of us now, games wise.”
— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) October 12, 2026
Portland, meanwhile, come into their latest clash off the back of a 3-3 draw with struggling Sporting Kansas City SC, with the Timbers failing to capitalise twice on a two-goal lead.
David da Costa and Vincent Janssen had put Portland two goals up by the 49th minute, but Andre Luiz ensured Sporting KC only went in one goal behind at the break.
Ariel Lassiter restored the Timbers’ two-goal advantage just after the hour, but two quickfire goals from Justin Reynolds and Luiz ensured a share of the spoils at Sporting Park.
Portland are now without a win in their last five league matches, and Marti Cifuentes urged his team to be more creative in the final third moving forward.
“There was a sense of frustration, but obviously we need to move on quickly and learn from it, but we definitely lost an opportunity to take all three points,” Cifuentes conceded.
“I think there are positives we can take from the game, particularly in the first half until the moment we conceded the penalty. It was a good first half in many areas of the game.
“But we definitely need to create more chances with the possession we had. With everything considered, it was a good away performance.”
Klauss has scored in three straight matches, equalling the longest run of his career, a mark he set at the start of this season.
He is the third player in the last 10 seasons with multiple three-match scoring streaks in a single season for LA Galaxy along with Riqui Puig (2024) and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (2019).
Portland Timbers – David da Costa
Da Costa scored his ninth goal for Portland last time out to go along with 15 assists. His 24 goal contributions are more than any other player since joining the club at the start of last season.
Of Da Costa’s nine goals, six have come in sets of back-to-back games, including his last two, and he will be hoping to continue that run here.
DA COSTAAAAA https://t.co/hMnETtHn0X
— Portland Timbers (@TimbersFC) October 11, 2026
Portland snapped a five-match road winless run against LA Galaxy (D2 L3) with a 4-2 victory in April 2025. It was the Timbers’ fourth win in 19 all-time visits to Dignity Health Sports Park and the first since 2020. Portland have never won two in a row at the Galaxy.
The Timbers have, however, won only two of their last 22 away matches in all competitions dating back to August 2025 (D6 L14). They have also conceded at least one goal in 20 straight games away from home, allowing two or more goals in 13 of their last 16 on the road.
The Galaxy, meanwhile, are unbeaten in five straight home matches (W3 D2).
They have not had a longer single-season unbeaten run at home in league play since finishing the 2024 season with six straight wins on their way to winning the MLS Cup.
MLS News
Schmetzer urges Seattle to build on ‘statement win’
MLS News
Wicky delighted with Sporting KC’s spirit after fightback
MLS News
St. Louis City fighting for ‘special things’ amid ‘crazy’ run
MLS News
Gonzalez lauds Casemiro’s impact on Miami defence
MLS News
Horvath urges Red Bulls to carry momentum into D.C. United clash
MLS News
Richter relishing challenge of facing Lewandowski as Philadelphia defend unbeaten run
We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By using our website you agree to our use of cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Discover more from NAIRAVOICE.COM.NG
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
