The Seattle Sounders are headed to Carson, California to take on the LA Galaxy (4:30 p.m. PT; FOX, Watch free on the Apple TV app, iHeartRadio, El Rey 1360AM) on Saturday, reigniting a Western Conference rivalry that has years of history.
It’s not like Seattle’s Cascadia derbies with the Portland Timbers, but matches with the Galaxy have always had a bit of something extra in their own right whenever these sides crossed paths. During Seattle’s early days in MLS, it was the Galaxy who were considered the gold standard, in the midst of a dynastic run that saw them record five MLS Cup title victories.
That led to some intense matches and memorable results. With the Sounders set to play another fixture at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson this weekend, here’s a look back at some of the most memorable past Galaxy away trips from Seattle’s MLS era.
Ruidiaz winner powers 2-1 comeback victory (June 19, 2021)
During a red-hot start to the 2021 MLS season, one of Seattle’s best three-point results came DHSP, where they found themselves in an early hole in their fixture against the Galaxy on June 19. Trailing thanks to a Sacha Kljestan penalty kick, Seattle found the equalizer in the 41st minute thanks to a thundering header by Yeimar, assisted by a corner kick from João Paulo.
That set the stage for Raúl Ruidíaz, who found the game-winning strike shortly after the second-half restart. It was an opportunistic finish from the dynamic Peruvian, who was on the spot for the rebound after Cristian Roldan’s initial shot was saved by Galaxy goalkeeper Jonathan Bond.
Morris, Roldan run wild in Carson (Sept. 27, 2020)
Cristian Roldan and Jordan Morris can be hard to stop when they get going, as demonstrated in this 2020 fixture that ended in a 3-1 victory thanks to a relentless effort from the duo of former Pac-12 standouts.
Roldan carried the goal-scoring load, bagging a brace with a pair of finishes – one shortly after kickoff, and the other in the 61st minute. His first goal was assisted by Morris, who also got on the scoreshseet with a 38th-minute finish that was set up by a pinpoint long ball from Nicolás Lodeiro.
Jordan Morris ran right by him (Sept. 25, 2016)
Morris just had the best game of his career with his four-goal outburst against Sporting Kansas City in Matchday 5, and he’ll now look to keep it rolling in the venue in which he scored arguably the best highlight-reel goal of his career.
In a 4-2 road victory at LA in 2016, Morris broke a 1-1 deadlock in the 63rd minute with a phenomenal individual effort that famously saw him leave Galaxy defender Daniel Steres in the dust before unleashing an unstoppable outside-the-foot finish into the top corner at the far post. The bounding run past Steres spawned its own catchphrase, “Jordan Morris ran right by him!”, which many fans still use whenever the Homegrown forward cooks an opposing defender with with his lethal sprint-speed.
Neagle, Dempsey salvage dramatic draw (October 19, 2014)
Sometimes a draw can feel like a win, which was certainly the case back in 2014, when the Sounders poached a shocking draw against the Galaxy as the clubs jostled in that year’s Supporters’ Shield-standings.
With Seattle trailing 2-0, legendary forward Clint Dempsey hacked the deficit in half in the 69th minute, assisted by Obafemi Martins and DeAndre Yedlin. Lamar Neagle then played the hero role, bagging the equalizer just three minutes later to offset goals from LA’s Baggio Husidic and Marcelo Sarvas.
Considering that Seattle went on to narrowly win that year’s Shield, this draw actually wound up playing a significant role in delivering the Sounders that trophy for the first time.
