Orange County SC have yet another bye week this weekend in regular season play, but USL is returning to Southern California this weekend. LA Galaxy
Orange County SC have yet another bye week this weekend in regular season play, but USL is returning to Southern California this weekend.
LA Galaxy II look like they have perhaps turned a corner the past two games, and return from their road trip with a home date on Saturday against Phoenix Rising FC. It’s the teams’ second meeting of the season, after Phoenix beat Los Dos 2-1 back on Apr. 8 in Arizona.
With Mike Munoz tasked with bringing through a new class of reserves, the prior meeting came during a three-game losing streak in the 2017 USL season’s first month. Given the struggles of LA so far this campaign, it looked as though it was going to be a very long season.
But that talk was premature, it appears, as the Galaxy have taken four points in the last two weeks, with Justin Dhillon scoring in successive weeks on the road to help get the results. Is the season going to be smooth sailing from here? There will probably be ups and downs, but it does appear that Galaxy II won’t be rooted to the bottom of the standings.
This week’s test is Phoenix Rising, who have indeed beaten LA already, but who are missing the scorer from that game, Luke Rooney, to a season-ending injury recently. Truth be told, Phoenix Rising as a roster has a roster that is well above USL average, but they are still trying to figure out how to make things fit together. The best news is that even with inconsistent results, they have games in hand on most of the Western Conference, so they have time to figure things out.
So will the wily veterans of Phoenix make it two in a row against Los Dos? Or will LA find comfort in home cooking and get some revenge on their opponent? If Munoz’s team is really starting to round into form, then Phoenix may get a shock when they come to StubHub Center.
LA Galaxy II vs. Phoenix Rising FC is scheduled to kick off at StubHub Center Track and Field Stadium at 7:30 pm PT on Saturday. Tickets for the game are on sale on the Galaxy’s website, or you can watch the game on USL’s matchcenter.
