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LA Galaxy outlast Maquina 4-1 in U.S. Open Cup play

By Mike Gray
Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

The LA Galaxy needed extra time to put away Santa Ana amatuer club La Maquina FC 4-1 Tuesday night in fourth-round U.S. Open Cup action at the StubHub Center.

At first it appeared LA would make easy work of the local USPL side when Jose Villarreal ghosted into the box and used his chest to re-direct a cross into the net.

But the match would turn on its head minutes later after Rafael Garcia was guilty of committing a two-footed challenge in plain sight and was promptly issued a red card. 

And in the 28th minute, La Maquina equalized off a error from the Galaxy defense. AJ DeLaGarza attempted to head a long ball back to keeper Clement Diop, but the pass held up in the dry grass and Edwin Borboa managed to race to the ball a split second before Diop and poke the ball home, sending the heavy contigent of Maquina fans into jubilation. 

LA almost equalized before the break when Emmanuel Boateng evaded a defender on the dribble inside the box and beat goalkeeper Luis Sosa with a low shot, but the ball was cleared off the line by a Maquina defender.

The second half was a slugfest as Maquina struggled with match fitness while LA struggled with playing a man down. However, neither side could break the deadlock and the game went to extra time, and that's when things got interesting.

In the 96th minute, LA finally scored off an unusual sequence. After the Galaxy won a free kick outside the area, Baggio Husidic played a simple ball across to Dave Romney, who finished easily while some of the Maquino players were attending to an injured Jose Villarreal. The crowd howled and Maquino protested to no end, but the goal stood.

With Maquino deflated, Sebastian Lletget would grab a brace off a penalty kick and a decisive run and finish late to secure the victory.

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