Poor miscues cost LA Galaxy in shutout road loss to Vancouver

After a conceded goal put the LA Galaxy down at the eighth minute, the team struggled to bounce back in a measly 3-0 loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps on the road on Wednesday night.

The loss marked the fourth time the Galaxy have been shutout since the second half of the season began, a notable development considering they had scored a goal in each match prior to the World Cup break.

Since that break concluded, it has been evident that the Galaxy have struggled to find any sort of rhythm or momentum, despite having many opportunities to do so. After coming out victorious in their latest contest, that chance to build on it was squandered once again.

Vancouver found their rhythm right out of the gates before the Galaxy could create anything interesting on the offensive front.

After a few early chances in the match's opening minutes, Brian White put the Whitecaps ahead with a crafty move right past Galaxy defender Jakob Glesnes in the box and finding the back of the net. Julian Aude had lost the ball on a poor effort just moments beforehand, creating a chance for Vancouver in poor territory.

From that point on, the pressure did not slow down from the Vancouver offense in the first half. Despite being held to a 1-0 lead heading into halftime, JT Marcinkowski did all he could to keep the Galaxy competitive in the game.

The Galaxy made necessary adjustments to keep their spirit alive – which was led by Marcinkowski defensively and Kyōgo Furuhashi pushing the offense well enough to pressure the Whitecaps.

However, shortly into the start of the second half came another miscue that would prove costly in the momentum category.

In the 57th minute, a pass to Galaxy midfielder Erik Thommy was botched as he slipped before he could handle the ball, which created a chance for Ryan Gauld to navigate his way through the defense and slip a ball into the left corner of the net.

It was the Galaxy's second conceded goal by way of mishandling the ball, this time around on a poor giveaway. However, it wasn't exactly the stamp on the poor night for the Galaxy.

Vancouver would go on to cap off the night with a third goal at the 90th minute on a penalty, which came on a poor tackling effort from Emiro Garces. Bruno Caicedo converted on a ball that was tipped by Marcinkowski to put an end to the Galaxy's disappointing night.

The Galaxy, who sit just one point away from a playoff spot along with two other clubs, will hope for a better fortune on Saturday night when they host the Seattle Sounders , who narrowly trail the Galaxy in the Western Conference standings.