Jose Villarreal scored in the 6th minute and the LA Galaxy held on from there, defeating the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0 in the quarterfinals of the US Open Cup.
The Galaxy got revenge over their California rivals after the Quakes wacked them four days prior 3-1 at Stanford Stadium in the first edition of the 2015 California Clasico.
Both teams put different lineups on the pitch for Wednesday's match, with the LA Galaxy starting younger players Villarreal, Oscar Sorto, Ignacio Maganto, and more in order to rest their veterans.
With Robbie Keane resting, super-sub Alan Gordon started at forward and wore the captain's armband for the first time against his former team. Gordon played for San Jose from 2011-2014 scoring 18 goals in 64 games with the Earthquakes.
"I always root for them when we're not playing them," Gordon said of his former team. "Sometimes, there are situations with the team, and you're bitter. That wasn't me. I will always love the Quakes."
Gordon and the Galaxy struck early and often in the match, putting plenty of pressure on the Quakes patchwork back four. Midfielder Kenny Walker sent a long pass into Villarreal who beat J.J. Koval to the ball. Villarreal hammered a left-footed shot just inside the near post and past San Jose keeper Bryan Meredith for the game's first goal.
Less than half an hour later, it appeared that the Quakes had found the equalizer when Mark Sherrod beat Galaxy backup goalkeeper Brian Rowe with a header, but the referee whistled him offside and the goal was disallowed.
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San Jose was the aggressor for most of the second half, attempting four corners and multiple shots on goal during the second frame, but they were never able to get the equalizer and the Galaxy were able to hold on.
Despite not being an MLS league game, it was the first LA Galaxy win on the road since August 20th, 2014 when they defeated the lowly Colorado Rapids 4-3 in Denver. The Galaxy are now 5-0 against San Jose all-time in US Open Cup history, and will face Real Salt Lake in the semifinals in three weeks.
Let’s take another moment to appreciate this Jose Villarreal goal. #USOC2015 pic.twitter.com/gXgNdwV66r — LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) July 2, 2015
