San Diego FC Stuns LA Galaxy in Historic MLS Debut

In a stunning debut, San Diego FC achieved a remarkable victory in their inaugural Major League Soccer match, triumphing over the reigning champions, Los Angeles Galaxy, with a 2-0 win away from home on Sunday.

The Galaxy, the most decorated franchise in MLS history, had maintained an unbeaten home record throughout the previous season while clinching the MLS Cup.

However, in a testament to their off-season preparations, San Diego, now the 30th club in the league, secured a well-deserved win, driven by two goals from Danish forward Anders Dreyer (26).

The opening goal came after Galaxy’s Serbian goalkeeper Novak Micovic (23) made a wayward pass to Carlos Emiro Garces (23), who failed to control it. This allowed Mexican winger Herving Lozano (29) to seize the opportunity, setting up Dreyer to finish with poise.

Riding the wave of momentum from the goal, San Diego nearly added a second, as Dreyer capitalised on defensive chaos, only for Micovic to deflect his shot with a superb save.

Micovic was called upon once more, racing off his line to thwart Lozano after a clever through ball from Dreyer put the former Napoli star in a dangerous position.

The Galaxy struggled to find their rhythm in attack, notably missing the influence of injured Spanish midfielder Riqui Puig (25) and speedy winger Joseph Paintsil (27).

Late in the match, San Diego’s goalkeeper, CJ dos Santos (24), was tested when he denied a close-range effort from substitute Miguel Berry (27).

However, in stoppage time, as the Galaxy pressed for an equaliser, San Diego effectively sealed their victory through a swift counter-attack.

Dreyer played a perfectly timed pass to Tomas Angel (22), the Colombian son of former international Juan Pablo Angel (49), who remained composed before relaying the ball back to Dreyer for a stunning finish, igniting celebrations among the travelling fans who made the journey up the Californian coast for the match.

Earlier in the day, Phil Neville’s Portland Timbers experienced a disappointing opening to their season, suffering a heavy 4-1 defeat to the Vancouver Whitecaps at home.

The Timbers were dealt an early blow when Canadian defender Kamal Miller (27) was shown a red card in the 11th minute of play.

Vancouver’s goals came from Ryan Gauld (’24), Pedro Vite (’32), Sam Adekugbe (’53), and Jayden Nelson (’61).