P/I/P Season 31 Game 3 - LA Galaxy at Colorado, 3/7/26, 6:30 p.m. PST - Apple TV

Interesting on our next opponents:

MLS Winners and Losers: Timo Werner shines, Phil Neville's odd gameplan & more

Losers: Phil Neville’s gameplan
Picture this. You’re Phil Neville. You always wear the best club merch. You’re coming off a win on opening weekend and you start grinding tape on your next opponents, the Colorado Rapids.

What you see is a team that’s committed to playing the ball out of the back, no matter the circumstances. In fact, if you seek out some stats and find they were the most patient team building out of the back in the league on Matchday 1. You also see that they’re not very good at it, at least not under the pressure the Sounders were putting them under. Your game plan is clear: give Colorado’s backline time and space to build out however they wa– wait, what?

Is it possible that Neville’s decision to do the opposite of what the Seattle Sounders did last weekend and sit deeper was based on the altitude in Commerce City? Of course. Still, not taking advantage of what appears to be a real Achilles heel for a team at any point in the game – a game that turned into a 2-0 loss for the Timbers – doesn’t make a ton of sense. Neville has seen the benefits of an aggressive press against a team committed to patient buildup, he used it to get a big win in the playoffs against San Diego FC last year.

Even if you ignore that win late last year and blame Saturday’s defeat either on the altitude or the roster not being at full strength, the performance was disappointing.

Portland looked incoherent in possession and they lacked the fight they showed in the opener against the Columbus Crew. They looked unprepared and didn’t seem to respond to either goal until much too late. They also lost a bit of discipline towards the end of the match. Goalkeeper James Pantemis took a huge risk on a tackle outside of his box in the 73rd that resulted in a yellow card, but on a different day could have been a red. That was followed four minutes later by a reckless challenge by Jimer Fory that resulted in a red.

The Rapids, for their part, looked much better than they did on opening weekend, but there was a bit of fortune involved in the result. They scored from a deflected long range shot and a corner. It was a bit of an underwhelming game all around, but the Timbers were never in the game. That doesn’t bode well. - Andrew Clausen

 

Just excited, guys! 4 official games in, haven't lost a game, 2 goals allowed, 2 clean sheets, advanced in concacaf. All positive and good, specially if compared to last season start. Got the tickets to see Joseph playing for Ghana in world cup. Life is good. Keep it up, Galaxy !!!!!

 

After watching this game, the most important part for us is : Colorado scored their two goals following set pieces. As usual against the Rapids, we have to be very careful on dead balls and we have to keep a very close eye on their striker Rafa Navarro.

 

Our center back depth has taken a hit with injuries to start the season. We can get by in Colorado after a week of rest, but Glesnes and Yoshida can't play four 90 minute games in two weeks.

Injury Updates for LA @ COL:

I. Parente: (Available)
E. Garces (Out)
C.Rindov (Out)#LAGalaxy

— Alex Ruiz (@AlxRuiz15) March 5, 2026

 

Time for Haak in the back?

 

https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/mls-player-status-report-matchday-3-saturday-march-7-sunday-march-8

LA Galaxy

Chris Rindov - Leg (Out)
Emiro Garcés - Foot (Out)

Colorado Rapids

Zack Steffen - Shoulder (Out)

 

Who is their no.2 gk?

 

Nico Hansen

US born player who represents Denmark

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolas_Hansen

 

Thanks

 

Colorado Rapids vs LA Galaxy Preview by @spencerbaldwin_:
- Two teams looking to build off wins last week
- Zack Steffen injury: Nico Hansen starts? And who will be captain? https://t.co/ni5AKwihmK pic.twitter.com/JxExsbLVsB

— Burgundy Wave (@Burgundywave) March 7, 2026

 

Dropping Sanabria for Reus after last week’s performance is certainly a choice.

 

Strong lineup. Not sure I love Reus starting at altitude, but they may feel the need him to help break the press or hold possession. He certainly has more familiarity with the weather than Sanabria.

The XI for #COLvLA 🛡️

🔗: https://t.co/GHK3vgPw1s | @ModeloUSA pic.twitter.com/x5E7xQyMZv

— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) March 8, 2026

 

Gorgeous pass by Pec on that breakaway

 

I can't believe Aude has been with the Gs for 4 seasons now and he's only 22.

 

Pec could have laid it off to Jo there.

 

Oof

Miki lost the ball to allow that goal

0-1

 

Disappointing