Toluca scores 2 late goals to defeat Galaxy in Campeones Cup

CARSON — In the 83rd minute, the Galaxy appeared to have the game-winning goal, adding another trophy to their collection.

However, Toluca must have taken the one-goal deficit personal, because it struck back quickly and painfully for the Galaxy.

Romero Franco scored the equalizer and then deep into stoppage time, Andres Pereira had the difference-maker to give Toluca the 3-2 advantage in the Campeones Cup on Wednesday night at Dignity Health Sports Park.

“We fumbled in the last five minutes,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. “As I said to the guys, we had a shot across the bow when they scored on the set piece and we got an offside call on that one. … That should have been the wakeup call for us, for every other set piece that we had to defend down the stretch.

“It ends up being two goals off of set pieces. … I feel like a lot of work got thrown into the bine in the last five minutes off of two set situations. It wasn’t the run of play, it was two set situations where your responsibilities are to win your duels and to see out the second phase of things.

“Disappointing for the guys. They’ve endured a tough season and this was a chance to take something happy out of the season and it ends up being the reverse in the last five minutes of the game.”

The Galaxy had snapped a 1-1 draw on Gabriel Pec’s 83rd-minute goal.

Moments before that, Toluca thought it had a 2-1 lead, on Joao Dias’ toe-poke goal off of a free kick, but after a video check, he was ruled to have been in an offside position.

With the one-goal lead, the Galaxy’s set piece defense then gave the game away.

Romero’s free kick tied the score at 2-2 in the 88th minute, then, off of a corner kick, the second ball in toward Pereira was knocked in for the decisive goal.

The Campeones Cup features the MLS Cup champion from the previous year and the winner of the Campeon de Campeones, which features the champion of Liga MX’s Apertura and Clausura tournaments.

The Galaxy took a 1-0 lead on Diego Fagundez’s successful penalty kick in the 36th minute. Gabriel Pec fouled by Toluca’s Jesus Gallardo and referee Ivan Barton immediately pointed to the penalty spot.

The first half ended on a chaotic note as Toluca coach Antonio Mohamed received a red card. Mohamed watched the second half from the lower level of the press box with the Toluca staff.

Toluca found the equalizer in the 54th minute on Nicolas Castro’s long-distance shot that eluded Galaxy goalkeeper Novak Mićović’s outstretched arm and settled into the back of the net.

The game turned chaotic into the second half with another member of Toluca’s staff getting red-carded. At the end of the night, Pec also received a red card.

Vanney said that Toluca’s actions were “disrespectful to the game, CONCACAF.”

After a quarterfinal run in the Leagues Cup tournament, Toluca is currently tied for first, through 11 games in the Liga MX Clausura.

Dating to the start of the Clausura, Toluca had just two losses in regulation. In the Leagues Cup, the club had two games go to a penalty shootout, including the quarterfinal, also at Dignity Health Sports Park, which Toluca lost to Orlando City SC. Toluca also played Club America in Carson in the Campeon de Campeones, which qualified the club for Wednesday’s game.

The game was the only chance that the Galaxy had this season to add to their trophy collection. The club is mired in last place in the Western Conference of MLS, one year after winning its sixth MLS Cup.

“It had the life of a real playoff game or a real final type of game,” Vanney said. “Obviously, that’s driven by emotion as well. I though it wasn’t quite as intense until the emotional part started to kick in, somewhere close to halftime, mid-first half, maybe when we scored, the game started to pick up.”

The Galaxy will return to MLS play on Saturday with a road game against FC Dallas. There are three games remaining in the regular season.