Galaxy earn point against San Jose in Cali Clásico

SATNFORD, Calif. -- For the first time in seven matches, the California Clásico ends in a draw.

Marco Reus rescued a point for the LA Galaxy with his fourth goal of the season, after being handed the captain's armband for the first time in Maya Yoshida's absence from the starting 11. The German’s strike tied the game 1-1 in the 70th minute of the rivalry match against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday, June 28, 2025.

Reus Rising to the Occasion

In a microcosm of the Galaxy’s season, Reus’ goal had both beauty and bobble to it. 

The former Dortmund star played a slick interchange that included a series of quick passes with Matheus Nascimento to find himself in space. His shot was saved by San Jose Keeper Daniel, who had a man-of-the-match performance, but could not bat Reus’ shot away or out of bounds. 

Instead, the ball bounced kindly to Reus after Daniel's good save, who had to simply guide the ball home to bring the Galaxy level. He now has 10 goal involvements in LA’s last 10 matches, and has easily been the reigning champion’s best player during that stretch.

"Marco has been outstanding in these games. He's just such an intelligent player. He is so just smooth and taking the ball under pressure in these games where teams are trying to match up one-on-one, he's good, his touch is soft, he uses his body very well to protect the ball. He sees actions before the actions are happening," LA Galaxy Head Coach Greg Vanney said while praising the goalscorer.

 "Again, as he's feeling good and getting into a rhythm with the group, I feel like his leadership and his quality has stood out for us."

The first-time Galaxy captain created plenty of chances for his teammates, only to see them fluff their lines or Daniel pull off a big save. 

Reus would make no mistake with his goal after following through on the rebound.

Offensive Struggles For the Killer P's

It was the only misstep for Daniel, who had five saves in the game, including two on Gabriel Pec, that the winger could only shake his head at. The Earthquakes keeper was huge for his team, also saving a one-on-one breakaway against Joseph Painstil in the 60th minute.

It was only one moment in a poor night for Painstil, who had several open looks, but could not put most of them on frame. 

In a passage of play in the seventh minute, Reus passed Paintsil the ball in yards of space on the left flank while bearing down on goal. Instead of taking a small touch to settle himself and pick his spot, the Ghanian winger took a hurried one-time strike that went acres wide and over the bar.

"I feel like he's maybe second-guessing himself or overthinking the situation. A lot of times, I feel like he's decelerating in the moment when maybe he needs to accelerate through it and make it more natural and seamless," Vanney shared in a post-match press conference. 

"I feel like he's in his head a bit. That can happen. You miss a number of chances, and you start to overthink situations. That was him a little bit." 

San Jose Strikes First

San Jose would not be so wasteful, and eight minutes later, had their lead.

After Mark-Anthony Kaye found space in midfield, he turned and passed to an open Beau Leroux. The 21-year-old midfielder took a touch, saw Galaxy Center Back Zanka giving him space, and unleashed a curling strike over Galaxy Keeper Novak Mićović for the 1-0 lead. 

But that was the extent of San Jose's offense, which had one of the best attacks entering the 104th edition of the Cali Clásico. The Galaxy did well to hold the Earthquakes to three shots on goal and only one big chance.

"First of all, to only concede one goal, it's only one, but obviously it's progress. The way we concede obviously is a shot from outside the box, and when we do this -- there is always things we could have done better, but sometimes you got to tip your hat when somebody puts it in the top of the corner," Galaxy Center Back Zanka said of Leroux's rocket to open the scoring. 

"But, yeah, over the course of the game, it's not that many chances that we give away, so that's obviously a positive to take with us."

The Galaxy will be disappointed, however, that they didn’t do more with their offensive opportunities. They not only outshot San Jose, but also created eight big chances in the evening. 

On Course for Infamy?

Their inability to execute and finish their chances means they return to Los Angeles with only one point, instead of three. It also means that the Galaxy has yet to reach double digits after accumulating only nine in 20 matches with a 1-14-5 record.

At the present pace, the Galaxy would set another unwanted record of only 15 points in a 34-game season, one point worse than the current record holders, the 2013 D.C. United squad. 

LA will find a small respite soon. After having played three straight away matches, and four more than most of their Western Conference rivals, they’ll now begin a three-game home stand on the Fourth of July.

The Galaxy will host the Vancouver Whitecaps at Dignity Health Sports Park in an attempt to avenge their 2-1 loss to the Whitecaps in MLS Match Week Two.

If the Galaxy play against the second-place team like they did against one of the most potent offenses, they have a chance to start the home stretch in a positive manner.