SAN DIEGO -- For a few minutes, it looked like Hirving Lozano’s return to Snapdragon Stadium might turn into the kind of night the LA Galaxy had been waiting for.
Lozano had spent nearly 10 months away from competitive action, and San Diego made sure he knew exactly how it felt to come back.
He was booed the first time he touched the ball and was fouled repeatedly as the match grew more physical. Then, after San Diego went down a man early in the second half, Lozano finally found his moment.
A loose ball bounced around the penalty area before falling to Lozano, who made no mistake from close range. He celebrated in front of the Galaxy supporters who had made the trip, embracing the moment in a stadium where his return carried plenty of weight.
For the Galaxy, though, the goal was part of a much larger night that slipped away in a 3-1 loss to San Diego FC on Saturday.
“It was great for him to score because I think confidence builds off of situations like that,” head coach Greg Vanney said.
Lozano looked the part of a player still finding his rhythm, but one who could immediately give the Galaxy another attacking option. His directness helped create opportunities, including the sequence that eventually led to San Diego’s red card and his own goal.
“I worked very hard all this time to get to this, to play 90 minutes,” Lozano said. “I’m going step by step, improving. I had a lot of time without playing, and every game those doubts are going away.”
Vanney also liked what he saw from Lozano emotionally, particularly given the circumstances of his return.
“I thought he handled himself like a professional,” Vanney said. “He played with emotion, but not with too much emotion.”
That progress may be one of the few encouraging developments the Galaxy can take from a night that exposed another problem they have spent much of 2026 trying to solve.
San Diego repeatedly found space behind and between the Galaxy’s defensive lines. The first goal came in the 11th minute when Anders Dreyer kept the ball alive and found Elias Achouri in the box. Kieran Sargant then slipped past Harbor Miller just two minutes into the second half to make it 2-0.
The Galaxy spent too much of the first half caught between pressing high and sitting deeper, allowing San Diego’s attackers to find pockets in the middle of the field.
“We were kind of in between those two things a little bit too often, and they were able to pick us apart at times,” Vanney said.
The problem resurfaced even after the Galaxy were given a lifeline.
Jeppe Tverskov’s second yellow card left San Diego with 10 men, and Lozano’s goal pulled the Galaxy within one. They briefly thought they had completed the comeback when Kyogo Furuhashi finished another Lozano-created chance, but VAR ruled that Lozano had committed a foul in the buildup.
Vanney strongly disagreed with the decision, arguing that the officiating lacked a consistent standard throughout the match.
“The whole game had varying levels of what’s a foul and what’s not a foul,” he said.
He pointed to several other decisions involving Joseph Paintsil and argued that the standard seemed to shift throughout the night. Still, Vanney did not let the officiating completely off the hook for what happened.
The Galaxy were a man up and had momentum. Instead of finding an equalizer, they conceded again when Amahl Pellegrino finished a San Diego transition.
“I think we lose an opportunity because you’ve got to be able to manage situations like that that occur in the game,” Vanney said.
The Galaxy had finally wrestled control of the match away from San Diego. Once the equalizer disappeared, though, the game became frantic, and they never found their footing again.
Lozano’s return showed the Galaxy may finally have another attacking piece capable of changing a game. Sergio Roberto’s debut also gave Vanney a glimpse of what the midfield could look like as the new additions settle in.
But the defense remains the larger concern.
With just one win in their last eight matches and the playoff race beginning to tighten, there is little room for the Galaxy to keep giving opponents openings like the ones San Diego found Saturday.
Lozano may have provided a glimpse of what could change for this team.
The Galaxy will hope that translates to points soon, starting with a return to Dignity Health Sports Park with a full week of rest on Sept. 5. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
Leave a Comment