Charlotte FC fended off the aggressive attack of the visiting Los Angeles Galaxy to earn a scoreless draw Saturday night.
Despite holding an advantage in possession (66.6 percent), shots (18-12) and corners (7-2), the Galaxy were unable to upend the home side.
The draw extended Charlotte’s (6-5-3, 21 points) undefeated streak at home to three matches. Dean Smith’s squad is now 5-1-2 at Bank of America Stadium this season and hasn’t allowed a goal in a match since a 2-1 loss at New York City FC on April 27.
Los Angeles (5-2-7, 22 points) threatened the goal until the final whistle, but the Galaxy couldn’t get the ball past Charlotte keeper Kristijan Kahlina, who made two big saves in second-half stoppage time to save a point for his team.
The first save came on a free kick by Los Angeles’ Gaston Brugman, who fired the ball over the wall and toward the bottom right corner before Kahlina pushed it out of bounds. The ensuing corner bounced off the head of Maya Yoshida and seemed destined for the goal, but the Charlotte keeper pushed the chance over the bar, leading to the official to blow his whistle for full time.
Kahlina finished with five saves.
The Galaxy have drawn four straight matches in MLS play. While Los Angeles has lost only two of its 14 matches this season, it has managed only five wins. Head coach Greg Vanney’s side is in playoff position after missing the postseason in five of the past seven seasons.
Charlotte is also in prime position to make the postseason with 21 points through its first 14 matches. Last season, Charlotte finished ninth in the Eastern Conference standings with 43 points in 34 matches.
–Field Level Media
