The Colorado Rapids (7-8-4, 25 pts. 8th West) get back to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over the LA Galaxy (1-13-5, 8 pts. 15th West) at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park. Djordje Mihailovic and Calvin Harris provided the goals for Colorado with the back line and goalkeeper Nico Hansen preserving the club’s sixth clean sheet of the season.
Following close to a two-hour weather delay, the 2024 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs rematch between the Colorado Rapids and LA Galaxy finally kicked off in Commerce City. Wednesday’s match marked the first time that these two clubs have faced off in 2025 and the 86th time since the league began in 1996.
Right out of the gate, the Rapids attack was on the front foot and created multiple chances early. Djordje Mihailovic and Rafael Navarro connected for a chance that resulted in the ball finding the back of the net, but was eventually called back for an offside. Despite the goal not counting, it was clear that this Rapids side had goals in them right from the jump in this matchup.
The Colorado attack continued their positive play from there, eventually leading to the match’s opening goal in the 24th minute. After strong pressing play from the squad’s midfield forced a turnover from the LA backline, defender Sam Vines found himself with the ball along the left wing. The Homegrown Player then quickly whipped in a cross right to the head of Mihailovic, who sent in a strong header into the bottom left corner of the net.
The goal for Mihailovic was his eighth of the season and his 11th goal contribution of 2025, extending his club-lead in both categories. Vines’ assist marked his first of the season and the sixth of his career in MLS.
From there, the attacking players continued their impressive play to start the match. Just four minutes later, the home side managed to double their lead against the reigning MLS Cup champions.
The play started from the Rapids back line, with defender Chidozie Awaziem threading a ball through the middle of the pitch to find Ted Ku-DiPietro. From there, Ku-DiPietro played the ball to Navarro, who quickly laid a pass back to the midfielder. He then played another pass with one-touch to a streaking Calvin Harris, who made no mistake with a perfectly placed shot to put his side up 2-0.
The goal was Harris’ second of the season and the eighth of his career in MLS. Ku-DiPietro's assist was his second since joining the Rapids this past offseason and the ninth of his career in MLS.
It was more of the same in the second half, with Colorado maintaining control of the match after play resumed. The Galaxy did have extra energy out of the halftime break and created some of their best chances of the match out of the halftime break. That energy was matched by the Rapids back line and goalkeeper Nico Hansen, who stopped any chance that came even close to the net, preserving the clean sheet.
When the final whistle came, the scoreline remained the same as it was at halftime, giving the Rapids a crucial three points following a three-match losing skid.
The clean sheet by Hansen marked his third of the season, with all three coming since May 17. In that span, the goalkeeper is tied for the most clean sheets by a goalkeeper in MLS. Hansen also ranks second in saves (26) and save percentage (83.9%) in that time frame. The shutout was the club’s sixth of the season, putting them into a tie for the third-most in MLS this season.
Colorado will look to continue this run of form with a quick turnaround for their match against New England Revolution this Saturday, June 29. Kickoff at Gilette Stadium is set for 5:30 p.m. MT with coverage available on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, ColoradoRapids.com, and the Colorado Rapids App.
