CF Montréal Rally to Draw 10-Man LA Galaxy 2-2 as Prince Owusu Strikes Again

JT Marcinkowski came off his line in the 68th minute to meet Prince Owusu, and he arrived a beat too late. The foul earned the LA Galaxy goalkeeper a straight red card, and what had been shaping up as a tidy road win at Stade Saputo turned into a long, nervy siege.

Eleven minutes later, Owusu climbed to head Luca Petrasso's cross into the bottom right corner, and CF Montréal and the LA Galaxy finished 2-2 on Saturday night. The visitors had led for more than half an hour thanks to a Maya Yoshida back-heel, but ten men at the end of a draining week could not see it home. Nobody won. Only one locker room felt like it lost.

Two Goals in Three Minutes

Both keepers were busy early. Yoshida headed a Robert Taylor delivery wide in the sixth minute, and Marcinkowski had to deal with Matty Longstaff's effort from the middle of the box in the 11th.

Montréal broke through in the 16th. Marcinkowski parried Longstaff's shot from the right side of the area, and Daniel Ríos was standing in exactly the right spot to tuck the rebound in from point-blank range.

The lead survived three minutes. Taylor found Kyogo Furuhashi in the middle, Thomas Gillier stopped the first attempt, and Rubén Ramos lashed the loose ball home with his left foot. It was the 19-year-old's first career MLS goal and his first in 14 regular-season appearances, according to the Galaxy.

The rest of the half was mostly Owusu knocking on the door. Marcinkowski saved his left-footed shot in the 31st minute, and he nodded a Dani Pereira delivery wide in the 42nd. Level at the break, 1-1.

A Center Back With a Party Trick

Montréal sent on Brandan Craig for Brayan Vera at halftime, and the Galaxy punished the hosts almost instantly. Gillier pushed a Joseph Paintsil shot behind in the 47th minute, and off the set piece that followed, Paintsil kept the move alive with a low ball, Justin Haak let it go by, and Yoshida finished with his heel. Defenders are not supposed to score like that.

The Galaxy had real looks at a third. Furuhashi forced another Gillier save in the 56th minute and Haak had a shot blocked in the same minute. Montréal emptied three changes onto the field around the hour, bringing on Brayan Ceballos, Fabian Herbers and Alexis Sánchez, while Greg Vanney answered with Hirving Lozano and Erik Thommy.

The Moment It Flipped

Craig was booked in the 67th minute. One minute later, Marcinkowski charged out, fouled Owusu and saw red. Vanney sent on backup keeper Novak Micovic for left back John Nelson in the 72nd minute, with Julián Aude replacing Isaiah Parente at the same time.

Vanney did not hide his frustration with the decision. "He thought he could get there in time, and obviously, he didn't, leaving us in a tough position," he said.

Montréal smelled it. Sánchez sent a direct free kick high and wide in the 73rd minute, and Craig fired from distance twice in three minutes, the second one just missing. Then Petrasso clipped one more cross into the middle, and Owusu met it with his head. Level again, 2-2.

The hosts kept coming. Micovic made a big save on Ríos in the 88th minute, Longstaff blazed over a minute later, and Ceballos headed wide in the eight minutes of added time. The wildest twist came at the very end, when Lozano ran onto a fast break and pulled a shot wide from the middle of the box. Ten men, one swing to steal it, and it missed.

Who Showed Up

Prince Owusu was the problem all night. Four shots, two on target, and the goal that saved the point. It was his 13th goal of the season, which the AP noted matches a career high, and he has now scored in four straight league matches: against New England, D.C. United, Columbus and the Galaxy. He also drew the foul that changed the game.

Maya Yoshida scored the most stylish goal of the night and post three shots from center back. The Galaxy said it was his second goal of 2026 and the seventh regular-season goal of his time with the club.

Rubén Ramos delivered the breakthrough moment of his young career and enjoyed every second. "Finally, happy it came. I've been waiting for almost two years now for it and I'm glad that it came today," he said.

Luca Petrasso was Montréal's best supplier. Beyond the assist, he set up both of Craig's late attempts, exactly the work you want from a fullback against ten men.

Thomas Gillier made three saves for Montréal, two of them on Furuhashi.

The Numbers That Matter

• 57.3 percent possession for Montréal, who out-shot the Galaxy 15 to 9 and put six on target to LA's five.
• 29 crosses from the hosts, only nine of them accurate. It took one good one.
• 29 clearances and 12 interceptions for the Galaxy, against nine and six for Montréal. That tells you who spent the night defending.
• Four saves between Marcinkowski (three) and Micovic (one), to Gillier's three.

What It Means

For the Galaxy, this is a point with a frown on it. They are now 6-8-8 with 26 points and have closed a three-match week with a 1-0 loss at Houston, Wednesday's 1-0 win over San Jose that ended a six-game winless run, and this draw. That is four points from the week, and the AP noted LA has now taken a red card in three consecutive games. Vanney's summary of the week was blunt: "Obviously picking up our third red card this week, it's not a great formula for getting points."

Montréal sit at 5-6-10 with 21 points, but the trend is pointing up. Draws against New England and D.C. United, a win at Columbus and this comeback make four league matches without a loss, the club's longest such run this season. They head to Inter Miami next, while the Galaxy return to California to visit San Diego FC on Aug. 29.

Final Whistle

Some streaks you want. Owusu scoring in four straight league games is one of them. The Galaxy collecting red cards like Pokémon is not, and their coach knows it. "There's rarely a season I can remember being with a team that's taken three red cards in a season, much less in a week," Vanney said. The Galaxy did enough to win this one. They just could not stay eleven long enough to collect.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Postgame quotes as reported by LA Galaxy (lagalaxy.com). Additional context from the AP recap via ESPN.