FC Dallas midfielder Ferreira kisses the trophy after they defeated Los Angeles Galaxy in their MLS Western Conference final match in Carson
FC Dallas midfielder Ferreira kisses the trophy after they defeated Los Angeles Galaxy in their MLS Western Conference final match in Carson. Reuters

LA Galaxy were handed a sound beating by FC Dallas at the Home Depot Center in the Western Conference Final. Dallas scored cruised to a 3-0 victory in the semi-final with goals from Ferreira, John and Chavaz. The defeat means Galaxy are second-best in Western Conference and it will be Dallas who will meet Colorado Rapids in the MLS Cup final.

Galaxy started the half in typical fashion, attacking from the word go. But they found a wall in the form of former Galaxy star and current Dallas keeper Hartman who kept his side in the game, blocking away the torrent of Galaxy shots. For his display, Hartman was judged man of the match and rightly so as he frustrated Galaxy to no end despite their best efforts to score.

Another key player for Dallas was midfielder Ferreira. The Columbian was instrumental as he made vital interceptions, and held on to possession to control the tempo of the game. His performance also saw him open the scoring when on the 26th minute, a superb passing move found Ferreira at the edge of the goal. The 31 year-old hit a half-volley on the turn from 20 yards into the right corner of the rooted keeper Donovan Ricketts' goal.

Dallas dominated the mid-field giving LA little chance to answer. A frustrated LA midfielder, Dema Kovalenko, was handed a yellow card after tackling hard one time too many.

Dallas started the second half with purpose. They gave the Galaxy defence no rest and it didn't take long for the second goal to arrive when in the 54th minute, when John tapped in a return ball after the initial corner was cleared.

Galaxy looked clueless. The only time they threatened was through a David Beckham free-kick which was magnificently saved by the brilliant Hartman. For the record, Beckham injured his groin 15 minutes into the game, but he carried on for the rest of the game playing through the pain.

Dallas wrapped things up in the 73rd minute. Chavaz was slipped through to the box and he made no mistake in finishing when one-on-one with the keeper.

LA betrayed signs of fatigue, especially in the last stages of the game, when they tried to give Buddle more time on the ball but failed to do so as their midfielders seemed incapable of pushing up and getting back in time to help out in defence.

Dallas became the new Western Conference champions with the victory and this performance will give them confidence in the MLS Cup final against Colorado Rapids.

Soccer