Rolfe, Blanco Burn Galaxy

Five days after breaking out of a 12-game winless streak in stunning fashion, the Los Angeles Galaxy again reverted back to their old form, allowing the Chicago Fire to capitalize on sloppy play and mental breakdowns on their way to a 3-1 victory on Thursday night.

Chris Rolfe, who had found himself riding the pine lately under Fire head coach Denis Hamlett, was injected back into the starting lineup and took full advantage of the opportunity, scoring once in each half. His first multi-goal game in three years, Rolfe's strikes came sandwiched around a goal from Cuauhtemoc Blanco that ultimately proved to be the game-winner."Anytime you are not in the top XI, you are disappointed," said Rolfe after the game. "Did it have an influence on my play tonight? Probably not - every time you are on the field you just want to do your best to help the team and I'm glad I was able to help the team tonight."

Rolfe wasted little time getting on the scoresheet, pushing Chicago in front after just 13 minutes after a less-than-pretty run down the middle of the field. With the ball getting away from him several times, Rolfe managed to gain control, shake off his defenders and cut back at the top of the box, leaving him in position to unleash a curling left-footed shot that beat Galaxy goalkeeper Josh Wicks at the far post.

"I was pretty happy with the goal and glad that I could keep my composure with the ball," Rolfe said. "I had the time during the play, I actually stepped on the ball and got my head up which helped frame the shot."

On the other side of the field, the league's best defense kept the Galaxy offense in check most of the night, shutting down David Beckham and Landon Donovan for large spells of the match. The one chink in Chicago's armor came before halftime, when Eddie Lewis got on the end of a cross from Chris Klein, flicking the ball past Jon Busch for his first MLS goal since 1999 - when he was a member of the San Jose Clash.

The second half started out as bad as the first for Los Angeles, and a nightmarish two-minute spell near the hour-mark completely did them in.

First, it was Blanco who wrestled the lead back for the Fire, showing uncharacteristic speed in the 57th minute to beat defender Troy Roberts to a through ball deep in the Galaxy zone. Wicks had come far off his line to deal with the ball, but Blanco smartly pushed the ball out in front of him at the same time as Wicks and Roberts collided, allowing Cuauhtemoc to slot the ball into an empty net for his first goal in 17 games.

The game's final goal would be tallied just two minutes later, as Rolfe collected a long pass from Gonzalo Segares and sprinted in toward goal, opting to shoot while just outside the box. Wicks initially got his hand to the ball, but could only turn around and watch helplessly as it trickled into the net to cement the 3-1 scoreline on the night.

*photo courtesy ISIPhotos.com