Jamie Sabau - Getty Images
Was Clint Mathis' retirement a move the Galaxy needed to make to create some roster and salary
cap space?
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Scribbling and scattershooting while wondering whatever happened to Doctor Khumalo .
I'll talk about this kit in a minute...
We've heard it before Landon Donovan wants to go to Everton.
It's not truly newsworthy.
When a player goes to the media and says something witness Wayne Rooney this week it's a signal
that ranges somewhere between they are either not happy or they want something to happen OR witness
Robert Mancini's Man City Landon comments in the summer just a issuing courtesy, a nicety, to the
audience (the radio show was in Merseyside) that will hear the report.
D.C. United and FC Dallas won matches, Chivas USA registered a blowout and Edson Buddle didn't
score. Any of these events on their own might have come as a surprise, but having all of them take
place in last night's MLS action tells you just how unpreditable MLS can be.
Here is a rundown of last night's scores:
D.
Los Angeles Galaxy used to be the most distinguished underachievers of the MLS before Bruce
Arena took over. Ever since the arrival of Arena, however, things have taken a drastic turn for the
better. Now, it seems that the Galaxy are overachieving so much that they have entered a league of
their own.
The MLS Player's Union released its 2010 salary list today.
The two highest earners in the league: David Beckham ($6.5 million) and Landon Donovan ($2.1
million).
Others on the Galaxy:
Donovan Ricketts $160,000
Omar Gonzales $157,000
Dema Kovalendo $136,500
Clint Mathis $120,750
Izzy Sesay $107,000 (!
BY ADAM SERRANO
The 2010 season may be only be a few days dead, but the 2011 season has already kicked off with
the Expansion Draft.
The Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers added ten players to their initial MLS rosters
on Wednesday as their clubs began to take shape for the 2011 season.
BY ADAM SERRANO
The 2010 season may be only be a few days dead, but the 2011 season has already kicked off with
the Expansion Draft.
The Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers added ten players to their initial MLS rosters
on Wednesday as their clubs began to take shape for the 2011 season.
Galaxy 3 Union 1
Hot-shot Edson Buddle: nine goals in six games - and counting (AP Photos).
Phil Collin filed the game story.
Standings
The Galaxy were in control of this one from the outset and the red card in the first half for
the Union pretty much sealed this one well before the final whistle.
*Edson Buddle and Landon Donovan were the difference for the Galaxy in a 2-1 win over D.C.
United.
Notable: Buddle now has an MLS-best 11 goals.
The Galaxy are now 12-2-3, 12 points ahead of second place Real Salt Lake in the Western
Conference.
Galaxy lineup: Donovan Ricketts; A.
Galaxy 2 San Jose Earthquakes 1
Come dancing: LD requires the attention of two San Jose players (Photo by Staff Photographer
Sean Hiller).
Game story.
Attendance: 17,712.
Galaxy lineup: Donovan Ricketts; Sean Franklin, Leonardo, Omar Gonzalez, Todd Dunivant (Eddie
Lewis 77'); Dema Kovalenko (Tristan Bowen 60'), Landon Donovan, Juninho, Michael Stephens; Edson
Buddle, Alan Gordon (Jovan Kirovski 81').
Galaxy 0 Puerto Rico Islanders 2
The Galaxy fell further behind when former D.C. United striker Nicholas Addlery got in behind a
static Gregg Berhalter and finished off a Scott Jones cross from about seven yards out right on 45
minutes.
The Galaxy will only have themselves to blame if they go to Puerto Rico next week facing a
two-goal deficit.
Chivas USA forward Alan Gordon has been suspended two games and fined 1,000 dollars "for violent
conduct" during Chivas' 3-0 victory over Toronto FC on Saturday.
In the 74th minute of the game, with Chivas leading 1-0, Gordon caught Toronto defender Adrian
Cann in the face with his arm.
Teitur Thordarson and the Vancouver Whitecaps were very busy on Wednesday.
Trying to keep up here because a lot has happened today since the expansion draft:
Portland Timbers traded:
- Dax McCarty and allocation money to D.C. United for Rodney Wallace and a 4th round pick.
Galaxy 2 Real Salt Lake 1
Landon Donovan and the Galaxy were flying Saturday over Robbie Russell and RSL at some points
(AP Photo).
Phil Collin filed this game story.
Notable: Buddle has scored multiple goals in each of the Galaxy's last three
games, the first player to do so since Landon Donovan, who scored seven goals in three games in
April 2008.
Otto Greule Jr - Getty Images
Steve Zakuani will have to bring his A-game today.
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Dave will be on KJR radio previewing the game at 12:30.
And those words are: Dominant. Simply dominant.
Three games in eight days. One at home, one at altitude in Colorado, one in front of the largest
home crowd in MLS. Three games, one result: win-win-win. The best Galaxy team since 2002 has staked
its claim on the entire league and no one looks interested in responding.
Saturday at 4:30 on FSW the LA Galaxy travel to Columbus Crew stadium to take on the Crew in a
showdown of the two best teams through the first third of the MLS season. You can watch it on TV or
you can follow along with the liveblog that Jen will be moderating.
The Galaxy bring their 8-0-2 record in to face Columbus' 6-0-2 mark in the toughest challenge
the team has faced all year.
Columbus Crew 0 Galaxy 2
When I was in elementary school in England a teacher wrote in my report card something to the
effect that Nicholas determines the minimum amount of work needed to get the job done.
And does it. Successfully.
I bet the Galaxy can relate.
Full disclosure: after spending Saturday and today working in the office I was not inclined to
spend my evening blogging from the Home Depot Center press box, too.
So I headed to my favorite watering hole to watch the game from there.
Who would have thought:
*The Galaxy would barely miss a beat in the absence of Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle and have
now scored a half dozen goals in their last two games.
Galaxy 2 Chicago Fire 3
Invisible man: Collins John scored the Fire's second goal within five minutes of kick off (AP
Photo).
Game story.
I was so smug.
Galaxy game on wedding anniversary? No problem.
Arrange to sit in one of the new (this season) cabanas with wife at Stadium Club.
Again.
But this time such was the intensity that AC Milan today was moved to issue a statement:
"A.C. Milan reconfirm that both players Ronaldinho and Thiago Silva are not for
sale."
That's it.
Still, so far the player and his representatives seem to be milking the speculation - or at
least not forcefully quelling it - that variously have Ronaldinho:
*Staying at AC Milan.
By TRAVIS CLARK
Another packed weekend of MLS action beckons, and a change to catch a number of the new signings
clubs have landed of late.
Sunday night's meeting in Bridgeview, Ill. between the Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls is a
chance to catch a glimpse of five Designated Players on the field at once a first for MLS.
Despite being a little thin at the striker position, the LA Galaxy dealt Alan Gordon to Chivas
USA, which may seem a little odd... for the moment.
We now know that Galaxy coach Bruce Arena made the move in order to clear some cap space on the
roster for a new potential signing.
"We want to be prepared if we're going to make any additional moves this year to be able to do
it," Arena said yesterday.
FC Dallas 1 Chivas USA 0
Former Galaxy goalkeeper Kevin Hartman continued to provide punch in Dallas today with his sixth
shutout of the year (AP Photo).
A drab game if you're a Chivas USA fan (with the season sliding ever closer to irrelevancy)
punctuated by a great goal from the opposition and in particular Brek Shea, whose maturity on
calmly and precisely placing the header in the net is a seldom seen skill among young American
players.
Lovely night for soccer here at Home Depot Center where there's a slight breeze and a
temperature of 67 degrees.
Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena has opted for a 4-3-3 formation, perhaps in search of more firepower up
front against the expansion Union, who are ahead of only winless D.C. United (who lost again today)
in the Eastern Conference.
BY ADAM SERRANO
CARSON, CALIF -- It was another impressive offense performance for the Los Angeles Galaxy on
Saturday night as the club dominated the Philadelphia Union, earning a 3-1 victory.
AJ DeLaGarza opened the scoring with the second fastest goal in Galaxy history 53 seconds after
the opening whistle while Edson Buddle added two more goals to bring his season total to nine.
The MLS leaders, with a history of doing poorly at altitude, traveled from LA Wednesday and
handed the Colorado Rapids the team's first home loss of the season.
Los Angeles did just enough to get by the Rapids, 1-0, at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. It was the
Galaxy's first win in five visits since the Rapids moved into DSG.
Colorado Rapids 0 Galaxy 1
Buddle, Buddle, toil and trouble for the Revs (AP Photos).
I don't know what's more unusual, the fact Edson Buddle didn't score or that here we have a rare
photo of Galaxy owner Uncle Phil Anschutz laughing it up with Assistant Coach Cobi Jones (referred
to inexplicably in the AP Photo caption as an "unidentified member of the Galaxy").
Although the closing minutes were nail-biting, the Galaxy came away from Wednesday night's match
in Colorado with a 1-0 win over the Rapids.
Before I share my thoughts, please click over to the MLS Stats page and take a look. You don't
have to look at the stats just scroll down and look at the photos.
Looks like we nailed the Sounders starters, Evans and Marshall will both start. Only mild surprise
is Miguel Montano in for David Estrada on the reserve list.
The Galaxy did switch up their starters a bit. AJ DeLaGarza went from starting all seven games
to not even being on the reserve list.
LA forward Landon Donovan, following a one-goal, three assist effort against Seattle on
Saturday, and an assist on the lone goal against the Rapids on Wednesday, was named the MLS Player
of the Week for Week 7 by the North American Soccer Reporters on Monday.
The Galaxy kicked off the week on Wednesday with a game against the Colorado Rapids at Dick's
Sporting Goods Park.
....you know what, this Landon interview has turned into a god-damned kidneystone. Even Fake Sigi
is calling me out over it. Fine. Welcome to Planned Parenthood - hope you enjoy this abortion:
_____________________
DL: Let me start with the most important question first. What's Alan Gordon really like?
MLS resumed tonight and both Chivas USA and the Galaxy were in action:
Jesus Padilla and Heath Pearce tangle, right, Saturday at Home Depot Center (AP Photo).
*Chivas USA (3-9-1) lost its sixth straight game.
*Notable: Osael Romero scored his first goal for Chivas USA; the team conceded the game-winner
one minute later.
It's an overcast, if humid South Bay evening here in Carson where the field looks good and the
stands empty.
It looks like striker Alan Gordon found a magic lantern that made a wish come true - a third
start of the season. Landon Donovan is making the rounds of television shows and won't return until
the weekend.
(Photo by Robert Mora)
It's been a week since Jen or I updated this blog, for which we profusely apologize and blame
the World Cup and family vacations. It couldn't possibly be our own fault could it? No. Not in an
America ruled by reality TV.
In that week the Galaxy played no fewer than three games league matches at Toronto and home to
Seattle and a home tie with AC St.
*Chivas USA striker Alan Gordon will miss two of the club's last three games after the MLS
Disciplinary Committee today decided the former Galaxy striker deserved additional punishment after
he was given a 74th minute yellow card during last weekend's game against Toronto for "endangering
the safety" of defender Adrian Cann.
Well...the expansion draft is over...and the short story is we're saying goodbye to Dax McCarty
and Atiba Harris. Both players have performed admirably while in Dallas, and we wish them the
best of luck with Portland and Vancouver (respectively).
Here are the results of the draft: (in order of when they were taken)
Portland Timbers:
Dax McCarty (FC Dallas)
Eric Brunner (Columbus)
Adam Moffat (Columbus)
Anthony Wallace (Colorado)
David Horst (RSL)
Robbie Findley (RSL)
Peter Lowry (Chicago)
Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas)
Jordan Graye (DC)
Arturo Alvarez (San Jose)
Vancouver Whitecaps:
Sanna Nyassi (Seattle)
Atiba Harris (FC Dallas)
Nate Sturgis (Seattle)
Shea Salinas (Philadelphia)
Alan Gordon (Chivas)
O'Brian White (Toronto)
Alejandro Moreno (Philadelphia)
Joe Cannon (San Jose)
Jonathan Leathers (Kansas City)
John Thorrinton (Chicago)
So Dallas fans are obviously going to be upset at the loss of our beloved Ginger Ninja, Dax
McCarty, but I hesitate to write it off as a total loss.
Attending the 2010 MLS SuperDraft in Philadelphia this past week, it was easy to see the influence
that the college game has on Major League Soccer.
15 of the 16 players selected in the first round were college soccer products,
including #1 pick Danny Mwanga of Oregon State, who was selected by the expansion Philadelphia
Union.
Galaxy 2 Union 1
Edson Buddle scored his league-leading eighth goal in five games in the 27th minute.
The goal came from a Landon Donovan corner kick that reached the head of Alan Gordon. Union
goalkeeper Chris Seitz parried the initial attempt, but the ball fell to Buddle who scrambled it
home from six yards, side-footing the ball into the left-hand corner of the net.
