This Week Inside the Galaxy: 2010-Episode 6

In this week's episode of This Week Inside the Galaxy, we look ahead to the Galaxy's first match against the expansion Philadelphia Union and back to the Brit Night Celebrity Soccer Match.

Galaxy Look to Keep Eye on The Prize Against Expansion Union

The Galaxy are back at home this weekend as they take on the expansion Philadelphia Union on Saturday night at The Home Depot Center. The Union are 0-3-0 on the road so far in their debut MLS season while the Galaxy are a perfect 3-0-0 at home on the campaign.

Saturday’s game against the Union will be the first-ever game between the two sides. Last year, the Galaxy were 0-1-1 against the expansion Seattle Sounders FC, playing to a 1-1 draw at Qwest Field in May and losing 2-0 at The Home Depot Center in August.

Since MLS first expanded in 1998, the Galaxy are 10-5-3 against expansion teams, including a 7-3-0 mark at home. The Galaxy split their inaugural season series with both expansion teams in 1998, going 2-2 against Chicago and 1-1 against Miami. MLS next expanded in 2005 and LA won both of those series, sweeping Chivas USA with a 4-0-0 record and going 2-1-1 against Real Salt Lake. The Galaxy also won the season series with Toronto FC in 2007, tallying a 1-0-1 record against them.

While those numbers foreshadow a one-sided affair, Bruce knows that the team still has to play their game in order to get the full three points against Peter Nowak's side. As a result, the players went through a complete training session this afternoon in order to stay sharp and hopefully get back to their winning ways.

With that thought in mind, everyone stayed out on the field for some extra finishing work. Edson is still the only Galaxy player with a goal this season, leaving the rest of the squad chomping at the bit.

We caught up with a few of the guys to see what they had to say going into tomorrow night's matchup.

A.J. DeLaGarza...


Edson Buddle...


Tristan Bowen...


Landon Donovan...


Bruce Arena...

Don't Miss Letterman Tonight!

David Beckham will be a guest on the “Late Show with David Letterman” tonight at 11:35 p.m. on CBS. Below is a portion of the interview, just to tease you, so be sure to tune in tonight for the complete interview.

Edson Buddle Named MLS Player of the Month

In a nearly unanimous vote, Galaxy forward Edson Buddle has been named the MLS Player of the Month for March/April. Buddle had seven goals in five games in March and April to move to the top of the MLS scoring charts. This is the second Player of the Month award in Buddle's MLS career after first winning the award in August 2002 as a member of the Columbus Crew.

Click here to read about the announcement and we'll have more from Edson later today.

Back at it

The guys were off yesterday but they are back on the field this afternoon to ramp up their preparation ahead of Saturday's game against the Union.

But while the players and coaches were off, Luis Bueno and Larry Morgan have been busy with a number of pieces over at lagalaxy.com looking ahead to both this weekend's game against Philadelphia as well as next month's friendly with Boca Juniors.

A bit further south, Mark Zeigler of the San Diego Union News caught up with Jovan Kirovski to get his thoughts on his position with the club and his love of the game.

Finally, Landon was a guest of the Tony Bruno Show on Fox Sports Radio last night, chatting with the host about the Galaxy's hot start to the season, the Champions League Final pairing of Landon's former club Bayern Munich and Inter Milan and of course this summer's World Cup.

You can listen to the interview in its entirety here - just fast forward to the 24:20 mark for the complete 10-minute interview.

Galaxy Raw - Week 6

Galaxy Raw is your mid-week fix for all of the sights and sounds from training served up raw and unfiltered. In this edition, we get to watch a bit of training and then join in as media talk with Galaxy players and coaches about the club's international friendly against Boca Juniors on May 23 at 5pm at the HDC.

Galaxy to Face Boca Juniors on May 23

In line with many of the premier international friendlies that have come to Los Angeles in the past couple of years, the Galaxy announced today that they will host Boca Juniors at The Home Depot Center on Sunday, May 23.

Led by international stars such as Juan Román Riquelme and Martín Palermo, Boca will come to LA for the first time since 2004 to face the Galaxy.

“We are very excited to be hosting Argentina’s Boca Juniors, who are one of the most prestigious clubs in the world with an incredible tradition of winning championships,” said LA Galaxy President of Business Operations Tom Payne. “It is a thrilling game for our fans and one that will feature Argentina’s Riquelme and Palermo, and continues our commitment to provide our fans the chance to see the Galaxy face off against some of the best international competition.”

Galaxy full Season Ticket Holders will be able to use their Bonus Game B tickets for the match. Additionally, there will be a special pre-sale for all full season ticket holders beginning on Wednesday, April 28 at 10 a.m. Tickets will then go on sale to the general public starting on Friday, April 30 at 10 a.m. with tickets starting at just $20 by calling 1-877-3GALAXY (342-5299) or by visiting www.lagalaxy.com and at all Ticketmaster locations.

Berhalter Talks About Kamara Miss

It's been one of the most talked about moments of the young MLS season, Kei Kamara's goal that was called back against the Galaxy on Saturday night in Kansas City. Here is what Gregg Behalter had to say about it after the game.

Reaction to 0-0 Draw with Kansas City

We'll have more later from tonight's game, but here are a few short soundbites from Bruce, Landon in Gregg from after tonight's game.

LA GALAXY HEAD COACH BRUCE ARENA

On the game
"It was a very ugly game in a difficult venue. No surprise that it was going to look like that. I think the conditions were magnified (because of the field). It was a difficult, ugly game. We knew that coming in, and we knew that when you leave."

On the play of Donovan Ricketts in goal
"Donovan (Ricketts) had a good night. He had a couple shots that he did a good job not giving up a rebound. He was in a good position to do well there. It was apparent that it was going to be a low scoring game, a one-goal game. Unfortunately we weren't able to finish it off. We were fortunate, obviously, in the first half that there was a player with a handball with the goal. That's the kind of game we anticipated it was going to be here."

LA GALAXY FORWARD LANDON DONOVAN

On the game
"I thought we played okay. We're disappointed a little bit in ourselves because we know we can play better."

On his opportunity late in the second half
"I got a good clearance. Someone cleared the ball well and did a great job putting the ball in position and I couldn't quite pull away from the defenders."

LA GALAXY DEFENDER GREGG BERHALTER

On his season debut
"I glad to get back with the team. I've been out for a while. You always have to worry about your fitness in the first game and getting a result. Our team has won four games in a row, but I think holding on for a tie is a positive. We got on the road, and we got a point. It was good that we didn't give up any goals."

On the handball negating a goal for Kansas City
"It was unbelievable. It was one of the most unbelievable things I've seen in soccer. It was unfortunate for Kamara but it was a handball and credit the linesman for seeing it."

Ricketts Stars as Galaxy Remain Ubeaten with 0-0 Draw

LA Galaxy 0, Kansas City Wizards 0
Saturday, April 24, 2010
CommunityAmerica Ballpark — Kansas City, Mo.

Scoring Summary:
None

Misconduct Summary:
LA – Juninho (Yellow Card) 35’
LA – Chris Birchall (Yellow Card) 58’
KC – Davy Arnaud (Yellow Card) 74’
LA – Edson Buddle (Yellow Card) 94+

Lineups:
LA Galaxy: Donovan Ricketts; Todd Dunivant, Gregg Berhalter, Omar Gonzalez, A.J. DeLaGarza; Chris Birchall (Jovan Kirovski 68’), Mike Magee (Alan Gordon 82’), Juninho (Chris Klein 75’), Michael Stephens; Landon Donovan©, Edson Buddle.

Subs Not Used: Josh Saunders, Alex Cazumba, Bryan Jordan, Tristan Bowen.

Kansas City Wizards: Jimmy Nielsen; Roger Espinoza, Pablo Escobar (Aaron Hohlbein 69’), Matt Besler, Michael Harrington; Jack Jewsbury, Stephane Auvray, Ryan Smith, Davy Arnaud©, Josh Wolff (Chance Myers 80’); Kei Kamara (Birahim Diop 82’).

Subs Not Used: Eric Kronberg, Santiago Hirsig, Craig Rocastle, Teal Bunbury.

Notes:
• With the draw, the Galaxy are now 4-0-1 on the season, giving them 13 points. They remain alone in first place in the Western Conference, three points ahead of second place Colorado, who defeated New England 2-1 earlier in the day.
• Bruce Arena made one change to the team that defeated Real Salt Lake last Saturday at The Home Depot Center. Gregg Berhalter made his first appearance of the season for the Galaxy, replacing the injured Sean Franklin. Berhalter played in central defense, moving A.J. DeLaGarza to right back where he spent most of the 2009 season.
• In addition to Franklin, the Galaxy were also without Dema Kovalenko, Leonardo, Eddie Lewis and Clint Mathis who all missed the game because of injury.
• For the first time this season, the Galaxy did not score in the first half.
• The Galaxy recorded a shutout for the fourth time in five games this season.
• Donovan Ricketts made a season-high six saves on the night.
• The Galaxy allowed a season-high six shots on goal. They had not allowed more than three shots on goal in any of their first four games of the season.
• Tonight’s game was the Galaxy’s first 0-0 draw since October 18, 2009 when they played to a 0-0 draw at Houston.
• Chris Klein made his 2010 debut, replacing Juninho in the 75th minute.
• Edson Buddle did not score in the game, snapping his streak of four consecutive games with a goal.
• Buddle remains the only player on the Galaxy with a goal this season.
• The attendance for today’s game was 10,045.
• The Galaxy are back in action next Saturday night when they host the expansion Philadelphia Union for the first time ever at The Home Depot Center. The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. (PT) and can be seen live on FOX Sports West starting with the Galaxy Live pregame show at 7 p.m. AM 570 and ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM will broadcast the game live on the radio in English and Spanish respectively, starting with their pregame shows at 7 p.m.
• For more about today’s game, please visit www.lagalaxy.com.

Live from CommunityAmerica Ballpark

Warmups are underway here at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City as the Galaxy look to continue their best start in more than a decade against the Wizards. LA is a 4-0-0 so far this season and can make it five wins in five attempts with a win in Kansas City where they are 8-12-3 all-time in the regular season.

Bruce Arena makes just one change to the team that defeated Real Salt Lake 2-1 last weekend with Gregg Berhalter making his 2010 debut in place of the injured Sean Franklin, who misses out after spraining his right ankle last weekend. With Berhalter in the lineup, A.J. DeLaGarza returns to right back where he spent most of the 2009 campaign.
Here is the complete Galaxy lineup...

------------Donovan-----------Buddle--------------

Magee---------------Juninho--------------Stephens

----------------------Birchall------------------------

Dunivant------Berhalter---Gonzalez------DeLaGarza

----------------------Ricketts------------------------

Subs: Saunders, Alex Cazumba, Klein, Kirovski, Jordan, Bowen, Gordon.

And this is how the Wizards will lineup for head coach Peter Vermes...

---------------------Kamara----------------------

Smith---------------Arnaud-----------------Wolff

---------------Jewsbury-----Auvray--------------

Espinoza-----Escobar------Besler-------Harrington

----------------------Nielsen-----------------------

Subs: Kronberg, Myers, Hohlbein, Hirsig, Diop, Rocastle, Bunbury

Off to See the Wizards

Gameday is here and the Galaxy have gone through all of their final preparations ahead of tonight's game against the Wizards at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. FS West will have all the action live starting with Galaxy Live at 5 p.m. with the game following at 5:30. You can also listen live on AM 570 and KWKU 1220 AM.

The Galaxy arrived in K.C. on Friday evening and went through a light training session, featuring some light jogging and stretching and some competitive games of 5v2 at the Wizards' Swope Park facility. The day ended with some crossing and shooting, with Chris Birchall even jumping in goal for a while to catch a few crosses.
Be sure to head over to lagalaxy.com for all the latest on the game from Luis Bueno, Larry Morgan and Mark Rogondino. Rogondino breaks down the game in his weekly View from the Booth, while Bueno shows how Bruce Arena shrunk the Galaxy's training field at The Home Depot Center (as illustrated by the photo below) in order to more closely resemble the size of the field they'll be playing on tonight.
We'll be back shortly before kickoff with the lineups and any late team news from CommunityAmerica Ballpark.

This Week Inside the Galaxy: 2010 - Episode 5

In this week's episode of This Week Inside the Galaxy, we look ahead to the Galaxy's trip to Kansas City and serve up Part 1 of the Galaxy Academy's recent tour of England.

Galaxy Raw - Week 5

Troy Bardy catches up with Birchall, Stephens, Omar, Gordo and Bruce ahead of Saturday night's game in Kansas City...

Cup of Joe - Todd Dunivant

Todd Dunivant sat down with Joe Tutino earlier this afternoon for the latest episode of Cup of Joe. The two discussed the club's fast start to the season and Todd's career path that saw him return to the Galaxy last season.

In case you missed it, you can watch the interview below.

Buddle's Second Nominated for MLS Goal of the Week

The MLS Goal of the Week voting is back and fans can head over to the MLS Insider to vote for the award.

This week, Edson Buddle has been nominated for the award thanks to his right-footed blast from 17 yards out for the game-winner in last weekend's win over Real Salt Lake.

Check below to see the goal again and then click here to vote.

Players React to 2-1 Win over Real Salt Lake

Postgame Flash Interview with Michael Stephens

LAGalaxy.com's Troy Bardy interviewed midfielder Michael Stephens on the field right after the Galaxy's 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake. In his first his first MLS start, Stephens helped the Galaxy improve to 4-0 and remain undefeated in 2010. LA travels to Kansas City next week to take on the Wizards on April 24.

Two More Buddle Goals Give LA 2-1 Win Over Real Salt Lake

LA Galaxy 2, Real Salt Lake 1
Saturday, April 17, 2010
The Home Depot Center — Carson, Calif.

Scoring Summary:
LA – Edson Buddle 6 (Landon Donovan 4) 12’
RSL – Kyle Beckerman 1 (Unassisted) 41’
LA – Edson Buddle 7 (Juninho 1) 76’

Misconduct Summary:
RSL – Andy Williams (Yellow Card) 56’
LA – Bryan Jordan (Yellow Card) 64’

Lineups:
LA Galaxy: Donovan Ricketts; Todd Dunivant, A.J. DeLaGarza, Omar Gonzalez, Sean Franklin (Bryan Jordan 43’); Chris Birchall, Mike Magee (Alex Cazumba 69’), Juninho (Alan Gordon 81’), Michael Stephens; Landon Donovan©, Edson Buddle.

Subs Not Used: Josh Saunders, Gregg Berhalter, Chris Klein, Jovan Kirovski.

Real Salt Lake: Nick Rimando; Robbie Russell, Nat Borchers, Tony Beltran; Kyle Beckerman©, Nelson Gonzalez (Collen Warner 64’), Will Johnson, Andy Williams; Alvaro Saborio (Pablo Campos 81’), Fabian Espindola (Robbie Findley 59’).

Subs Not Used: Kyle Reynish, Rauwshan McKenzie, Jean Alexandre, Luis Gil.

Notes:
• With the win, the Galaxy are now a perfect 4-0-0 on the season, giving them 12 points. They remain alone in first place in the Western Conference, five points ahead of the second place Houston Dynamo and Seattle Sounders FC, who each won earlier in the day.
• Bruce Arena made one change to the team that defeated Houston on Saturday at Robertson Stadium. Michael Stephens was brought into the starting lineup, replacing Leonardo, who missed the game with a right quad strain. Stephens started the game on the right side of midfield, while Sean Franklin moved to right back and A.J. DeLaGarza moved to central defense.
• In addition to Leonardo, the Galaxy were also without Dema Kovalenko, Eddie Lewis and Clint Mathis who all missed the game because of injury.
• Stephens was making the first start of his MLS career after playing each of the first three games of the season as a second half substitute.
• Gregg Berhalter made his season debut in the Galaxy’s 18-man squad after missing each of the first three games with a knee injury. He did not enter the game.
• Bryan Jordan made his 2010 debut in the game, coming on late in the first half in place of the injured Sean Franklin.
• Franklin, who had played the full 90 minutes in each of the Galaxy’s first three games of the season, was forced to leave the game in the 43rd minute with a left heel sprain.
• Edson Buddle gave the Galaxy a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute, heading home a Landon Donovan corner kick. Buddle’s goal was his league-leading sixth of the season while Donovan’s assist was his league-leading fourth of the season.
• With his first half goal tonight, Edson Buddle tied Carlos Ruiz’s MLS record for the most consecutive goals by one player to open a season. Ruiz scored the Galaxy’s first six goals of 2002 en route to a club record 24 goals on the season. Buddle then set a new MLS record with his game-winning goal in the second half, becoming the first player in MLS history to score each of his club’s first seven goals.
• Buddle has now scored in the first half of all four of the Galaxy’s games this season.
• Buddle has scored multiple goals in each of the Galaxy’s last three games. Prior to this, the last Galaxy player to score two or more goals in three straight games was Landon Donovan, who scored seven goals in three games from April 13-April 19 during the 2008 season, scoring twice in a 3-2 home loss to Toronto FC, twice more in a 2-2 home draw with Houston and finally three times in a 5-2 home win over Chivas USA.
• His seven goals on the season are two more than he scored in all of 2009.
• Juninho assisted on Buddle’s game-winning goal in the 76th minute for the first assist of his MLS career.
• For the first time this season, the Galaxy did not lead the game at halftime with the score tied 1-1.
• Kyle Beckerman tied the game at 1-1 in the 41st minute with his first goal of the season for Real Salt Lake. That was the first goal allowed by the Galaxy this season, snapping the club’s 311 minute streak without allowing a goal.
• Dating back to 2009, the Galaxy had not allowed a goal in 612 consecutive minutes of regulation, dating back to a 2-0 loss at Columbus on September 26. That was the Galaxy’s last regular season loss.
• A.J. DeLaGarza and Omar Gonzalez played the full 90 minutes together in central defense. This was the first time since the final game of their college careers at the University of Maryland that they had played alongside one another in central defense.
• The attendance for today’s game was 20,344.
• The Galaxy are back in action next Saturday night when they travel to Kansas City to face the Wizards at Community America Ballpark. The game kicks off at 5:30 p.m. (PT) and can be seen live on FOX Sports West starting with the “Galaxy Live” pregame show at 5 p.m. AM 570 and ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM will broadcast the game live on the radio in English and Spanish respectively, starting with their pregame shows at 5 p.m.
• For more about today’s game, please visit www.lagalaxy.com.

Ready for Real

For the first time since November 22, the LA Galaxy will face off against Real Salt Lake. While that game was played at Qwest Field with the MLS Cup on the line, today's game will be played at The Home Depot Center with the Galaxy looking for their first 4-0-0 start since the 1998 season.

Bruce Arena makes one change to the team that defeated Houston last weekend 2-0 at Robertson Stadium. Leonardo, who had played the full 90 minutes in each of the Galaxy's first three games of the season, misses out after suffering a right quad strain late in the week in training. He will be replaced by Michael Stephens, who lines up on the right side of midfield, moving Sean Franklin to right back and A.J. DeLaGarza into the middle, where he partners Omar Gonzalez.

Here is the full Galaxy team...

-------------Donovan---------Buddle--------------

Magee---------------Juninho--------------Stephens

----------------------Birchall-----------------------

Dunivant-----Gonzalez------DeLaGarza-----Franklin

---------------------Ricketts------------------------

Subs: Saunders, Berhalter, Alex Cazumba, Klein, Jordan, Kirovski, Gordon.

This Week Inside the Galaxy: 2010 - Episode 4

In this week's episode of This Week Inside the Galaxy, we give an in depth look back at the MLS Cup 2009 defeat to Real Salt Lake and ahead to Saturday's rematch between the two sides at The Home Depot Center.

Finishing Up the Week

Bruce Arena put the team through a light training session this morning at The Home Depot Center as the team gathered for the final time before Saturday night's MLS Cup rematch against Real Salt Lake. While some try to build up the game as the Galaxy's chance at revenge for last season's defeat in MLS Cup, the players are trying to stay grounded by looking at Saturday as just another game on the club's quest to return to the postseason.

With that in mind, the first team worked on set pieces and tactics at one end of the field while the rest of the squad played a small-sided game at the other end of the field. After a concise 60 minute workout, the full squad got together for some crossing and finishing drills before heading inside for one last meeting ahead of the game.

Check out the photos below to see the shooting form of Stephens, Landon (with the left), Juninho, Gordo and Clint (as he unsuccessfully tries to chip Josh Saunders), and then scroll down to the bottom for the thoughts of Birchy, Todd and A.J. ahead of tomorrow night's game.


Birchall...

Todd...

A.J....

Rewatch Cup of Joe w/ Edson Buddle

In this week's episode of Cup of Joe, Galaxy play-by-play announcer Joe Tutino sat down with MLS leading goal scorer Edson Buddle. In case, you missed the live broadcast you can rewatch the interview below. Enjoy!

FOX 11's Wednesday's Child Segment

In case you did not catch FOX 11 news last night, below is the video of LA Galaxy forward Alan Gordon and defender Sean Franklin participating in FOX 11’s "Wednesday’s Child" segment with Christine Devine. For the behind the scenes video click here. Enjoy!

Video: Galaxy Raw - Week 4

Galaxy Raw is your mid-week fix for all of the sights and sounds from training served up raw and unfiltered. In this edition, we join in as media talk with Galaxy players and coaches about the win in Houston and their preparations for this Saturday's game against Real Salt Lake.

Enjoy!

Gordon and Franklin to Appear on FOX 11's Wednesday's Child Tonight at 10 p.m.

LA Galaxy forward Alan Gordon and defender Sean Franklin will be featured in FOX 11’s "Wednesday’s Child" segment with Christine Devine on Wednesday, April 14. Rebecca and Amy are this week’s Wednesday’s Child team of two sisters. Rebecca was born in 1997 and her sister Amy was born in 2001 and they both like outdoor activities. Both girls love soccer and have played on a soccer team, so the Galaxy decided to get to know the girls while giving them the opportunity to practice with Gordon and Franklin.

In Los Angeles, the show will air at 10 p.m. on FOX 11; but the segment will also re-air on Sunday, April 18 at the same time. Wednesday's Child, which is sponsored by the Freddie Mac Foundation, is a weekly adoption feature aimed at finding LA-area foster children a permanent and loving home. To learn more about adoption, please call 1-866-921-ADOPT (2367).

Below is a behind the scenes look at the shoot from last week. Be sure to tune in to FOX 11 tonight at 10 p.m. for the complete segement.

Back in LA

The LA Galaxy were back on the field at The Home Depot Center to begin preparations for Saturday’s game against Real Salt Lake. The first team went through a regeneration session with strength and conditioning coach Ben Yauss that included a light jog and stretching. Meanwhile, Arena and the rest of the coaching staff put the remainder of the squad through a full training sessions that included a warmup, possession game and small field game with goals and as always a little crossing and finishing to wrap up the day.

We had a chance to catch up with a few staff and players following training today to get their thoughts on Saturday’s win in Houston.

Dave Sarachan…


A.J. DeLaGarza…


Michael Stephens…


Here are a few shots from today’s session. Enjoy!

Locker Room Reaction

LOS ANGELES GALAXY HEAD COACH BRUCE ARENA

On the game:
“The positive is coming to Houston and getting three points, which is rare in this league. Obviously a great performance by Edson Buddle in the first half. Certainly we were fortunate with the send-off. We came in at halftime up two goals, and we were going to be quite content leaving here with a 2-0 victory. So we went out in the second half, played smart and wanted to make sure we played with 11 players for 90 minutes.”

On the physical nature of the contest:
“I don’t think there is any bad blood between the two teams. I think we both respect each other. They have an outstanding team, a fabulous coach, and every game is going to be competitive because it’s two teams that want to win.”

LOS ANGELES GALAXY FORWARD EDSON BUDDLE

On the game:
“I was able to capitalize on some mistakes and get an early goal. For the second goal, they had gotten a red card, and Sean played a great ball into the box.”

On the Dynamo:
“Houston is a team that is known for complaining to the referee and getting calls, and they kind of challenged the ref. They also win championships, so both ways they are a good team. They do what they do, and it’s not easy to win down here.”

LOS ANGELES GALAXY DEFENDER OMAR GONZALEZ

On the game:
“They really fought hard, but they really didn’t have too much offensively. I don’t think they had a shot on goal. They had some good counterattack opportunities, but other than that, I thought we played really well and held them to no shots.”

On Luis Landín’s red card:
“I think he just got frustrated and clubbed me from behind.”

LOS ANGELES GALAXY FORWARD LANDON DONOVAN

On the game:
“We knew if we could match their competitiveness and intensity that we were the better team and we were going to win.”

HOUSTON DYNAMO HEAD COACH DOMINIC KINNEAR

On the game:
“We gave them two chances, they scored two goals, and that’s the end of it. It’s tough to play with 10 men. I thought the defending on both goals was poor, and they took advantage of it.”

On Cam Weaver’s availability:
“We were trying to get him to be available, but he wasn’t feeling up to it, so that’s why he wasn’t on the bench tonight. We practice on a terrible field, and he twisted his knee, which made him reaggravate his injury.”

On physical play:
“I think anytime you lift your elbows for contact, it’s dangerous. Sometimes they are used to clear space, and sometimes they are used for other things, and there were some tonight that were questionable.”

On playing with 10 men:
“I thought in the end we did look a little tired, with about 10 minutes to go, which is to be expected. But the guys showed a lot of heart in the second half.”

HOUSTON DYNAMO GOALKEEPER PAT ONSTAD

On the first goal:
“I was upset with myself. Ultimately, my job is to keep the ball out of the net, and that first goal was from a horrendous angle. I should never get beaten there.”

On the second goal:
“I’m not going to point fingers anywhere around this locker room. I think everyone leaves their heart on the field. You saw that in the second half, these guys leaving everything out there in what was a losing cause. The only person I’m concerned with is my performance, and it was poor, and unfortunately it cost us the points tonight.”

HOUSTON DYNAMO FORWARD LUIS ANGEL LANDIN

On his red card:
“I don’t know if you saw, but there had been a lot of elbows and hard tackles that I got. Unfortunately, I reacted wrong and now you see the consequences.”

Buddle Does It Again; Galaxy Beat Houston 2-0

Watch the highlights: mlssoccer.com

LA Galaxy 2, Houston Dynamo 0
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Robertson Stadium — Houston, TX.

Scoring Summary:
LA – Edson Buddle 4 27’
LA – Edson Buddle 5 (Sean Franklin 2) 45’

Misconduct Summary:
HOU – Andrew Hainault (Yellow Card) 24’
LA – Omar Gonzalez (Yellow Card) 25’
LA – Juninho (Yellow Card) 38’
HOU – Luis Landin (Red Card) 44’
LA – Edson Buddle (Yellow Card) 52’
HOU – Brad Davis (Yellow Card) 67’

Lineups:
LA Galaxy: Donovan Ricketts; Todd Dunivant, Leonardo, Omar Gonzalez, A.J. DeLaGarza; Mike Magee, Chris Birchall (Jovan Kirovski 83’), Juninho (Michael Stephens 80’), Sean Franklin; Landon Donovan©, Edson Buddle (Alan Gordon 67’).

Subs Not Used: Josh Saunders, Bryan Jordan, Chris Klein, Tristan Bowen.

Houston Dynamo: Pat Onstad, Andrew Hainault, Bobby Boswell (Corey Ashe 46’), Eddie Robinson, Mike Chabala, Brian Mullan, Geoff Cameron, Richard Mulrooney (Lovel Palmer 28’), Brad Davis, Dominic Oduro (Danny Cruz 75’), Luis Landin.

Subs Not Used: Tally Hall, Ryan Cochrane, Adrian Serioux, Craig Waibel.

Notes:
• With the win, the Galaxy are now 3-0-0 on the season, giving them nine points. They are now alone in first place in the Western Conference, five points ahead of Houston, Colorado, Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders FC. The Rapids lost to Kansas City 1-0 while Salt Lake and Seaatle played to a 2-2 draw on Saturday night as well.
• Bruce Arena made two changes to the team that defeated Chivas USA last week. Mike Magee started on the left side of midfield in place of the injured Alex Cazumba and A.J. DeLaGarza replaced Dema Kovalenko, who was a late scratch to the starting lineup. DeLaGarza started at right back while Sean Franklin moved up from right back to right midfield.
• In addition to Cazumba and Kovalenko, the Galaxy were also without Gregg Berhalter, Eddie Lewis and Clint Mathis because of injury.
• Alan Gordon and Jovan Kirovski both made their 2010 debuts. Gordon replaced Edson Buddle in the 67th minute while Kirovski came on in the 83rd minute for Chris Birchall. Gordon and Kirovski missed the first two games of the season with a left knee bruise and a left knee sprain, respectively.
• Edson Buddle’s goal in the 45th minute was his 30th in a Galaxy uniform and moved him into a tie for fifth place on the club’s all-time scoring list with forward Eduard Hurtado. After Hurtado, midfielder Mauricio Cienfuegos ranks fourth on the list with 35, followed by forward Carlos Ruiz with 51 and forward Landon Donovan with 64. Current Assistant Coach and former midfielder Cobi Jones is the Galaxy’s all-time scoring leader with 70 goals.
• Buddle is first Galaxy player to score in each of the first three games of the season since Carlos Ruiz did so in 2004. Ruiz holds the Galaxy record for the most consecutive games with a goal to open a season with four. He scored in each of the first four games of 2002 and 2004.
• Buddle is now the MLS leader in goals scored this season with five, two ahead of Real Salt Lake’s Javier Morales.
• When Buddle scores, the Galaxy’s record is 14-5-5.
• Donovan Ricketts did not need to make a save to earn his third clean sheet of the season.
• Ricketts now has 12 clean sheets in 29 career regular season games with the Galaxy.
• The Galaxy kept a clean sheet for the third consecutive game. With their third consecutive shutout to start the 2010 season, the Galaxy become just third team in MLS history to start the season with three shutouts. The other two teams were the Dallas Burn in 1999 and Seattle Sounders FC in 2009. The 2007 New York Red Bulls, who were coached by Bruce Arena, hold the record for most consecutive shutouts to start the season with four.
• Sean Franklin assisted on both of Buddle's goals in the game. Franklin now has three assists on the season, setting a new career high for most assists in one season.
• LA is now 3-0-0 for the first time since the 1998 season, when the club rattled off nine wins to begin the campaign. The club’s longest winning streak to start a season is 12, set during the inaugural season of 1996. However, both win streaks included shootout wins.
• The attendance for today’s game was 16,459.
• The Galaxy are back in action next Saturday night when they host Real Salt Lake at The Home Depot Center in a rematch of last year’s MLS Cup. The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. (PT) and can be seen live nationally on FSC. KLAC AM 570 and ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM will broadcast the game live on the radio in English and Spanish, respectively.
• For more about today’s game, please visit www.lagalaxy.com.

All Systems Are Go For Houston

Greetings from Houston's Robertson Stadium, where the LA Galaxy are set to take on the Dynamo for the first time since last year's MLS Western Conference Championship/. In case you were wondering they still remember.

A sold out crowd is expected to be on hand for this one. The game will be broadcast in LA on FS-West at 10 p.m. (Tape Delay) and KTLK 1150 AM (click here to listen live) and KWKW 1330 AM ESPN Deportes Radio.

For this game, Bruce Arena has made two changes to the team that beat Chivas USA 2-0 last week, with A.J. DeLaGarza and Mike Magee replacing Dema Kovalenko and the injured Alex Cazumba. Additionally, Sean Franklin moves from the back line to the midfield and forwards Alan Gordon and Jovan Kirovski are making their first appearance of the season on the 18-man roster.

Here is the full team...

---------------Donovan---------Buddle--------------

Magee---------------------------------------Franklin

------------Kovalenko-------Birchall-----------------

Dunivant----Leonardo-----Gonzalez------DeLaGarza

---------------------Ricketts-------------------------

Subs: Saunders, Jordan, Gordon, Kirovski, Klein, Bowen, Stephens.

And for the Dynamo...

-------------------Landin--------Oduro-------------

Davis------------------Cameron-------------Mullan

----------------------Mulrooney---------------------

Chabla-------Boswell-------Robinson--------Hainault

----------------------Onstad-------------------------

Subs: Hall, Cochrane, Ashe, Palmer, Serioux, Waibel, Cruz

Academy Tour Ends with Win and Loss at West Ham

Cameron Souri had a hat trick and three others added solo tallies as the Galaxy U-16 squad claimed their second straight win, defeating West Ham 6-2.

The U-18s were not as fourtunate as they fell behind 3-0 inside the game's opening 25 minutes en route to a 5-0 defeat.

The team will now make their way over to Wembley for the FA Cup semifinal between Chelsea and Aston Villa.

Academy Teams Get First Results of England Tour

The LA Galaxy Youth Academy teams collected their first win and draw of their English tour, playing Ipswich Town to a 2-2 draw and earning a 3-0 victory. Ipswich manager Roy Keane watched a half of each game and surely came away impressed with a number of the Galaxy youngsters as they continued to grow, improve and adapt to the game since arriving in England a week ago.

The two Galaxy teams primarily stayed with their U-16 and U-18 setups, though a few players from each squad played for the other, to ensure that all players were receiving quality minutes and on field experience.

The team that was primarily made up of U-18's fell behind 2-0 inside their game's opening 30 minutes, with Ipswich scoring twice from close range. Additionally, goalkeeper Omar Zeenni had to make a pair of extraordinary stops to keep the deficit at two.

Despite the wealth of chances against them, the Galaxy had been the better of the teams, but could not convert any of their chances until Eric Verso got his first goal of the tour just before the half.

LA continued to run the game in the second half, missing a few chances to equalize before Christian Alvarado grabbed his second goal in as many games to make the score 2-2. Riley Wolfe and Neil Ignacio, a U-16 forward who terrorized the Manchester City and Ipswich Town defenses, nearly grabbed the winner for LA, only to see their shots flash wide or saved by the keeper to let the game end 2-2.

On another field at Ipswich's training ground, T.J. Casner scored twice, once on either side of halftime and Juan Mendoza added another in a convincing 3-0 victory.

Similar teams will play West Ham's U-16's and U-17's tomorrow at Little Heath before heading over to Wembley for the FA Cup Semifinal between Aston Villa and Chelsea. The bus leaves early in the morning, making for a long day for all the players, but it will surely be an experience that they will never forget.

This Week Inside the Galaxy: 2010-Episode 3

In this week's edition of This Week Inside the Galaxy, we look ahead to Saturday's Western Conference Championship re-match against the Houston Dynamo, but first we go back to March 3rd and join Sean Franklin for his appearance on The Really Late Morning Show at M Bar in Hollywood. Enjoy!

England Through My Eyes - Galaxy U-18 Defender Joe Kearney

After weeks of hard work and anticipation, our U-16 and U-18 Galaxy squads prepared for an exciting ten-day trip to England. Arriving at the airport on Friday, April 2nd, I had few expectations and many hopes of what the trip would provide as an individual and for my team. I expected to play games, train, and tour the cities in which we sojourned. I hoped to gain unique experiences in a foreign country, and I thought these affairs would make our team closer and stronger in preparation for a meaningful stretch of games to make the playoffs.

After an aching, dreary flight, we spent the majority of our first day in England on route to Manchester via bus. Our coach Matt Mennell instructed us not to sleep, as it would completely throw off our sleep schedules. Some adhered to the advice, while others craftily found ways to evade our coaches intruding stares and admonition. One even found the bus floor as a temporary mattress for the ride.

After finally arriving in Manchester, we had a team dinner and spent the rest of the night relaxing and recovering. On Sunday, we headed off to the Everton Academy for a training session and later, a match between Everton and West Ham. I greatly appreciated the different techniques and lessons Everton Youth Coach Mick had to offer, and I was very excited for my first Premier League game. The old-fashioned stadium amazed me. The tightly packed fans all cheered and booed different referee decisions, and the West Ham and Everton fans were not shy to poke fun at one another.

The experience was like no sporting event I've witnessed before; I could only imagine how passionate the FA cup semi-final would be later in the week.

The next day, we headed off to the Blackburn Rovers Academy after defeating our first opposition--a failing bus. We were unprepared for the Blackburn side, who rudely awakened us to English Youth soccer. After resting for the evening, we prepared for two practices with the Manchester City Academy the next day. These two practices focused on individually on defensive and then offensive techniques and they surely proved that I know far less than I thought about the game.

I felt honored to work with two coaches with loads of Premier League experience and they bestowed boundless knowledge and advice within two, two-hour sessions. After solid training sessions, we had high hopes for our match against Manchester City, another powerful squad. We combined players from the U-16's and U-18's to play the match, and integrated all the ideas we had learned in practice. After a scoreless half, we knocked in a goal to take the lead. Unfortunately, the pressing Manchester offense found the holes in our defense twice, to take a 2-1 victory. I was very much satisfied with my own and the teams' endeavors, as we fought hard, and the game could have gone either way. We ate lunch with the Manchester City team, and learned how much alike our players are. We found out that we had played against three national team captains and players from as far as the Ivory Coast. We then boarded a bus on route to Norwich, where I stay now in a supposedly haunted hotel (which I believe is still to be determined).

I approached the hotel with little trepidation, until the fire alarm went off at midnight and all the doors were shut in the halls. Some of our team members showed their true spirit in the hallways, possibly waking up the rest of the hotel.

I can't wait for what England will unveil throughout the rest of the week.

The Final Stretch

The Galaxy Academy's England Tour is drawing to a conclusion with the group scheduled to return to Los Angeles on Monday evening.

This afternoon, coaches Kenny Arena and Matt Mennell will each lead teams that are comprised of both U-16 and U-18 players against Ipswich Town, the club at which former Galaxy coach Frank Yallop rose to prominence.

Then after a final night's sleep in Norwich, the team will get on the bus Saturday morning for the drive south to London where they will face West Ham in the final games of the trip.

Following a lunch at the training ground, the team will head to Wembley where they will watch the FA Cup semifinal between Chelsea and Aston Villa before checking into the third hotel of the tour, this one in the heart of London.

Everyone will then be given Sunday off to explore the capital before heading to Heathrow Monday afternoon for the long flight back to Los Angeles.

While many of the players would love to stay here a bit longer and train and play against more of the nation's top Acadamies, they have to get back in time to recover for their important league game against Real So Cal at Calabasas High School on Sunday afternoon.

A Deserved Day Off

After flying halfway around the world, going through 3-4 training sessions, playing two games and watching another, the Academy players received a well earned day off this afternoon.

Following yesterday's loss to Manchester City, the squad made the long journey south on the M6 to Norwich in the heart of East Anglia.

It was clear, and not the least bit surprising by the amount of work they put in, that the boys were a bit tired last night and today. As a result, the coaches took them on an extended jog/walk around the grounds of the famed Dunston Hall where the team is staying. That walk concluded on the small soccer field next to a golf course here at the hotel.

On the field, rather than go through a training session, the teams were divided up into groups of two for a knockout - Crossbar Challenge where each team had to hit the crossbar three times, once with the right, once with the left and then a third with either foot, all from 25 yards out.

The original group of nearly 40 has been whittled down to eight or four teams of two.

One team that is not still in the Challenge is that of coaches Kenny Arena and Matt Mennell, who were knocked out in the quarters when Fabrizio Soto hit a left footed ball off the bar to seal his team's win, much to the delight of all the players.

The semis and finals are scheduled for tomorrow at the hotel ahead of the games against Ipswich Town.

After today's Crossbar Challenge, the complete group were given a few hours off in the city of Norwich and giving them the opportunity to see what life is like in one of the most popular cities in England. In addition to being rich with culture and history, Norwich, which is the home city of Trevor James, is one of the top shopping destinations in all of England. And judging by the number of shopping bags the kids re-boarded the bus with, they would agree.

Moving Closer to Match Day

While a handful of players continue to play their way back from injuries, Head Coach Bruce Arena and the rest of squad went about preparing to face the Dynamo.

On Thursday, the Galaxy worked on releasing the ball quicker, corner kicks and throw-ins. Three aspects the coaching staff has identified as key for any team that wishes to have success at Robertson Stadium, which has dimension that are smaller than those at The Home Depot Center.

After the session, we caught up with Dema Kovalenko and Sean Franklin about this weekend's game. Kovalenko doesn't pay much attention to smaller field and Houston's injuries, in the end, he says, it's going to come down to who wants him more.

Dema...

Sean...

Below are a few more training photos from today's session...

Galaxy Raw - Week 3

In a new feature, we bring you, Galaxy Raw, your mid-week fix for all of the sights and sounds from training served up raw and unfiltered. In this edition, LA Galaxy players and coaches begin their preparations for their upcoming game in Houston, but of particular note is the fact that the club had the grounds crew re-paint the lines of the training field to dimensions matching that of Robertson Stadium. Enjoy!

VIDEO: Academy's First Day

On their first full day in England, the LA Galaxy Academy players visited Everton's training ground at Finch Farm. They participated in training sessions run by Everton Academy coaches Paul Harris and Mick OBrien. Here a quick look back at Day 1.

Galaxy Academy Falls 2-1 to Manchester City

The Galaxy Academy narrowly missed out on their first positive result of their England tour this afternoon with a 2-1 defeat to Manchester City at Platt Lane.

With just one game scheduled, coaches Trevor James, Matt Mennell and Kenny Arena used a combination of the U-16 and U-18 squads against a City side that featured a host of Youth Internationals from across Europe, including Frederic Veseli, the captain of the Swiss team that won the 2009 U-17 World Cup in Nigeria in November and England U-17 midfielder Ahmed Benali.

Despite not playing together as a group prior to this morning's warmup, the Galaxy nearly took an early lead over their hosts with Christian Alvarado having a goal called back for offside and Riley Wolfe blazing a freekick high over the bar inside the opening 10 minutes.

At the other end of the field, Joe Kearney was forced to clear off his line after City had beaten goalkeeper Vince Paldino, who later came up with a reflex save of his own to keep the game scoreless at the break.

Shortly after the restart, U-16 forward Neil Ignacio, who scored his team's first goal on Monday at Blackburn, entered the game and had an immediate impact. He raced onto a long ball down the right flank from Wolfe, managing to keep the ball in play before in crossed over the end line. Ignacio then spun past a City defender and crossed to Alvarado at the near post where the Galaxy forward was able to smash a header home an put LA up 1-0.

However that lead would last just two minutes before City equalized, slotting home the rebound of another diving stop by Paladino.

City scored the winner with just more than 20 minutes left when they caught the Galaxy on a quick counterattack and beat Paladino to make the score 2-1.

Ignacio and fellow substitute Ritchie Gonzalez each had chances to equalize late on but could not find a way past the City goalkeeper and the game finished 2-1 in favor of the hosts.

Galaxy Lineup: Vince Paladino; Joe Kearney (John Atkinson 85'), Mike Mardesich, Juan Perez, Gabriel Rivera; Nathaniel Schnitman, Eric Verso (Juan Mendoza 80'), Spencer Johnson (Ritchie Gonzalez 70'), Riley Wolfe; Christian Alvarado (Trent Clifton 65'/Dyllan Stevens 89'), Ruben Valencia (Neil Ignacio 49').

Cup of Joe with guest Bruce Arena

Tune-in to the Galaxy's weekly live web show, Cup of Joe, with radio play-by-play announcer Joe Tutino every Wednesday. Today, Tutino will be interviewing Head Coach Bruce Arena at 11 a.m. (45 minutes prior to the start of today's UEFA Champions League games).

A Day at Platt Lane

The Galaxy Academy teams were at Manchester City's Academy training ground at Platt Lane on Tuesday for a pair of training sessions under the watchful eyes of former City captain Paul Power, former Premier League star and current City U-18 boss Scott Sellars and a number of his coaches.

They'll all be back out there for today's game, but before we get to that, here is a look back at yesterday's morning session in chronological order.

After arriving at the training ground......the players made their way to the locker rooms to get ready for the day's session......while the coaches went over the final details of what the training would consist of...
The U-16's opened with some one and two touch passing drills......while Paul began breaking down some of the finer points of proper defending with the U-18's.
The U-18's continued on, first with a series of 1v1 defending drills that focused on staying tight to your man and keeping him in front of you...
...before increasing that to more game-like defending/attacking scenarios, which saw the losing team forced to do pushups.There was plenty of instruction going on at the other end of the field as well......with the U-16's playing some 2v2 heading drills and then getting into their possession...
...and small sided games.
Finally, after the session, a few of the guys were sure to have their photo taken in front of the City logo just off the field...

Preparations for Houston

On Tuesday, the Galaxy continued their preparations for Saturday’s match against the Dynamo. It was once again a beautiful day in Southern California. The players went through the usual warm ups before breaking up into offense and defense for 15 minutes of work.

On the offensive side, assistant coaches Dave Sarachan and Cobi Jones went to one end of the field with the midfielders and forwards to work on their attacking movements, crossing and finishing exercises.

Meanwhile, Bruce Arena put the defenders through their own paces working on defending different areas of the field, including two-on-two situations and defending balls in the air.

Next, the coaches brought the players together for a full field 11 v 11 game, which consisted of two 15 minute halves, including working on freekicks and corner kicks. It was this portion of training which took some adjustment for the players, which could prove helpful on Saturday night

On Monday afternoon, the coaching staff had the grounds crew re-paint the lines of the training field dimensions to match that of Robertson Stadium. The Dynamo’s stadium is listed as 115x70, but the coaching staff went a little further with a width of 68 yards.

With a day off tomorrow, players finished training with the strength and conditioning coach Ben Yauss, who took the players through a fitness workout, including sprints, to end the day.

As some of you may have seen, the Dynamo are promoting a "Light Outs L.A. Rematch" with fans in attendance receiving a mini-flashlight, just in case the lights went out. It looks like the Dynamo have not forgotten that night.

Here are a few photos from today's session, including a shot of the re-painted lines.

Learning the Game the Man City Way

The Galaxy Academy teams were back at training today when they went through a pair of sessions at Manchester City’s Platt Lane training ground. Located just outside the city center, the complex is a grass oasis in a surrounding sea of concrete. The first team no longer trains here, but that does not take any luster off the facility, which featured a series of grass and synthetic fields, as well as all of the offices, locker rooms and facilities for all City Academy teams.

Former City captain Paul Power and former Premier League midfielder Scott Sellars put the kids through their paces in two separate sessions, with Power working on the club’s defensive shape and tactics. Power played more than 500 times for Manchetser City, including serving as the club’s captain during the 1981 FA Cup Final against Tottenham and the game’s subsequent replay. He used that experience to work on a series of drills with the players, all of which was engineered to work on the player's defensive shape and positioning, both individually and as a unit.

After a lunch in the Academy lounge around noon, the Galaxy players made their way back out to the training ground, where they were met by former Premier League midfielder Scott Sellars, who put the team through their attack paces. The former Bolton, Leeds and Newcastle midfielder joined the City Academy in October as the U-18 coach and used the experience of his 20-year professional career to challenge the U-18 squad in a series of dynamic attacking drills, focused on keeping possession of the ball.

During those two sessions, the U-16’s worked with additional City Academy coaches, playing a number of different games that got the players plenty of touches on the ball, while also forcing them to work on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.

But the day was not done then as the full squad returned to the hotel in time for a quick recovery session in the pool here at our hotel, rounding out an exhausting but educational day.

The Galaxy players will not have to wait long in order to put their new lessons into work as a collection of U-16 and U-18 players will face the Manchester City Academy at Platt Lane on Wednesday afternoon in the second game of their tour. The players who do not dress for that game will once again train with the Academy coaches, getting in a one-hour session before watching their teammates play.

After the game, the complete party will make the drive to Norwich in East Anglia. There, after a day of training, both Academy teams will take on Ipswich Town on Friday afternoon.

Photo Recap of U-18 Loss to Blackburn

Photo Recap U-16 Loss to Blackburn