KANSAS CITY - Playing for one point away from home is something the Kansas City Wizards cannot afford to do as they prepare for Saturday's game at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The Wizards have just six more games to add to their point total and separate themselves from the packed Eastern Conference race. Kansas City is in fourth place, two points behind second-place Chicago, one point behind third-place New England and one point ahead of fifth-place New York. All three have played two fewer games than the Wizards.
That means every game the Wizards play needs to be a victory to do the most good. But every point adds up.
"Going to L.A., as close as we are to the other teams in our division, any sort of points on the road is going to help us," midfielder Kerry Zavagnin said.
The Galaxy have undergone a real transformation since the teams first met this season. On that occasion, July 1 at Arrowhead Stadium, Frank Yallop got his first victory since taking over the Galaxy after the dismissal of Steve Sampson.
Since that 2-0 victory, the Galaxy are still in last place in the Western Conference. But while their placing in the conference hasn't improved, Los Angeles has recovered enough to be in a playoff chase of their own. The Galaxy are just three points behind fourth-place Real Salt Lake. They had a chance to improve that position Wednesday but dropped a 1-0 decision at RSL.
"Obviously, they are not the same team they were 12 weeks ago. Frank is slowly putting a stamp on the team," Wizards interim coach Brian Bliss said. "They have made a couple of moves on their roster. I think they have strung together, although they lost (Wednesday), a good series of games the last five weeks."
In a sense, the Wizards didn't play the Galaxy squad that began the season. One constant, though, remains with Galaxy - forward Landon Donovan. The U.S. international has five goals in the last four Galaxy games (three in MLS play, two in Open Cup play).
One recent good result for the Galaxy was a 5-2 thrashing of D.C. United last Saturday, a game in which Donovan scored twice.
"For them to do that on the road against the No. 1 team in the league means they are doing something right," Zavagnin said. "I have a lot of respect for coach Yallop and I've played a number of times against Landon.
"I don't care what they say, whether he 's playing well or playing poorly, any time he steps on to the field he has that element of being dangerous every time he touches the ball."
The Wizards will have to face Donovan and the Galaxy without both starting central defenders. Jimmy Conrad was already out with a fractured jaw. Now Nick Garcia will be out with a groin strain suffered in Wednesday's draw with New York.
"I don't think we're going to change tactically from what we're doing," Bliss said. "It's just a matter of plugging in different guys into those roles for Jimmy and Nick. I think with the guys we have with the depth of our roster, I don't expect to miss a beat too much."
Rookie Tyson Wahl replaced Garcia on Wednesday after Garcia was injured in the 11th minute.
"I thought Tyson (Wednesday) gave a good account of himself," Bliss said. "And I suspect he'll do the same on Saturday."
Robert Whitman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
