Coming into the 2008 season, it was certainly clear the Los Angeles Galaxy were going to try and build their attack around three players this season. The acquisition of Carlos Ruiz in the offseaon had several people thinking the Galaxy were going to be nearly unstoppable with David Beckham and Landon Donovan also on the roster.
However, in the opening game of the season, Ruiz suffered a knee injury that has kept him off of the field for all but 150 minutes this season. Still, the Galaxy offense has still been nearly unstoppable. LA has averaged 2.33 goals per game, far and away the best average so far in MLS.
In the early part of the season, the focus was on Landon Donovan, who notched eight goals in a four-game stretch in the month of May. But with Ruiz still recovering from injury and departing for international duty with Guatemala, and Donovan getting called in for duty with the U.S., the Galaxy's offensive abilities were called into question.
Edson Buddle stepped up and became the answer. The journeyman forward looked to be the odd man out in Los Angeles at the start of the season. But injuries and call-ups opened the door for Buddle and he has crashed through it, exploding for seven goals in the Galaxy's last five games, included two hat tricks.
His recent form has catapulted Buddle to second in the MLS Golden Boot race and has helped him lock down a spot in Ruud Gullit's starting XI.
"Landon scored us a lot of goals, now also Edson," said Gullit. "It's the tools that they are given. (Buddle has) worked very hard with them. He gives what it needs to be a striker."
Buddle's potency in front of goal helps to make the Galaxy that much more dynamic offensively. Gullit stresses that the offense needs to be balanced, and with defenses now forced to focus on Buddle as well as a returning Donovan, holes will open up for the midfielders to exploit.
"It's good. You want also for your midfield players to score a little bit more," said Gullit. "Alvaro (Pires) has already scored a goal. David scored a couple of goals. It has to come from a variety of players."
While the rest of the team is catching up, Buddle's production has helped to ease some of the pressure off of his teammates.
"Edson's definitely stepped up. He's doing a great job for our team," said rookie defender Sean Franklin. "I'm proud of him and excited for him."
Obviously, the scoring streak can't continue forever. Strikers around the world go hot and cold. Buddle knows this as well as anyone.
"Hopefully (I can keep it going). We'll see. I'm just going to keep doing the things I was doing before, don't change anything," said Buddle. "If I can keep healthy, goals will come."
That's bad news for opposing defenses. When Buddle is on his game, he's one of the more prolific goal scorers in MLS with 61 career goals. Couple that with the return of Donovan to the lineup, Ruiz finding his scoring form in international duty and Beckham serving balls in from the midfield, and it could be difficult for any team in MLS to slow down the Galaxy attack.
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
