While the majority of the world has been focusing its attention on a certain left ankle, the Los Angeles Galaxy have a single collective focus: FC Dallas. Group play in SuperLiga concludes for the Galaxy on Tuesday, and if the Galaxy are to remain alive in their bid for the inaugural championship, they must prepare for a familiar foe.
Forget the permutations and throw out the mathematics and tiebreakers. Simply put, the winner of Tuesday night's game at Pizza Hut Park is assured passage through to the semifinals. Los Angeles currently sits in second place in the group with three points, while Dallas is in third with two points. Technically, the Galaxy could advance with just a draw, but that depends on the result of the other group game between Pachuca and Chivas.
"I haven't looked at all the possibilities. We've played two incredible teams the last two games in Pachuca and Chivas," said goalkeeper Joe Cannon. "Obviously Dallas is going to present a much different opponent in the sense that it's a different style of play. We had a rough game in Dallas earlier. Going in there with the weather and the heat it's not going to be pretty, but this team, we've been battling it out for the last week and a half, so we're looking for another fight."
In that game, the Galaxy traveled to Dallas and saw a man sent off and fell 3-1. The Galaxy also lost 2-1 at home to Dallas in the second week of the season. That is the task that Los Angeles is faced with -- to beat a team that's already beaten them twice this year.
Of course, the other big news surrounding the game has been the announcement that David Beckham will not accompany the team to Dallas, as he continues to rehabilitate his left ankle. Beckham has not been able to play in either of the Galaxy's first two SuperLiga games, and now even his potential league debut at Toronto on Saturday could be in question.
"He's very frustrated," Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop said. "I feel for him, really, because he wants to get going. If it's up to him and it wouldn't hinder his injury, he would come with us (to Dallas). But because of flying, all of us said that he just can't do that. We want him to be getting ready to travel with us on Friday. That's the thing he's aiming for."
In SuperLiga, the Galaxy put themselves in the position they are in with a poor performance against Chivas on Saturday night. Los Angeles came out flat against Chivas and it cost them dearly in their 2-1 loss. While a tie might be good enough on Tuesday, the team isn't going to be taking any chances.
"If we win (against Chivas) the game doesn't mean anything to us on Tuesday," said Landon Donovan. "We know if we want to get through for sure we need to win the game, but we know a point likely gets us through too. We can play smart, but we want to win the game."
The Galaxy know how important Tuesday's match is. Not only will a win see the side through to the next phase of the tournament, but it will also provide some much needed confidence heading into league play. It's a game the Galaxy could look back on as the turning point in their year.
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
