The Los Angeles Galaxy have been in this position before. A year ago, they struggled through much of the regular season. But as the stretch drive toward the MLS Cup Playoffs progressed, they won the U.S. Open Cup -- and rode the momentum from that victory to a domestic double.
Things are somewhat the same one year later. The Galaxy are in a similar place in the standings, and on Wednesday they will take on Houston Dynamo in the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup.
"I guess you can look at it the same way, but I think this team is playing pretty well. I don't think we're limping anywhere," said Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop. "I feel pretty confident that on our day we can beat anybody."
The last time the Galaxy played Houston, Los Angeles won 1-0 at Reliant Stadium in Houston on Aug. 9, but on that occasion, Houston was without the services of Canadian international Dwayne De Rosario. The dynamic midfielder will suit up Wednesday for Dynamo, and he is a player of interest for the Galaxy.
"(De Rosario) is a very good player. He's very productive when he plays," said Yallop, who coached De Rosario in San Jose. "He's one of the top players in the game. He's a huge part of what Houston is all about."
A year ago, the Galaxy had a somewhat difficult road to the U.S. Open Cup title, defeating three MLS teams on their run -- Chivas USA, the San Jose Earthquakes and FC Dallas, along with the USL First Division (second tier) Minnesota Thunder.
This year, lifting the Dewar Trophy will also require the Galaxy defeat three MLS clubs. After a win against rank amateurs Roma FC of Dallas in the fourth round, they defeated the Colorado Rapids in the quarterfinals. A win against Dynamo will put L.A. into a second consecutive final, against either D.C. United or the Chicago Fire.
The opponent doesn't seem to matter to the Galaxy. The team has played as well as anyone over the middle third of the season and is hoping to continue that run through the remainder of the season, including the Open Cup.
"We just want to keep playing well," said Alan Gordon, who kicked off his recent goalscoring run with a strike against the Rapids in the Open Cup match. "It doesn't matter what game it is, we want wins, we want goals and we want to keep goals out."
In a tournament that many MLS teams don't always take very seriously, it's all business now. For the Galaxy, it's doubly serious as they are wearing a target on their backs as the defending champions.
"It's a trophy and we're the defending champions," said veteran defender Chris Albright. "We're confident that we can win (Wednesday) night and move on and win another championship."
The Galaxy are in position to take a third consecutive domestic trophy for more reasons than just their play on the field. From the top all the way down, the tournament is emphasized at being just as important as the MLS season. It's a belief that started with their late general manager Doug Hamilton, and has been passed down to the new management.
"Doug placed a tremendous amount of importance on the Open Cup, like he did with any trophy," said Albright. "It would be a great way to honor him to move on (Wednesday) night and then win the whole thing in a couple weeks."
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
