Over the past couple of seasons, the Los Angeles Galaxy have been hit hard by injuries. Given the extensive travel, the summertime heat and the physicality of the league, it's not that uncommon in MLS -- but the Galaxy have had their fair share.
But this year, for the first time in a while, the Galaxy are relatively healthy coming out of their preseason training.
Striker Alan Gordon is the only player who will be out for an extended period of time. Gordon had surgery to fix a stress fracture on his left foot and will miss the next 2-3 months. His loss will be a big one for the club, but other than that, the Galaxy head into Sunday's season opener in relatively good health.
There are players with random bumps and bruises, but with the exception of Gordon, head coach Frank Yallop has his full complement of players to choose from. Yallop is hoping he can keep his team fresh and fit all season long.
"We had a few issues (with injuries) last year. For me it's not about one game, it's about the whole season staying healthy, adding players to the roster if we need to," said Yallop. "We still have some room to do that. We'll make sure that come the next couple of weeks, we're firing on all cylinders."
The MLS transfer window doesn't close until April 15, and the Galaxy do have some salary cap room left over to add reinforcements if an immediate need should arise. After that the Galaxy will have to rely on the current group to get the job done until the summer transfer window opens up. Still, at this point, it's not something that the players are too concerned with.
"Every coach will tell you it's as big of a point as any to stay healthy," said Pete Vagenas. "Frank has done an impeccable job in terms of managing players and giving players who need that extra time off some rest."
For most players, peak fitness is still a little bit away, though certainly closer now than earlier in the preseason. But the Galaxy will still face a test on Sunday when they take on Dynamo, who will have already played in four competitive matches this year in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup.
Still, it's important that the Galaxy don't overextend themselves either. A key injury to the wrong person can mean the difference between getting off to a fast start or digging another hole for themselves as they did last season.
"I think it's everything. I think injuries, each and every year, can be the difference between a couple of wins and a couple of losses," said Galaxy newcomer Joe Cannon. "No one's superhuman here and it's too early right now to stress about injuries."
Greg Daurio is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
