The LA Galaxy's 2009 regular season comes to a close on Saturday night when they host the San Jose Earthquakes on Fan Appreciation Night at The Home Depot Center. This match, which is presented by Tide, kicks off at 7:30 p.m. with all gates opening an extra 30 minutes early to give fans the chance to experience every aspect of Fan Appreciation Night, which includes the 2010 Miss LA Galaxy Contest presented by Covergirl, the club's annual Jersey Off-the-Back Auction, as well as a collection of autographed sports memorabilia and other prizes, which will be auctioned off or given away before, during and after the game. To learn more about Fan Appreciation Night and all that goes along with it, please click here.
The Galaxy go into the game with 45 points, which currently leaves them tied for first place in the Western Conference with Houston and Chivas USA. This will be the third and final meeting of the season between the Galaxy and Earthquakes, with each of the first two being played in Oakland and LA going 0-1-1 in those two contests. On April 18, Bryan Jordan scored late in a 1-1 draw with San Jose, while Jovan Kirovski scored the Galaxy's only goal in a 2-1 loss to the Earthquakes on June 20. Since that defeat, LA has compiled a 9-3-3 record in the league to move from sixth place in the Western Conference, all the way to the top, a position that they could potentially seal with a win on Saturday night.
FS West will have all the action live on Saturday night, starting with the 'Galaxy Live' pregame show at 7 p.m. while ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM will have all the action on the radio in Spanish, also starting at 7 p.m.
This game will be broadcast live on FS West, starting with the 'Galaxy Live' pregame show at 7 p.m. The game will also be available live on the radio in Spanish on ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM and online in English at www.lagalaxy.com.
THE WEEK THAT WAS
Saturday, October 17
LA Galaxy U-16's 3 - Santa Cruz County Breakers U-16's 1 - The Home Depot Center
LA Galaxy U-18's 7 - Santa Cruz County Breakers U-18's 0 - The Home Depot Center
Sunday, October 18
LA Galaxy 0 - Houston Dynamo 0 - Robertson Stadium - Attendance: 29,470
LA Galaxy U-16's 1 - Mustang SC U-16's 0 - The Home Depot Center
LA Galaxy U-18's 1 - Mustang SC U-18's 1 - The Home Depot Center
INJURY REPORT
Galaxy Injury Report
OUT - Alecko Eskandarian (Head - Disabled List), Julian Valentin (Right Foot - Disabled List)
DOUBTFUL - None
QUESTIONABLE - A.J. DeLaGarza (Right Hamstring - Strain), Stefani Miglioranzi (Left Groin - Strain)
PROBABLE - None
TEAM NOTES
POSTSEASON POSSIBILITIES:
The Galaxy head into the final week of the 2009 MLS season in a three-way tie at the top of the Western Conference along with Chivas USA and Houston. All three teams have 45 points, though Chivas USA has a game in hand on the other two sides, playing at Chicago on Thursday and at home against Houston on Sunday, while the Galaxy end their season against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday night at The Home Depot Center.
With a win against the Earthquakes, the Galaxy will be guaranteed of a top two spot in the West, meaning that they would host the second leg of their Western Conference Semifinal Series against a yet to be determined opponent. That game would be played on the weekend of November 7 or 8.
The Galaxy can finish in first place in the West for the first time since the 2002 season with a win over the Earthquakes, combined with...
A Chivas USA loss at Chicago on Thursday night
A Chivas USA win or tie at Chicago on Thursday night AND a Chivas USA loss or tie to Houston on Sunday afternoon.
Additionally, the Galaxy can win the West with a draw against the Earthquakes combined with a Chivas USA loss at Chicago on Thursday night, a Seattle loss or tie at home against FC Dallas on Saturday night and a tie between Chivas USA and Houston on Sunday afternoon.
A Galaxy loss to the Earthquakes would eliminate LA from winning the top seed in the Western Conference and could see the club slip to third or fourth place in the West, which would mean that the Galaxy would host the first leg of their Western Conference Semifinal Series next weekend.
SHUTOUT RECORD MATCHED:
Donovan Ricketts made four saves in the 0-0 draw with the Dynamo on Sunday for his eighth clean sheet of the season. With the shutout, the Galaxy have tied their club record for clean sheets in a season with 11, a mark that was originally set in 1999 when the Galaxy allowed just 29 goals in 32 games. In addition to Ricketts' eighth shutout, Josh Saunders has two while the pair combined for one, with Ricketts playing 85 minutes of the 2-0 win at Chicago on August 19 before being replaced by Saunders for the final five minutes because of an injury.
If Ricketts is able to keep a clean sheet against San Jose on Saturday night, he will finish the regular season with nine clean sheets, tying Kevin Hartman for the second most clean sheets for one goalkeeper, which was set in 2006. The club record for shutouts by an individual goalkeeper was set in 1999 when Hartman was in goal for all 11 of LA's clean sheets that season en route to a berth in the MLS Cup.
THE ROAD IS COMPLETE:
Sunday afternoon's 0-0 draw at Houston was the Galaxy's final regular season game of the year and left the team with a 5-2-8 record on the road this year. The Galaxy have 45 points so far this season, with just more than half of those, 23, coming on the road. The 23 road points are the most recorded by the Galaxy in a single season since the end of the shootout following the 1999 season and equal to the number of points the Galaxy recorded on the road in the 2007 and 2008 seasons combined.
Only the Chicago Fire, with a 6-3-6 road record this season for 24 points, recorded more points on the road than the Galaxy this season. The Galaxy and Fire are also the only two clubs so far this season to record a positive goal differential away from home. LA has scored four more goals than they have conceded on the road while the Fire have scored six more goals than they have conceded on the road.
REGULAR SEASON COMES TO AN END:
Saturday's game against the Earthquakes will be LA's final game of the 2009 regular season. All-time the Galaxy are 7-4-2 in their final game of the regular season and 9-2-2 in their final regular season home game.
This will be the fourth time in the Galaxy's 14-year history in which they end their season against San Jose, with LA going 1-1-1 in the previous three. In 2002, the Galaxy won 1-0 at San Jose to round out their season. A year later, the Galaxy and Earthquakes played to a 1-1 draw at Spartan Stadium to complete the regular season. Finally, in 2005, the last time that the Galaxy qualified for the postseason, San Jose beat LA 3-1 at The Home Depot Center in the final game of the year, though the two sides would meet again a week later in the first leg of the Western Conference Semifinal Series, with the Galaxy winning that game 3-1.
KOVALENKO IS BACK:
Galaxy midfielder Dema Kovalenko played 90 minutes in central midfield on Sunday, his first appearance for the club since August 19. Kovalenko missed the last two months with tendonitis in his right Achilles, an injury that he suffered in the first half of the 2-0 win over Chicago on August 19. Prior to that game, Kovalenko had not played in a league game since June 13 against Real Salt Lake because of a left calf contusion, though he did play the final 24 minutes of the friendly with Barcelona on August 1.
In his first season with the Galaxy, Kovalenko has played in and started 14 games, tallying two assists in 1,147 minutes of action. He started 12 of LA's first 13 games this season, only missing the 0-0 draw with Chivas USA on April 11 because of a red card suspension.
GORDON SUSPENDED:
Galaxy forward Alan Gordon will be suspended for LA's regular season finale against San Jose after being booked for the fifth time this season late in the 0-0 draw with Houston on Sunday. The five yellow cards are a career-high for Gordon, who entered the 2009 campaign with just seven yellow cards in the first five years of his MLS career.
Gordon, who also missed a game earlier this season while serving a one-game suspension after being sent off against Chivas USA on April 11, finishes the regular season with three goals and three assists in 22 games. The three goals are the third most on the club while the three assists leave him tied with David Beckham for fourth place on the club.
ARENA NOMINATED FOR HALL OF FAME:
The National Soccer Hall of Fame announced today that Galaxy head coach and general manager Bruce Arena has been named to the Hall of Fame's Election 2010 Builder Ballot.
Builder candidates are selected for the Final Ballot by the votes of the Builder Screening Committee, composed of 16 Hall of Famers. The committee selected candidates from the 59 eligible builders listed Preliminary Ballot. Thirty-four candidates received votes in the Screening Committee process. In a change from past elections, current rule require ten candidates to appear on the Builder and Veteran Player Final Ballots.
The final ballot will be distributed later in the month to all Hall of Famers and a select group of soccer administrators. To be elected to the Hall of Fame, the leading candidate must appear on at least 50% of ballots cast. Election rules permit the election of two builders should the top candidates tie and meet the 50% standard. Announcement of results is planned for early next year.
YOUTH ACADEMY
DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY TEAMS KICK OFF HOME CAMPAIGNS:
The LA Galaxy U-16 and U-18 teams played their first home games of the 2009-10 season last weekend, playing a pair of games at The Home Depot Center. On Saturday, the Galaxy U-16's picked up their first win of the season, defeating the Santa Cruz County Breakers 3-1 behind goals from Scott Cohen, Drew Murphy and Jose Martinez. The Galaxy fell behind 1-0 in that game but scored three consecutive goals in the final 25 minutes of the first half to seal the victory. The U-16's then completed a perfect weekend with a 1-0 win over Mustang SC on Sunday afternoon, improving their record on the year to 2-2-0.
The U-18's also played twice over the weekend, starting with a convincing 7-0 win over the Santa Cruz County Breakers on Saturday afternoon. One day later, Trent Clifton scored midway through the second half to help LA to a 1-1 draw with Mustang SC. Those results improved the U-18's, who are outscoring opponents 12-4, record to 2-1-1 on the season.
Both teams are off this weekend before returning to action next Saturday, October 31, when they travel north to Fresno, Calif. to take on Cal Odyssey, with the games kicking off at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Field 1 at Keith Tice Memorial Park.
GALAXY FOUNDATION
ANNUAL JERSEY-OFF-THE-BACK & SPORTS MEMORABILIA AUCTION:
Bid on the game-worn jersey from one of the Galaxy's starting eleven (11) players as well as items such as a signed basketball from Los Angeles Lakers guard Derek Fisher, a signed jersey from the Carolina Hurricanes Rod Brind'Amour and a signed football from Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis. Fans can place bids at the Galaxy Foundation booth beginning at 6 p.m. through the end of half-time. All bidders must report back to the Galaxy Foundation booth by the end of half-time and be present to win.
GALAXY "GO FOR GOLD" IN MLS CUP PLAYOFFS
2009 MLS CUP PLAYOFFS TICKET AVAILABLE NOW:
LA Galaxy 2009 MLS Cup Playoff tickets are now available. The first 10,000 fans to purchase a playoff ticket will receive a complimentary Galaxy "Go for Gold" Playoff t-shirt, courtesy of Pechanga Resort.
Additionally, fans can purchase a special Playoff Family 4-Pack for as little as $66. This special package includes four tickets to the Galaxy's home playoff game, four hot dogs and four sodas, as well as the complimentary Galaxy "Go for Gold" Playoff t-shirt, if purchased as part of the first 10,000 tickets sold for the playoff game.
Fans wishing to purchase MLS Cup Playoff tickets can do so by visiting lagalaxy.com or by calling 1-877-3GALAXY (342-5299), as well as visiting www.ticketmaster.com and through all Ticketmaster outlets.
NEED TO KNOW
PURO GALAXY HITS ESPN DEPORTES RADIO:
ESPN Deportes Radio KWKW 1330 AM, the Galaxy's official Spanish language radio partner, is the place for all of your Galaxy news and information en español. The best place to get that information is on Puro Galaxy, the network's weekly, hour-long show that airs every Saturday from noon-1 p.m.
Galaxy color analyst Armando Aguayo and Galaxy sideline reporter Mario Amaya are joined on a weekly basis by the players, coaches and a series of special guests that allow the fan to get excited for match day. So tune in each and every week and stay up to date with everything that is going on in the Galaxy.
Fans can also listen to free podcasts of previous episodes at www.LAGalaxyFutbol.com.
LOOKING FOR MORE UPDATES?:
If you are looking for continuous updates from the Galaxy all week long, be sure to visit the club's official websites www.lagalaxy.com and www.lagalaxyfutbol.com, or the club's official blog at www.thelagalaxy.blogspot.com for all the latest news from the club.
