CARSON, Calif. --
LA Galaxy defender Eduardo Dominguez has officially been added to the club's roster ahead of this weekend's game against the New York Red Bulls at Giants Stadium. The 29-year old Argentine center back agreed to terms with the club last week and has been training with the rest of his teammates all week in preparation for Saturday's game.
Additionally, the Galaxy have waived defender Abel Xavier.
"Abel has been a wonderful professional at our club and I want to personally thank him for coming to Los Angeles and being a part of the Galaxy family. We wish him continued success in what has already been a long and storied career," LA Galaxy President and General Manager Alexi Lalas said. "This was a difficult decision, but it was necessary."
Xavier joined the Galaxy in June 2007 and appeared in 20 games during his 13 months with the club, including 10 matches this season. He started 19 of the 20 matches in which he appeared, playing 1,754 minutes while collecting two assists and five yellow cards. He was also sent off once, as he was shown a red card late in the season opening defeat at Colorado on March 29.
Prior to signing with the Galaxy, Xavier had a distinguished career in Europe, playing for some of the world's biggest clubs from 1990-2007. He began his career in Portugal with Estrela Amadora before moving to fellow Portuguese side Benfica. His career would then take him throughout Europe, with stops in England (Everton, Liverpool and Middlesbrough), Germany (Hannover 96), Holland (PSV Eindhoven), Italy (Bari and Roma), Spain (Real Ovideo) and Turkey (Galatasaray), before heading to the U.S. in 2007 upon completion of his contract with Middlesbrough of the English Premier League.
He also appeared 20 time for the Portuguese National Team scoring twice. He played for his country at the 2000 European Championships where he helped Portugal reach the semifinals, and also at the 2002 World Cup in Japan/Korea.
Dominguez joins the Galaxy after playing in Argentina and Colombia since the start of his professional career in 1996. A native of Lanus, Argentina, Dominguez has played in more than 200 games for six different clubs. He last played from Huracán of the Argentine Primera Division, while also spending time with fellow Argentine clubs Velez Sársfield (1996/97-2002/03), Olimpo (2002/03), Racing Club (2003/04), Independiente (2005/06) and Colombian side Medellín (2006/07) before joining Huracán in February.
The Galaxy are back in action on Saturday, July 19 when they take on the New York Red Bulls, at Giants Stadium. The game will be televised live on Fox Soccer Channel, starting with the 'MLS Saturday' pregame show at 3 p.m. (PT). In addition, the game can also be heard live in English on AM 570 and in Spanish on ESPN Deportes Radio 1330 AM KWKW. For more information about this game or to order tickets to future Galaxy games, please visit www.lagalaxy.com or call 877-3GALAXY.
