this surprised me -- Dallas' Juan Toja. That's a number former FC Dallas hardman Simo Valakari would be proud of. Valakari, who led the league in fouls for the last three seasons, took the "title" a year ago with 81 fouls. Toja should pass that number (a career-high for Valakari) with ease.
4. The Number is 48. That's the number of fouls Houston's Eddie Robinson has suffered. Color me shocked. Considering Robinson is a perennial leader in cautions, I could not believe that he's second to only perennial foul-recipient Alejandro Moreno. Forwards must be looking to get the first lick on Eddie this year. It's not often you see a defender anywhere near the Top 10 in that category.
3. The Number is 115. That's the number of career assists that Steve Ralston now has, and you can count on him being the leader in that category for a long time since the only players in the all-time Top 10 who are even on the field anymore are Cobi Jones (87) and Jaime Moreno (86). Ralston, by the way, is also building a sizeable lead over the competition in all-time games played and minutes played. It's funny, because I know he's been around forever, but Ralston still looks like a teenager on the field to me.
2. The Number is 7. That's the number of league-kept team stats that L.A. ranks last in. The league only keeps ranking in 10 statistical categories. What are the stats where the Galaxy rank at the bottom? Shots. Shots on Goal. Fouls Committed and Fouls Suffered. Offsides. Corner Kicks and Cautions.
1. The Number is 0. That's the number of goals Houston Dynamo have surrendered in the final 15 minutes of games. In case you were wondering why they are the best team in the league, this is a pretty good indicator.
Jeff Bradley is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. Send your comments and complaints (200 words or less, please) to Jeff at jbradleyespn2003@yahoo.com and he promises to read (but not respond to) all of them. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
