LOS ANGELES GALAXY vs. REAL SALT LAKE
THE HOME DEPOT CENTER, Carson, Calif.
Sept. 7, 2008 | 7:30 p.m. PT (CSN-PT; KSL-NBC)
WEEK # 24 | GAME # 160
It's another vital battle for the Los Angeles Galaxy in their bid to return to the MLS Cup Playoffs as they play host to Real Salt Lake at The Home Depot Center. The Galaxy's winless streak has now reached 10 games and they are two points out of the playoffs entering the week, and face the contest with Landon Donovan and David Beckham on international duty. Real Salt Lake face a number of injuries to key performers yet still sit in second place in the Western Conference; with the right results, a win could put them six points clear at the end of round.
REFEREE: Michael Kennedy. SAR (bench): Anthony Vasoli; JAR (opposite): David Bragg; 4th: Yader Reyes
MLS Career: 101 games; FC/gm: 31.9; Y/gm: 3.9; R: 19; pens: 39
INJURY REPORT: LOS ANGELES GALAXY - OUT: GK Charles Alamo (L knee); GK Steve Cronin (R hand), MF Joe Franchino (R ankle); DF Michael Gavin (R foot); QUESTIONABLE: MF Alvaro Pires (R groin) ... REAL SALT LAKE - OUT: DF Tony Beltran (L adductor strain); DF Ian Joy (R adductor strain); MF Nathan Sturgis (L hamstring strain); QUESTIONABLE: MF Dema Kovalenko (L calf strain); PROBABLE: MF Kyle Beckerman (R hamstring strain); FW Robbie Findley (R heel contusion)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: LA: Landon Donovan, Eddie Lewis (USA); David Beckham (England), Ante Jazic (Canada) ... RSL: Andy Williams (Jamaica)
SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: LA: Greg Vanney
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: LA: David Beckham, Landon Donovan, Alan Gordon, Brandon McDonald, Alvaro Pires ... RSL: Kyle Beckerman, Kenny Deuchar, Ian Joy, Dema Kovalenko, Jamison Olave, Chris Wingert
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (12 meetings): Galaxy 5 wins, 19 goals ... Real Salt Lake 4 wins, 18 goals ... Ties 3
AT THE HOME DEPOT CENTER (6 meetings): Galaxy 4 win, 10 goals ... Real Salt Lake 2 wins, 8 goals ... Ties 0
• This is the second of two meetings on the year between the teams, the only one to be played at The Home Depot Center.
• The teams split their season series a year, with each winning one of the two meetings in Carson, then playing to a 2-2 draw in the lone matchup at Rice-Eccles.
• It marked the second consecutive season the teams had split their season series. In 2006, each won two games, each winning once at home and once away.
• When RSL scored the equalizing goal in their 1-1 draw on June 22, 2005 against the Galaxy, it marked the club's first goal after 557 scoreless minutes - which was the MLS record until last season.
• Coaches record: Bruce Arena v RSL: ...
• Jason Kreis vs. LA: P4 W1 L1 D2
LAST MEETING (MLS):
5/3: RSL 2, LA 2 (Espindola 6; Deuchar 18 - Beckham 36, 40)
• Real Salt Lake jumped to an early lead against the Los Angeles Galaxy but couldn't hold on, the teams settling for a 2-2 draw on May 3 at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
• Buoyed by a heavy victory in a midweek Open Cup play-in against San Jose, RSL took a two-goal within 18 minutes. Javier Morales sent a long ball over the top of the LA defense from the midfield stripe, and Fabian Espindola brought it down with his chest and fired a low shot under Steve Cronin for the sixth-minute opener.
• Then on 18 minutes, Morales swung in a cross from the left flank that found Kenny Deuchar unmarked at the back post, and he coolly headed home.
• But David Beckham single-handedly pulled the Galaxy level before the half was out. First, in the 36th minute, he took a short pass well outside the RSL area on the right, and hooked in a masterful shot that sailed over Real 'keeper Nick Rimando and tucked inside the far side netting.
• Then four minutes, the Galaxy won a free kick some 30 yards straight out from goal. Beckham stood over the dead ball on his own, and hooked a trademark strike that sailed over the wall and dipped into the left-hand corner past Rimando's despairing dive.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-3-1-2): Nick Rimando - Tony Beltran (Robbie Findley 74), Nat Borchers, Jamison Olave, Chris Wingert - Andy Williams (Matias Cordoba 90), Dema Kovalenko, Kyle Beckerman - Javier Morales - Kenny Deuchar, Fabian Espindola (Yura Movsisyan 79). Substitutes Not Used: Kenny Cutler, Ian Joy, Matias Mantilla, Chris Seitz
• Here's Gullit's team (4-4-2): Steve Cronin - Chris Klein, Sean Franklin, Troy Roberts, Greg Vanney - David Beckham, Joe Franchino, Brandon McDonald, Mike Randolph - Edson Buddle (Alan Gordon 12), Landon Donovan. Substitutes Not Used: Michael Gavin, Bryan Jordan, Josh Tudela, Peter Vagenas, Julian Valentin, Josh Wicks
LOS ANGELES GALAXY
The Los Angeles Galaxy had their winless streak reach 10 games, unable to hold onto a late lead as they settled for a 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution on Saturday evening at Gillette Stadium. The Galaxy have 25 points from 22 matches, sitting in a tie for sixth place in the Western Conference with the San Jose Earthquakes, a point behind FC Dallas and a point ahead of the Colorado Rapids.
LAST MATCH
• The Revolution had returned to a long league layoff with two losses and a draw in four games while the Galaxy were riding a nine-game winless streak, their last win coming on June 14.
• The Revolution opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a dramatic goal. Khano Smith sent a diagonal, curling ball behind the Galaxy defense and Taylor Twellman reacted before goalkeeper Steve Cronin, heading home into a vacated net just an instant before catching Cronin's fists full in the face.
• The Galaxy pulled even in the 34th minute as Donovan scored his first. A Peter Vagenas diagonal ball sent Donovan drifting wide towards the left corner. but the U.S. international lashed with his left foot and volleyed first-time past a recovering Matt Reis at the near post.
• Ten minutes after the break, the Galaxy took the lead. Eddie Lewis sliced open the Revolution central defense with a through ball and Donovan raced into the empty space before coolly finishing past Reis for his league-leading 16th goal on the season.
• But the Revolution found an equalizer 19 minutes from the end. Michael Parkhurst stepped into midfield and found Shalrie Joseph space between Vagenas and Lewis. Joseph skipped through the Galaxy rearguard before firing home to the near post to knot the score.
• Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena made three changes to the team that lost 1-0 to the Chicago Fire the previous Thursday. Landon Donovan and David Beckham returned from international duty and Eddie Lewis made his Galaxy debut, coming into the team in place of Alan Gordon, Alvaro Pires and Ely Allen.
• Here's Arena's team (4-4-2): Steve Cronin (Josh Wicks 46) - Chris Klein, Sean Franklin, Troy Roberts, Ante Jazic - David Beckham, Peter Vagenas, Greg Vanney (Mike Randolph 65), Eddie Lewis (Eduardo Dominguez 81) - Landon Donovan, Edson Buddle. Substitutes Not Used: Mike Munoz, Israel Sesay, Josh Tudela, Julian Valentin
TEAM NEWS
• Donovan continued his stellar campaign, adding to his career-high season with his 15th and 16th goals on the campaign. He has four goals in the last four games - four of the Galaxy's six in that stretch. His career-best before this season was 12, set on three occasions (2003, '05. '06).
• "Everybody knows Landon is a great goal scorer," David Beckham said. "It's what he does. It's what he's done his whole career. It's what he'll carry on doing because he's very talented. If you give him the ball in the right places, he'll score 99 percent of the time. Tonight was a good night for him, because he had two chances and he put them both away."
• Coming into the season, Steve Cronin had made just six career appearances total, over a three-season span. He had played every minute of every this season after being given the starting job in preseason, until forced from the field at halftime following the collision with Taylor Twellman on the first goal. Cronin suffered a fractured hand and will be out 4-6 weeks.
• "A little unfortunate with the injury with Cronin," said Arena. " ... It's good to see Josh Wicks' first game in MLS be pretty solid."
• After putting Chris Klein on the right of midfield in his first game in charge, with David Beckham back from international duty, Klein returned to right back. Eddie Lewis manned the other side of midfield, with Greg Vanney moving into a holding role in midfield. When Vanney was forced off with an injury, Lewis moved centrally with Mike Randolph coming on as a wide midfielder.
• "I feel like he played extremely well," Arena said. "When Greg [Vanney] went out, we were caught a little bit. I know Eddie has some experience in the central part of midfield, but he was out of gas. We probably asked him to play more than he should have tonight."
• Yet again, the Galaxy will be without a handful of players for international duty. Chasing points to get back into the MLS Cup Playoffs race, they should have a full squad for the next four games before again hit by international duty for the Oct. 12 game vs. Colorado.
• "It's difficult. We'll lose four players - we are losing Beckham, Donovan, Lewis and Jazic, so that's not easy, but we are going to do our best and have a good week of training and be ready to play Salt Lake on Saturday," Arena said. "But at this time of year, it's tough to obviously get any continuity and consistency in a team when you have a limited number of games remaining and you have an international calendar that impacts our team."
REAL SALT LAKE
Real Salt Lake rebounded from back-to-back losses in the best possible fashion, getting goals on either side of halftime for a 2-0 Rocky Mountain Cup victory against the Colorado Rapids on Friday evening at Rice-Eccles Stadium. RSL remains in second place in the Western Conference with 30 points from 22 matches, still five points in back of the division-leading Houston Dynamo.
LAST MATCH
• The Rapids had lost three of their last four matches while Real had came into the match off back-to-back reversals.
• Fabian Espindola scored two goals, once in each half, to send RSL on their way against their Rocky Mountain rivals. The first came in the 19th minute. Andy Williams collected a long pass in the left side of the penalty area and sent a nifty backheel to Espindola, who lashed home a low drive inside the far post.
• Then just before the hour, he made it 2-0. Javier Morales sent a long ball downfield from the center circle that Espindola caught up to, to the right of goal. As Colorado goalkeeper Preston Burpo came out to collect, Espindola side-footed a cheeky looping volley that bounced inside the far post for his second goal on a night when he made his first start since May.
• RSL head coach Jason Kreis made four changes to the team that lost 3-0 to the Columbus Crew the previous weekend. Will Johnson made his RSL debut, and Ian Joy, Andy Williams and Fabian Espindola all returned to the lineup, with Robbie Russell, Kenny Cutler, Yura Movsisyan and Robbie Findley all taking places on the substitutes' bench.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-3-1-2): Nick Rimando - Chris Wingert, Nat Borchers, Jamison Olave, Ian Joy (Robbie Russell 46) - Will Johnson, Kyle Beckerman, Andy Williams - Javier Morales - Kenny Deuchar, Fabian Espindola (Yura Movsisyan 72). Substitutes Not Used: Kenny Cutler, Robbie Findley, David Horst, Clint Mathis, Kyle Reynish
• "The rivalry never even came up this week ... it wasn't ever used as motivation," Kreis said. "I think our guys were motivated by a few things. I think they were motivated by the fact they knew they needed to respond from last week. I think they were motivated by the fact that the last time we played Colorado they handed it to us a little. And I think they're motivated because they believe in themselves, and they think that they could go on a very good run here."
TEAM NEWS
• Fabian Espindola made his first start since May 31 - and celebrated in the best possible fashion with the brace. He had been out of action after a knee injury until making his first appearance in nearly three months in the Aug. 16 loss at Houston.
• "He was spectacular. It's been a long time coming. I know he's been so very, very frustrated with his injury situation because it's lasted a lot longer than he anticipated, or any of us anticipated," Kreis said. "To get him back to full fitness and for him to have a game like that tonight going into this stretch before the end of the season should mean great things for us and great things for Fabian."
• After conceding eight goals in a three-game span following three consecutive shutouts, RSL was looking to re-establish their defensive solidity. The eighth clean sheet of the season followed - the seventh since the start of June.
• "We weren't the sharpest in the first half defensively. Those goals helped us correct ourselves, do what we needed to do and gave us a little cushion," said goalkeeper Nick Rimando. "In the second half we were able to correct those. When you guys like [Jamison] Olave, [Nat] Borchers and [Chris] Wingert in front of you and Fabian [Espindola] doing the job up top, it feels good."
• Said Kreis: "Everybody always wants to talk about the back four and the defenders. For me it was a team effort. I believe in a lot of guys. I believe that we should be able to put players in and do better than we have in our last two matches."
• On Wednesday, RSL played Tigres UANL of the FMF Primera Division, and a Yura Movsisyan goal from a corner kick in the 18th minute gave RSL a 1-0 victory.
• Kreis took the opportunity to rest many of his front-line players, but felt his group improved on previous performances.
• I thought the spirit and attitude of the entire group tonight was better than it has been in our first two international friendlies. I think that a few of the guys that haven't looked so comfortable and so steady in the other international friendlies looked good tonight," he said.
• Here's Kreis's team: Chris Seitz, Robbie Russell (Adam Acosta 65), David Horst, Jamison Olave (Shintaro Harada 46), Chris Wingert (Dustin Kirby 46), Clint Mathis (Brennan Tennelle 46), Kyle Beckerman (Kenny Cutler 46), Alex Nimo, Robbie Findley (Xavier Balc 72), Will Johnson (Tino Nunez 46), Yura Movsisyan (Kevin Reiman 58)
