whose seven-year journey from Ireland to Texas included stops in England,
Italy, Switzerland and Scotland -- said such an idea would run contrary to what he's seen in his career.
"Every league I've been in it's never been anything like that. Anyone plays. A good player is going to get to play.
I've just grown up that way," said O'Brien.
Los Angeles Galaxy players, for their part, welcomed the prospect of a local "derby," while expressing concern that
they not lose out on any of the amenities they have come to enjoy over the past year at their sparkling new
facility.
"We want to make sure that we still have our players' lounge, and we still have our training facilities and we still
have the accommodations that the physios need," said goalkeeper Kevin Hartman, an eight-year Galaxy veteran. "If so,
that's taken care of."
"These days everybody talks about the rivalry between the Galaxy and San Jose. But in terms of the fans and them being
in Los Angeles, I think that [our games] will be clásicos of sorts," said Hartman's teammate Carlos Ruiz, the
Galaxy's standout Guatemalan marksman and one of MLS' premier Latin American stars.
"Chivas will have, I think, the best fans in the United States. They'll be in Los Angeles, where there are lots of
Mexicans, and there are many people who love Chivas in Mexico. So I think that Chivas will be the team to beat next
year," he said.
Keegan Pierce is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League
Soccer or its clubs.
