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For a third year in a row, Galaxy fans are left to ponder what could have been while they watch other MLS teams fight it out for a ticket to MLS Cup at the Home Depot Center on November 23rd.
Looking back on the season, the dismal record does not take away from several notable positives. Topping the list is General Manager and Head Coach, Bruce Arena.
Perhaps the most important move the Galaxy has made in years, the seasoned coach took over in late August after the club parted ways with Alexi Lalas and Ruud Gullit. The move came a little too late to make a significant impact on the team this season, but nevertheless, his presence will prove its worth in the near future. Arena's plans and personality were on full display as he addressed questions from season ticket holders in a town hall meeting held recently at the Home Depot Center.
Arena was clear and realistic in his analysis of the problems within team, underscoring that the team's problems did not occur overnight and conversely, a solution would not appear overnight either. On multiple occasions, Arena asserted the importance of improving on the defensive side, not laying blame on any specific team member or position, but instead stressing the need to improve as a team. The most refreshing comment on the night came when Arena stated that the team needs stability, referring to the high turnover ratio and constant trades that have become part of the Galaxy culture in recent years. This is the type of leadership the team has needed for years and will be reflected by the team come next season.
Other notables for the year:
Rookie sensation, defender Sean Franklin. The CSUN Alum broke into the starting eleven early in the season and never looked back. He has shown class, maturity and abilities well beyond his years. Franklin is likely to find himself on the pitch next to some new defensive partners next year, but if Arena is true to his word, it will be in a Galaxy uniform. It has been a great rookie season for Franklin, winning over the blue-and-gold faithful, head coach Arena and also being nominated for MLS Rookie of the Year honors. Should he win the award, he would become the first Galaxy player to win it.
Fellow rookie, midfielder Brandon McDonald also made a name for himself this season. A tenacious midfielder with a menacing shot, he started early in the season, but injuries kept him sidelined for a number of games during the summer stretch. When on the field, he proved to be a force to be reckoned with. Combining great vision, tenacity and good passing skills, McDonald has made a strong case for a central midfielder spot. Although his name was not specifically mentioned during the town hall meeting, it is hard to imagine Arena allowing such talent to leave the team.
Rising star, forward Bryan Jordan shows a lot of promise. The Southern California native played in eight games after being recalled from the Portland Timbers late in the year. Jordan brought energy and passion whenever he played, demonstrating qualities that are probably best described by the term Cobi-esque. An energetic player, not only did he figure on the offensive side, he also more than contributed on the defensive side. In short, he is the type of player that adds character and personality to a team. Attendees at the town hall meeting appear to recognize his efforts, at one point chanting his name. Arena has previously commented that Jordan is talented and brings a lot of energy to the team, seemingly agreeing with public opinion. More important, it may indicate that fans will get their wish and see Jordan in Galaxy blue-and-gold once again next year.
The efforts of forward Landon Donovan and veteran midfielder/defender Chris Klein warrant more than words. The former had an MVP worthy season, scoring 20 goals and tallying 10 assists, the first MLS player in league history to accomplish the feat. It is even more impressive when one realizes that he missed several games due to World Cup Qualifiers. His future is in doubt, with rumors swirling that he will be giving Europe another try during the winter transfer window. Donovan has expressed interest, but Arena stated that Donovan would be with the Galaxy come next season. Losing Donovan would be a huge blow to the team's offense, making for some interesting off season drama.
Mr. Reliable, Chris Klein, continues his great journey in MLS. Once again he has proven to be a leader, one that younger players can look up to and learn from. He started every game and left it all on the field on each occasion. Arena recognizes his worth and the Galaxy need his leadership and work ethic. Whether he is still on the team next year is a bit of an unknown, but it would seem prudent for the Galaxy to keep him.
Lastly, forward Edson Buddle. Buddle's resurgence started early this season and although he hit a rough spot mid-season, he put up career best numbers. It would seem as though he would be the type of player Arena needs, but not much has been said about the player. Perhaps Arena is weighing his options. Galaxy fans will have to wait and see.
Arena has a lot of good to work with and if ever there was a U.S. soccer coach that knew how to manage resources, it would be him. However, there are some outstanding issues that also need to be addressed, the most important of which -- defense -- already seems to be at the forefront of Arena's planning for next year. That is a good thing.
Not so fast though. There is also the Beckham circus to deal with.
Addressing a question relating to all the commotion regarding Beckham's loan to Italian giants A.C. Milan, Arena emphatically expressed that Beckham would be with the Galaxy at the start of next season. Both teams finally officially announced the loan, but the terms of the loan have not been released, thus it remains unclear how Beckham was able to structure a loan that allows him to rejoin the Galaxy in March, violating FIFA rules that would otherwise force him to stay in Milan until May/June. Arena responded "that is not accurate," when asked if the interpretation of the FIFA rule was accurate. However, it was Arena himself that only days ealier had expressed a similar comment when asked about his thoughts on the possible loan. Something doesn't add up.
The deal as whole seems to be highlighting some important issues, beginning with what appears to be Beckham's influence over the team. Without knowing the terms of the deal, one can only speculate, but it appears as though MLS and the Galaxy have little to gain from this deal. Beckham on the other hand has expressed his motives repeatedly, stating that he wishes to stay in form during the offseason and pointing out that his body is programmed to play for longer periods of time throughout the year.
Nonsense.
His justification might hold some water if Spain's La Liga didn't have a winter break. Factoring in the winter break, the total difference in time off during a year when compared to his previous league -- La Liga -- is only a few weeks, not the long drawn out period of time that he is implying. The only difference is that some of that rest is in December/January. His point might be that the time spans are similar, but not all at once. Fair enough, but that seems to be negated by the fact that the reason why the break in between seasons in La Liga is short is again due to the winter break. In the end, the MLS break is only slightly longer for him this year because the team failed to make the playoffs.
Second to this is the silly notion of his body being so strictly programmed that he must do it. His former leagues run from late August to late May or early June. Were one to take his comment at face value, one could just as easily state that the following is true: his body will be in rest mode come mid June. That means Galaxy fans should expect him to not be at his sharpest just at the point when MLS starts to heat up. He is also overlooking that he is older, the cross country flights, heat and humidity, none of which he he had to deal with before and all which wear on the body.
Ultimately, this deal and his approach to it may be his undoing. Already, there is a growing undercurrent of feelings amongst season ticket holders that there is too much focus on Beckham. At the town hall meeting, a fan commented to Arena, in a very dissatisfied tone, that Donovan was the heart of the team, not Beckham. A number of other attendees applauded and cheered the gentleman's comment. This was an echo of a similar comment directed at Lalas by others before the start of the season.
Comments heard on the concourse from other fans seem to confirm this growing attitude amongst the fan base.
Memo to Galaxy front office: take notice and act now or soon you will have a bigger mess on your hands.
Photo by Angel Magaña/LAist
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Finally, some decent Galaxy news and editorial opinions. Thanks Angel.
You lost me at Bruce Arena being the most notable positive. Too late to do anything?? Too late to take one of the most talented rosters and make it cohesive? Too late to have the team quit on him at least 4 times down the stretch? Too late to deploy a coherent midfield strategy? Give me a break.
sbla,
I think you misquoted my article, but regardless, the team has, at best, 4 "talented" players that would do well on any team. That's not even half of a team.
The disparity between the players is huge. The roster was not balanced at all, on a pay or talent scale, as you seem to want to imply.
And not to be labor the point, Arena has repeatedly stated that things are not going to be fixed overnight. You seem to think they should.
In some ways, I think the Galaxy is in this mess in the first place because they want to cater to reactions such as yours. Have some patience. Things will come around.
I'd go as far as stating that if the FO had done the same and kept Yallop, the Galaxy would be playing this weekend too.
I agree with most of what you've said, especially about Franklin and Klein -- wonderful to watch a young man step up like Franklin did, and to see a veteran appear to actually have improved since the previous season! Both were highlights for me.
A correction regarding Beckham's European schedule. La Liga has a 2 week break over Christmas and New Years and then some teams are off for two months before pre-season. But Real Madrid did promotional tours during that period and international players had either tournaments, friendlies or exhibition tours added on to that.
Look at it this way, when Beckham joined Real Madrid in June of 2003, they left immediately for a promo tour of Asia and went straight to pre-season training on return, while he also played Euro qualifiers for England. The 2004 Euros began immediately after that season was done, followed by an England promo tour in the U.S., and then training starting again after about a 3 week break. In 2005 a similar summer schedule only with a World CLUB Cup tournament instead of the Euros, plus World Cup qualifiers and then the World Cup itself in 2006. Etc....
Even if a European League does take a winter break, it is not 5 months, and successful clubs and National teams keep their players going for all but a few weeks of the year -- to the point where it is dangerous. If you've had a schedule like that since you were 16, and you were coming off of a season in which your form had struggled, as Beckham's had, you would not want so long a break before getting back into competitive action even if you didn't have other motivation -- and Beckham does.
Whether he is a good "fit" or not for the Galaxy -- or just hasn't lived up to expectations -- fair enough for fans and press to voice their opinions. But Beckham has not been at all disingenuous about why he wants to go to Milan. He's always said he'd do anything necessary to keep playing for England, and the manager won't pick an inactive player. Remember, also, that Beckham truly loves his sport and what player wouldn't welcome the opportunity to at least train with players in the Milan side. He has never said a single word against MLS or a teammate, but I'm sure he would relish the challenge -- and also hope it brings his game back to where he, and any fan, would like to see it. Can't think of better justification than that.
Great and valid points.
I should also stress that I don't believe he is the source of the team's problems per se. The Galaxy had issues before he arrived and the probs persist (with new ones). The Galaxy FO certainly hasn't made it any easier for him either. They've made plenty of questionable decisions on their own.
My criticism is two fold: no single player should be considered greater than the club, and while beneficial for Beckham, there is an inherit risk which would affect LA and MLS, yet LA/MLS is likely only getting a minimal return on the deal (if any).
His comments about his reasons may be sincere, but that still leaves an open question of how much gas he'll have in the tank when the latter months of the MLS season arrive, especially if he is flying to Europe for qualifiers during the season.
I would echo your comments about him never having spoken badly about MLS/teammates. He is a professional and that shouldn't be overlooked.
Along the same lines, some people seem to think that his presence has been a failure because the Galaxy has not won anything since he arrived. Every time I hear that, I sit back and consider the source. It is impossible for him to carry the team in the manner people think he should, not for lack of skill, but because of realities of the game. Even someone like Kaka would likely "fail" if he were in Beckham's shoes. It is a testament to his determination and professionalism that he doesn't go off on people that constantly harp on that subject.
Again, I don't want to make him the "bad guy" or scapegoat. Like I said, there were probs long before he arrived, but I do question strongly whether he is a good fit.
Too bad all around. I worried when I first heard about the Beckham deal that the pay disparity alone would make the mix impossible. But friends who play said that players would be excited about having him on the team and the "big game" excitement -- so much for what they know -- and one of Beckham's greatest strengths (pre-Galaxy anyway) has been as a teammate, so I hoped for the best.
You're right, I don't think anyone in power handled the situation well from the beginning. The MLS/Galaxy FO was indeed horrendous, and more of Beckham's sporting decisions seemed to be being influenced by 19 Entertainment rather than solely by his long-time friend and football agent as in the past -- never a good thing.
The sad part comes when setting all else aside and looking at the football. I've never seen Becks have a dip in form and drive like the second half of this season -- and I'm sure Galaxy fans were well put out by it. I've talked about it with other friends who have followed the lad and we don't come up with an answer -- the one thing that's never lagged for long is the workrate and his will as a team booster. As I said, if the Galaxy want him back, the best thing that could happen would be if he finds his form and enthusiasm on the Milan training grounds.
Thanks for taking the time to give this so much thought. It's certainly an interesting situation, especially if you wish the best for a player who has given so much to the game in the way of both success and entertainment, as well as wishing the best for fans of his new team -- who may not have reaped any of those benefits in the past.