Do We Hit The Panic Button Yet?

Discussion in 'LA Galaxy' started by Eyenigma, Apr 1, 2012.

  1. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I know many will say that there is still a lot of soccer left to play, but at what point do we recognize that 2012 will not be our year? Coming out of this weekend, we will likely be in last place with the goats. This is not the way many experts predicted our season would unfold. Where do we go from here? I would not be surprised to see a major change in the coaching department considering the way we have started this season. I think Bruce has shown that lightning can strike once, but not twice...

    Sadly, we have arguably the most deep roster except for maybe New York and we play like we are a bush league team. Very painful to watch considering the success we had just one year ago.
     
  2. JukeBox

    JukeBox Member

    Apr 14, 2008
    South East Asia
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    Wait until after the SKC game to hit any button.
     
  3. Berks

    Berks Member+

    Dec 22, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Not time yet, but if we continue, it's coming.

    Let me put it this way:
    We are currently at the bottom of the heap with the Union, Montreal and Toronto.

    I kid you not.

    Chivas is ahead of us in GD as of today. I also kid you not.

    We are literally 16th in a field of 19. Early times, but I never thought I'd type that.
     
  4. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Probably a moot point but one wonders if Bruce had rested the A squad for the home opener if our CCL and subsequent games would have fared differently. I know I'm jumping the gun but I think I got spoiled with our strong home field results. We had gone over a season without a loss.

    Obviously any team has ups and downs but it just seems like we're really disorganized out there. That and other teams look to have elevated their game considerably. I am hopeful we can turn it around but it also seems our team leaders are getting increasingly frustrated at their peers. Anyone else feel like DB23 is irate with the team? Did he refuse to play the second half?
     
  5. Berks

    Berks Member+

    Dec 22, 2010
    NorCal
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Hmmmm...pressure of it all?:

    Josh Guesman ‏ @jguesman
    Guys are saying locker room feels different. #LAGalaxy
     
  6. crookeddy

    crookeddy Member+

    Apr 27, 2004
    And if we hit the panic button what does that actually do? lol
     
  7. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Fair point. I guess I can start negotiations with the front office to keep my seat prices the same. I think McGowan picked a bad season to try and fill empty seats with the way the Galaxy are playing.

    Sadly (having gone to the match) I sat and got soaked for 90 minutes and watched a debacle of a game. Keane was the only player who I thought showed any sack out there. Buddle still looks to be in Germany or something. He's just not firing on all cylinders.
     
  8. Skevin

    Skevin Member+

    Aug 9, 2009
    Colorado
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Czechia
    I don't hit the panic button till at least 10 games in. We need some consistency.
     
  9. crookeddy

    crookeddy Member+

    Apr 27, 2004
    I've been seeing lots of consistency so far actually. The team is very consistently terrible.
     
  10. JukeBox

    JukeBox Member

    Apr 14, 2008
    South East Asia
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    LOL! Maybe the pigs will fly? Or Becks will be younger and faster? Or...it will switch on the striking/shooting power in Becks which has been off for more than 5 years now? And that will switch on other switches in Juninho, Buddle, Franklin, Todd, AJ, Sounders and basically the whole team?
     
  11. Baysider

    Baysider Member+

    Jul 16, 2004
    Santa Monica
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    I think the team has become greedy. We could have rested the starters for the RSL game and possibly beaten Toronto at home, but we wanted both the CCL and to win the home opener and so we end up losing both (not that we would have advanced, given how we're playing).

    And before that, we were looking to bring in a defender to cover for Omar, but then Buddle becomes available and so we pretend we can fix the defense with what we have.
     
  12. dashiel

    dashiel Member+

    Jul 15, 2000
    orange county
    No.

    It sucks we’ve lost three matches at home, losing Omar and Josh is causing major adjustment problems and our key players are suffering the effects of an ill-prepared off-season, but come on, we’re starting almost the exact same line-up that won MLS Cup 5 months ago. There are problems to be sure, there are concerns, but it’s nothing this group of players can’t adjust to, the key is will they. Losing can become a habit.
     
  13. Leonidas23

    Leonidas23 Member

    Jun 9, 2008
    So Cal
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think the biggest issue is the locker room right now. Becks noted before the game that Keane was going to be capt and i just wonder if he was bothered by that. he did not seem engaged in the game at all.
     
  14. OC Galaxy Fans

    Jul 30, 2009
    Placentia
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I didn't want to read too much into that, but I was really concerned about the "coaches decision" for a half-time sub.
     
  15. crookeddy

    crookeddy Member+

    Apr 27, 2004
    Yeah, Beckham wasn't playing too well but had our only 2 shots on goal from his free kicks. Maybe he looked tired to Bruce?
     
  16. crookeddy

    crookeddy Member+

    Apr 27, 2004
    So when will Leo be ready?
     
  17. JBZTV

    JBZTV Member+

    May 10, 2009
    This quote is really making sense to me right about now. I think they're all unsettled, from various things, and spent a lot of the offseason thinking about themselves, and it's not clicking right now. Think about it...and I'm not trying to assign blame to any one person, but rather the collective.

    Landon - Went on loan again, and played a TON of games at the Ev. Did you know he started 9 games there from 1/4 to 2/11?

    Keane - Spent the early offseason saying he didn't want to go out on loan, then went out on loan and made noises before coming back that he might bail if it wasn't the same.

    Beckham- Obviously everyone knows what happened there.

    Omar - Worked a loan with sights at a move up, and then obviously disaster. Injury aside, does he even want to be here anymore?

    Juninho - His move was in question, then he went back home, then got shipped here because he couldn't cut it. Another player who I wonder if he wants to be here. To me he doesn't look engaged AT ALL.

    Franklin - Contract situation was up in the air most of the offseason. Various reports had him weighing a bunch of offers, and I believe he said he turned down a little more money to stay here. After an offseason of Bruce talking about putting him at RM and him saying that's where he wanted to be, now he's back at RB after Omar's injury. He also looks lost to me out there. Wonder if he's frustrated at having to be a "team player" (less money, position moved around) while everyone else was looking out for themselves.

    AJ - Don't think you can underestimate Omar's injury to is psyche. Last year he was the underdog who was great at picking up the scraps and putting out fires. Now he's supposed to be the leader out there, and lets not forget he's been playing with Omar next to him for what, 5 years?

    It'll be real interesting to see if Bruce can get their heads right, because the vibe is very bad right now.
     
  18. MPNumber9

    MPNumber9 Member+

    Oct 10, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    No. I'd only panic if I thought we had a bad team and that's not really the case. The problem, at this point, is mental/attitude, so we can overcome it. Plus there are some other factors:

    -Losing Omar (as great as he is) doesn't take the best defense in the league and make it one of the worst. Bruce needs to figure out how to cope with Omar's loss and coach every player accordingly. Oddly, we were a lot more conservative defensively last season when we had Omar than we are now. So we might look ugly for awhile, but we're capable of plugging that hole.

    -The team is transitioning to a more possession-based attacking style, which is going to take some time for everyone, including Bruce, to adjust to. As we adjust to this, we're going to have to figure out how not to give up goals against weaker teams that bunker/counter. We look a lot like New York last year.

    -The death of MLS parity has been greatly exaggerated. We've got to stop taking success for granted.
     
  19. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    WTF is with Los Angeles and benching its star players. First KB24 now DB23. *I don't count Bynum, he's a genuine d-bag. I think if this soap opera plays out further, the season is going to get continuously worse. Here's hoping Bruce and Becks kiss and make up and that Landon can heal quickly to act as a buffer. The team chemistry (or so we're learning) is a lot more vital to good play than one might think. Odd that we have virtually the same lineup and we've (seemingly) forgotten how to play as a unit.
     
  20. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You're right, in that many (myself included) are discounting just how much other teams have also improved. Great for the league in general, I suppose. :eek:
     
  21. JukeBox

    JukeBox Member

    Apr 14, 2008
    South East Asia
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    This!! A 100% this!!
     
  22. Eyenigma

    Eyenigma Member

    Oct 2, 2010
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Repped your post. Obvious. But totally true.

    It seems a lot of players maybe had/have one foot out the door, and with the "mission accomplished" so to speak. You wonder if everyone is thinking beyond the pitch at the HDC and focused on bigger / better.

    I'd be shocked if Keane stayed the entire season. And I'd be shocked to see Landon in the MLS next year if he gets another decent opportunity to play in the EPL. *Probably his last chance to go across the pond.

    Perhaps this season is just an afterthought for a few key members of the squad, with 2013 really being the focus. Perhaps players are just trying to go through the motions in an effort to remain healthy for their bigger endeavors?

    :confused:

    I fear losing to the goats, as that'd be the ultimate kick in the nuts.
     
  23. SoCalYid

    SoCalYid Member+

    Jun 11, 2011
    BigSoccer :)
    Club:
    --other--
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    One thing I don't understand by our obvious lack of traditional wingers is under a salary cap that's arguably the easiest thing to find. You can find quick pacey wingers all over this hemisphere that could do a job and accept a non-DP contract. So it makes me think we aren't looking.
     
  24. Baysider

    Baysider Member+

    Jul 16, 2004
    Santa Monica
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    I think that's right. Bruce seems to prefer "good" players, regardless of whether they fit a role. Stephens doesn't have one position that he absolutely fits, although he can backup several. The only position Cardozo truly fits is AM/WF which should be a DPs position. This strategy can produce good choices such as AJ, who isn't ideal in either the center or the wing, but has played pretty well none the less.

    Wingers tend to be more limited in their range of skills and that may be what Bruce is trying to avoid. It's not a strategy I agree with, but he has done pretty well with it.
     
  25. phoenixhazard

    phoenixhazard Member+

    Oct 26, 2010
    Seattle, WA
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I really think it comes down to Omar being gone. Not only is he missing but AJ is not nearly as good a defender without Omar next to him b/c of his obvious short comings (no pun intended :p) We seriously need Leonardo match fit and we need another top CB. A defensive mid would be nice for depth as well as a speedy winger.
     

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