TV: Spectrum SportsNet, SpectrumDeportes, MLS LIVE, Altitude(Denver) Gordo scored the game-winner for Colorado last game vs Portland. He'll probably drop a hat trick on us. We might get JJ back this game. We'll definitely get Jelle back, at least. Gordo vs VanDamme! The altitude is a perfect excuse for Curt in this one, though... but, we've been good on the road too... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
How can Gordon not score a late game tie or winning goal against us? Late goals are his stock in trade and against LA his record is almost supernatural.
I don't know if this has been mentioned but somehow we are on a 7 game unbeaten streak. Certainly doesn't feel that way.
Mentally preparing myself for Gordo's 90th minute game winning goal. We all know it's coming as evidenced by our debbie downer (yet realistic) posts. He just has a knack for it.
His header against Portland was classic Gordo. His positioning, timing and touch on headers are top notch - this one was a perfect redirect. Ninety percent of forwards would have tried to power that header to much less effect.
Reminds me of 2005, success built on a house of cards. You take the results, or as in the case of 05 the titles, but you know there's a festering sinkhole of despair waiting to drag the team down. Each success delays and compounds the inevitable.
We really are hurting at the moment. A 0-0 draw would be a great result with this team. CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy will once again be short-handed on Wednesday when they take on the Colorado Rapids. Daniel Steres (hamstring), Jermaine Jones (MCL Sprain), and Bradley Diallo (hamstring) are expected to miss out on this Wednesday’s match against the Rapids. Galaxy boss Curt Onalfo told reporters on Monday that Steres and Jones are making strides forward and could be available toward the end of the next week, but Diallo is likely out for a couple of weeks. "Wednesday’s probably going to be tight for [those] guys that you mentioned, but we’ll see," Onalfo said postgame. The Galaxy will welcome back Jelle Van Damme from yellow card suspension and will have a full-strength Gyasi Zardes after the forward played against the Houston Dynamo on Saturday with a stomach ailment.
I'm thinking it coincides with Jermain Jones' injury. I haven't researched the dates at all so it may not be true, but it's hunch I have. I know they look better, to me at least.
You are correct. Jones went out injured in the home game vs. Chicago, which we came back to tie. We haven't lost a game since (3 wins and 2 ties plus the USOC victory).
I was just thinking that yesterday. IIRC, there was an article in the pre-season talking about how Onalfo was ramping up the fitness level of the team and training sessions were harder than under Arena. Maybe purely coincidence, but we do seem to have a lot of training-ground injuries.....
At this point, it's a question Onalfo should be asked, particularly given the training-ground injuries. It's deepened the impact to an already-depleted team. Mendiola, Diallo and Rowe have all picked up serious injuries in training (well, we don't know how bad Raul's is yet).
My Spurs fandom distorts my view, but earlier in the year I mentioned the Galaxy looked like they were trying to play the high press style Tottenham does without anywhere near the players to accomplish that style of play. Same thing with fitness, Pochettino is notorious for having double and triple training sessions – which is great if you have the right staff and methods to do it safely.
Since we are discussing training. I found this tweet interesting. #LAGalaxy training report: Alessandrini, Diallo didn't participate. Alessandrini commonly misses Mondays. Diallo out at least couple of wks— Kevin Baxter 🇺🇦🏳️🌈 (@kbaxter11) June 19, 2017
Well if they are so fit it certainly isn't showing on the field. Ema, Alessandrini and, to a lesser extent, JVD play hard but the rest of the team must be hiding their excellent conditioning. Against Houston there were several occasions when we were in a perfect situation to launch a counter-attack after winning a turnover but we had to abort because our midfielder would look up and see he was in a 2 on 6 or 1 on 5 situation and his teammates were slowly walking out of the box, lagging the play by 20-30 yards, apparently picking daisies on the way. The midfielder would have to pull up and wait for his "super-fit" teammates to catch up. It stood out to me because it is a rare sight for the Galaxy. In fact it is rare for MLS in general, where running hard is seldom in short supply. (Running smart? Well that's another can of worms.) Thinking more about it - the problem was probably worse because JVD was out. Defenses need a leader exhorting them to push up quickly after a turnover. Remember when Omar and/or AJ used to yell and swing their arms to get their fellow defenders to "push up, push up!"?
I don't know that traveling with the team means that they are ready to play yet, but this video of the team traveling to Denver shows both Steres and Mendiola were making the trip: https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2017/06/20/la-galaxy-denver-road?autoplay=true
Alessandrini, Garcia, and McInerney on the bench. Both Villarreals and McBean take their place. Van Damme replaces Arellano. The rest is the same as the Houston game. I could see Romain coming in if we need a goal in the second half. It's a lot to ask him to play so many games in quick succession, especially for the first time at altitude. Zardes starts out on the wing and McBean is an out-and-out target striker with Jose V playing underneath him. We'll certainly have speed on the flanks if we want to use it.