I'm more frustrated this season. I felt like we genuinely upgraded a lot of pieces... went from the experiment of playing the young guys, with a coach no one really expected to do well with.... to having what looks on paper to be a good roster. yet the result is the same. I'm so frustrated with this team. i gave up the last two games, but had the afternoon free so decided to watch the galaxy-houston game. Every game looks the same to me. despite our pieces, we just don't seem to be able to play the game well.
When you’re 9 games in to the season and you realize that LAFC game is likely the high point of the year. Not to start a pointless pro/rel argument, but this season has already lost all interest for me. I hate-watched last season just to see how bad Onalfo was going to be and how long Klein could justify keeping him. This season, outside of the LAFC game, is just kind of boring. Lacking the urgency of pending relegation the next 23 games feel like treading water until we can rebuild again next off season.
I haven’t read through this thread yet, just some random assorted thoughts: This team has no chemistry going forward. Too many players running away from the player on the ball and not enough offering options. As a whole, this team doesn’t have any plan going forward and relies on incredibly low percentage long balls/crosses into traffic. Kamara isn’t a winger. His goal comes when he’s central and being that pure finisher that he was in Columbus. Sigi needs to understand his limits and put him in a place to succeed. Ciani wasn’t awful. He’s still very limited in his movement and he’s poor one on one against people dribbling at him but brought some physical presence to the defense. A little too aggressive early on in the game. Romney isn’t very good as a fullback. He’s played out of position here but any future he has in this league will be central. Ibra was a non-factor and has been for a couple games now. He loafs around the field and doesn’t really do anything. His play is slow and casual. Yeah, he put on the shot that turned into Gio’s goal but overall, I’m disappointed in his play. Kitchen doesn’t have any ability beyond a pure destroyer. Assist notwithstanding Gio’s passing was poor. He got on the ball more but as a creator he doesn’t do a ton. I feel bad for Bingham tonight. Some awkward goals that make him look bad but not quite his fault. This is the start of a 3-game road trip. We’re going to need something out of the next two or I think Sigi’s sitting on a pretty hot seat.
Don't you think you're being a little hasty? This set of players has had little time playing together and despite this, the attack is scoring at a very reasonable rate. The defence could be better but it's far too early to throw in the towel (I would watch anyway, because frankly, watching the tough times makes the good times better, but that's just me).
No to Wenger. He's stagnated in the last decade and his methods, which at his peak were cutting-edge and helped reshape English football, are outdated. He should retire and receive the acclaim his overall body of work deserves.
Not to answer for LAA but for me, it's taxing to support this team when the roster is poorly constructed and I don't believe the people in charge have the ability or inclination to fix it. Even if Sigi is a problem and we get rid of him, I don't have any faith that Klein, et al are going to make the right moves from there. I certainly will watch this team regardless of how well it's doing on the field; that's not what drives me. What does drive me is believing that, even if we're struggling, the people in charge have the same concerns, drives and values in building a team that I do. That we're all working to move in the same direction. That's a tough one for me to believe right now.
I'd argue that the number of new pieces this season is why we're playing this way right now. Give the team time to create chemistry. If we're not seeing progress in a couple of months, then I'll be truly concerned.
Entirely possible. With regards to football I’m as often overly patient as I am hasty and usually wrong on both counts. In this particular instance I think the team Sigi has built is fundamentally flawed, wtb little wiggle room to fix those flaws and playing poorly. Best case scenario IMO is he finds a way to get a flawed team playing well, but I don’t think that’s enough to believe this season has much to offer in accomplishments.
I thought Saturday's game was among the most toothless, futile displays the Galaxy has ever put on. Which is a bit surprising given most of their starting lineup played, and the opponent was mid table quality. Given that the Galaxy players generally have quality, I am thinking (hoping) they truly do simply need more time to gel (and heal in some cases). Main issue may be inserting Zlatan into the lineup. Both him needing time to get familiar with teammates and MLS, and just as importantly, the rest of the team figuring out how to play with Zlatan. I can't believe a guy like Alessandrini regressed so much in one year. He, and others, may be thrown off their game a bit, defering to Zlatan and waiting to see what he will create, and maybe worrying about facing his wrath if they screw up. A bit like Beckham's first couple seasons. Like it or not, we may need to give them 6 months. Which is why it was a good thing we got him at the start of the season. Unfortunately the WC will throw a big wrench into the gelling of this team.
As someone else noted, Alessandrini was on an island many times when he had the ball on the right. Sometimes Gio or Romney would link up with him, and then he could make things happen, but when he's going 1 on 2 or 3, it's a guaranteed turnover.
I have to respectfully disagree. No amount of chemistry is going to overcome the abject lack of quality on the back line. Cole was a great player (one of the best) and is still serviceable, but beyond that there is NOTHING.
I don't know how you can possibly make that judgement at this point. These players are seeing their line-up spun around by injury and some of them haven't reached double-figures in terms of competitive LAG appearances. That's not a good sample size or situation and if we are giving up on line-ups at that kind of rate, we'll just perpetuate issues with chemistry and cohesion. To use some Man United examples of players who came in were initially being called busts, we've had David De Gea, Patrice Evra and Andy Cole who all then went on to be great servants to the club. De Gea went from being dismissed as out of his depth in the pace and physicality of the Premiership to being Man United's best player for four years in a row. I'm not saying that these guys (except Ciani who has struggled since he arrived) will get there but I wouldn't write them off yet.
I agree with most of this. I would only comment that it seems to me that the problems with Romaine go deeper than adjusting to a new player. Last season he was excellent at taking corners and getting the ball into the box. This year he has been a disaster. His execution is just off for some reason, and that's one barometer that's entirely on his shoulders. It concerns me.
It's no wonder he can't cross with that barometer on his shoulders. He should just leave his amateur climatology at home and focus on the game.
That is the point look I don't blame them too much for the lack of quality, and pay is beyond their control. But if wages were on par with say the NHL at least instead of the WNBA it would be better. All these mediocre players who were told by some knob that they are good enough to be pro need to now make a decision because clearly football is not going to work out unless your only dream is to be a low standard footballer while making the average wage of a good mechanic or decent lawyer. Money creates competition and if I had to chose a foreign youngster who busts his arse at training and takes football serious to the point of obsessing to become a world class player, over a freaking spoiled snot nosed domestic brat who thinks he can get by on his athletic ability and never puts in the work because it's not worth 60k or 100k then give me the foreign kid who eats, sleeps and craps football.
I'm not sure I understand. Are you saying that the salary cap is a major factor in LAG's current woes?
I'm disappointed that we haven't seen Emrah Klimenta given a shot at right back. I mean, what was he signed for if not to cover for injury to our right back. Romney can't be asked to be the right back of a winning MLS team. The fact that the need is there and is huge and Emrah is not getting a shot is a huge indictment of whomever was the person who thought signing him was a good idea. I'm so frustrated to be so early in the season but to be already so utterly hopeless about our defensive abilities and there is very very little reason to even have hope until the transfer window opens up. It's brutal. I'm really really really disappointed in Sigi and Dom. I expected so so much more from TWO coaches I generally have had great respect for in this league. I'd like to see a clean out of Klein/Vagenas next though if I was given my choice.
Here is my problem with this, and correct me if I am wrong about my perception here, but if what I am reading is correct, it (1) assumes that the player who was born in the US who gets the current MLS level of pay in order to play in this league isn't as hungry for the game as the foreign player that could come here and get that same check; and (2) it assumes that a pay increase would make such guys play harder. When honestly the opposite might be more true. Work rate and heart can be found both in both foreign and domestic locations. It's really a matter of quality scouting. The truly passionate are more concerned with how they play versus how much they get paid to do so. I mean how many times have legends like Michael Jordan turned down pay increases in the name of keeping a winning team around him? It was more about the love of the game than the love of money. That being said great work ethic doesn't mean quality player either. For example, Bruce kept Bryan Jordan around for years because the poor bastard just tried so hard and wanted it so badly. His desire far outweighed his skillset. Now I agree with your view that he Galaxy right now is suffering from a combo of a lack of heart from certain guys and a lack of quality from others. However, I don't in this case believe that more money would necessarily fix the problem. What I do totally think though is that the biggest issue this team is facing is that those in charge of weeding out the guilty players who lack both skill and heart are failing to do their jobs. That's why I am most upset with Sigi. He is the winningest coach in the history of the league. I rooted for him to be hired on to succeed Bruce, and now he has me seriously contemplating lighting matches under his chair. I am giving him until after the Summer Transfer window to make significant personnel improvements to this team, that being in the form of bringing in legit quality new players to replace the proven duds like Ciani, lighting fires under the lazy ones we already have like Gio, or inspiring the ones that just need motivation to keep busting their butts before the lack of winning kills their game like Kamara and Llegett.
Holy stereotype, Batman! These guys, whether foreign or domestic, are all individuals, and it's up to the management of the team to pick the right players who have attitude and skill in the right combos. We are starting from a low, low point last year, but honestly I think we should be doing better by now, considering our coaching pedigree, but they made a fatal mistake of not prioritizing the defense. It's going to cost us, and possibly them their jobs, unless things turn around quickly.
I'm not going to complain about who's getting paid what. Every team is struggling with the same issues and most of them don't have the bankroll the galaxy has. Problem for me starts at the top. They know what the issues are and I don't believe they're doing enough to address them. The back line is lacking big time. I don't think they tried hard enough to find a suitable coach. I like Sigi and all but he's not the answer.
I get the frustration, as I think that weak attitude is part of the problem with our National Team, but who are you to tell young players that if they can't earn $3+ million at year at a top club by the time they're 23, they should pack it in? And for every MLS player making $60-100k a year, there are probably dozens (both domestic and foreign) would would gladly take his place if he had the talent. Are you suggesting to get rid of the rules that limit the number of foreign players on the rosters? Perhaps increasing the foreign content would be a good thing, especially with the number of teams in the league now.
Based on Klein and Vagenas's track records, I'm thinking they went with the coach they'd heard of. Vagenas should have gone with Onalfo - word on the grapevine is that Pete approached his role as GM with an horrendously arrogant and naive attitude - and Klein should never have been made president of our club as his first gig.
Klein and Vagenas should absolutely be gone - like last year. I think our midfield is as big or a bigger problem than our defense. We don't posses the ball and we don't move to space. Our turnovers put huge pressure on a very average defense. I like the glimpses of JDS I have seen, but he has been wildly inconsistent both this year and last. Do we not work on combination play in practice? It seems like our midfield is completely non existent for large stretches of games. We have no spine and invite teams to set up on our 18....