LA Galaxy Reserves Will be back in action on Sunday, April 20 when they take on Houston at 1PM at the HDC (field TBD)
Tonight I was told by one of the players that the match will start at 9:30 PST on University field #1 today. Wish I had been able to post this earlier. -Steve L.
Steve, I haven't been to a reserve match this year. Can I take a lawn chair and sit out and watch it. What are the rules? Are cameras allowed?
Howie: If I was able to go tomorrow I would take my chair and camera. No I did not ans. your question Are you sitting in GA now? Steve
Actually I am just trying to catch as many games as I can that fit my schedule. I kind of like the freedom of seating anywhere I want. I recently sat up in the 200 level and loved it. IMHO, you get the best perspective of the game and you can see plays develop really well.
Just back from the reserve game. 2-1 to Houston. Frustrating to watch, because our reserve midfield simply got overrun. I can't judge Valentin or Roberts on this game, because they were hung out to dry all game long. It was a different formation from our first team (4-4-2 diamond midfield with trialists or guest players at the a-mid, right mid, and right back spots), but Vagenas as the d-mid was very disappointing. Lots of ball-watching, did OK holding possession but inevitably sent the ball straight back to the defenders. You know the midfield is pretty much nonexistent when Troy Roberts is pulling the strings on the attack!
I got a chance to go to the reserve game today. Here's my take on it: Formation --------------Gordon-----Jordan---------------- ------Sesay-----------------------?????-------- --------------Vagenas-------?????-------------- Gavin------Valentine--------Roberts-----?????--- ---------------------Wicks--------------------- Well the match ended 2-1 Houston. Both their goals were quality strikes that Wicks had very little chance to get to. The first, I believe goal was scored Chris Wondolowski. He was being marked by Roberts on the right side of the box. Roberts didn't put enough pressure on him and he was able to create enough space and move the ball to the center and get off a blast that ended up in the upper diagonal corner. It kinda reminded me of Sasha Kljestan's goal last week agaisnt the Crew, except it didn't have the same bend, it was more of a laser shot. The second goal was very typical of this year's G defense. The ball came into the box and it was cleared very poorly to just outside the top of the box. Stuart Holden was there and blasted it into the back of the net. The Galaxy goal came when one of our guest players took the ball up the right side and crosed it into the sliding Bryan Jordan. Overall Houston dominated play. They had the majority of possession, more shots on goals and more corners. (Now that I think about it, I don't think we had any.) Forwards: If your wondering how Gordon did, just think about how he looked the last time you saw him play. He was no better or no worse. He tried to hold the ball but was not effectively putting it into dangerous situations. He also missed 2 opportunities in the air. One in particular was an absolute golden chance right in front of net that he headed over the goal. Jordan busted his butt all game. His work rate was very impressive, but I didn't see him use his speed and break away. Maybe that's because the midfield an opportunity like that for him. Midfield: Israel Sesay is fun to watch. He has some fancy footwork. Unfortunately he didn't see enough of the ball to be much danger. He spent most of the game having to track back and defend. BTW, IMO, he has an uncanny physical resemblance to Freddy Adu. Pete Vagenas was the same as usual. His body language drives me crazy. Although I do have to say that he did try to move the ball forward more than I have seen him do in the past. The Guest players were O.K. I can't really say much one way or the other about them. Defense: I think Micheal Gavin had a poor showing. I can't recall him making any dangerous runs forward out of the back. He also is not vocal enough. There were a few times that he was open and did not call for the ball. Overall the best way I can describe his performance is that of a rookie. I really hope he gains some confidence fast. Valentine worked hard all game. Out of everyone he looked to be the one that was most into the match. I hope he continues to develop so that he can contribute to the first team. Roberts had a typical game for him. As much as we all know that the team needs help at centerback, sadly we all also know that Roberts isn't the anwser. Goal Keeper: Although he got scored on twice today, I think Wicks is a solid keeper. Like I said before, I don't think he had much of a chance to stop either quality strike on goal that resulted in goals. I love how vocal he is back there. He is constantly yelling at the guys telling them to hold their shape and telling defenders when they should step into the ball to break up a play. I wish Roberts would have listened when Wicks yelled step just before Wondolowski made the move which led to the goal. Lastly, I was surprised that Ruud was not at the game. I would figure that Ruud would want to get a look at the guys during a competative match.
Official game report from yesterday here: http://la.galaxy.mlsnet.com/news/te...ent_id=151866&vkey=pr_lag&fext=.jsp&team=t106
Elninho, howie1976, others who saw the reserve match, We have a guy on trial who made his first appearance in this match - Guy-Roland Kpene at Forward. I read that he played about 70 minutes. Can anyone tell me how he looked? Thanks
I'm not sure if he is who I think he is but if he is, then he was the black guy with bleached blond hair. From what I remember, he looked very active, physically strong and had good pace. He looked like he fit in well with the team. He also looked better then Johnny Alcaraz which replaced him. The other two that stood out from your team was Corey Ashe and Stuart Holden. Those guys are studs.
Hair styles change quickly! Sesay no longer has bleached blond hair (atleast he didn't that game). The guy he was asking about was one of the Dynamo players, so unless Sesay was playing with an orange jersey, the guy I was talking about was not Sesay!