we have some very exciting young players right now who are going to benefit directly from having Christian Gomez on the field," Clavijo said.
The forwards aren't the only ones hit by the injury bug. Veteran Mike Petke is likely to team up with former D.C. United defender Facundo Erpen centrally, while Ugo Ihemelu and Jose Burciaga Jr., acquired from Kansas City, would play out wide, battling with Tim Ward, who comes from Columbus.
But Ihemelu and Petke both carry knocks into the season opener against the Galaxy, and their positions will likely be filled by Kosuke Kimura, the first Japanese player in MLS, and Stephen Keel, who scored the winner against Chicago in a preseason match in Mississippi.
One thing that Clavijo touts is his team's depth, pointing out that the Rapids won the reserve division two years ago.
"That is a clear message that we are deep already and now we know we are better," Clavijo said. "We added players in different positions to correct things that were not properly done in the past. The addition of Gomez, Burciaga and Kelly Gray gives us a different look at different positions that we didn't feel very comfortable. We are deeper in every position and there is going to be a lot of competition for playing time, which will make us better."
In goal the Rapids boast one of the league's best in Bouna Coundoul, who had a 1.08 goals against average last year and nine clean sheets. The Senegalese native, by way of the Bronx, N.Y., is anxious to start his second MLS season.
"Everybody on this team has the same goal," he said. "The main goal this year is to make it to the playoffs since last year we didn't have a chance to make it and we were massively disappointed."
A big key to the Rapids success is to defend their home turf and vastly improve a home record that a year ago was a paltry 6-4-5.
"When we look back at what we didn't do well it was winning games at home," Clavijo said. "To get the record that we're planning to get, we need to do a better job. Get the results at home and take care of the business when we get on the road. Number one and most important we need to get the three points at home and we start with LA on Saturday."
And while the excitement for the rest of the league, and perhaps the rest of the world, is to see David Beckham begin his first full MLS season, the Rapids players are raring to get off to a good start at home.
"We want to get the season going," Cooke said. "We had a long offseason vacation, a long preseason which is nine weeks long and this is what you build up for is the first game of the season. It doesn't matter who we play. It will be an exciting day for the fans, a good atmosphere. Hopefully we get the three points."
Dylan Butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
