MLS CUP HERE WE COME!
Eight months, more than 30 matches, ups and downs, and it all comes down to Sunday evening at Qwest Field in Seattle... yes, dreams do come true! I will be the first to admit that I thought this team had a great chance of getting to the playoffs, but never did I imagine that LA would have the opportunity to raise their third MLS Cup. Chalk it up to me being wrong once again, but never have I been happier to say that. So... in this season's final "View from the Booth" I have put together an eclectic bunch of thoughts, admissions, and analytic comments for you to read through, enjoy!
The award winners - Congrats to each of the Galaxy members that picked up awards following the tremendous 2009 season. After speaking with several media members over the last three months of the season, I got the feeling that many thought Bruce Arena's transformation of this roster was incredible. Sure maybe not all of the moves made by the 2009 MLS Coach of the Year worked out, but more often than not they did. From inserting a rookie like Omar Gonzalez from the beginning of the year, to bringing in the long list of veteran players to fill various rolls on this Galaxy team, Arena just plain got it right. Yes it is Bruce who raises the award, but credit also has to go to his staff. Similar to players accepting their roles in the locker room and out on the pitch, each of Arena's assistant coaches did exactly that.
I mentioned Omar Gonzalez, the newly crowned MLS Rookie of the Year. What a season for the University of Maryland product. This central defender grew before our eyes, and by season's end was not only confident on the ball, but holding down some the best attacking players in the league. Without question, the 21-year old Gonzalez has a long career ahead of him in MLS and maybe, just maybe wearing the red, white and blue shirt in the near future... Bob Bradley, are you listening?
Landon Donovan, MLS Most Valuable Player... I like the sound of that. Really it is hard to believe that Landon has not won this award before in his career. Ask yourself when you think of the players over the last 14 years of the league who have had the biggest impact, Landon Donovan has to be one of the first to come to mind. As I stated before in this very spot, I thought Landon should have won the award last year after tallying a career best 20 goals during the season, but there is a reason for certain things to play out the way they do (the argument of being the MLS MVP without a player's team making the playoffs has some good weight as well). Donovan told me a few weeks back after winning the Honda Player of the Year award that he had three goals coming into 2009: getting LA into the playoffs, qualifying for the 2010 World Cup, and becoming the most complete player of his career to this point. Mission accomplished, now time to add a fourth, winning a fourth MLS Cup.
Calling my shot - I told you at the top that I was going to make an admission in this year's final article. Over the playoff run this year, I said to several colleagues and friends that I felt a certain player who had not made his mark on many matches this year was going to do so during the playoffs. My claim was that this player was going to have the opportunity to come into the game and create the chance or even finish the chance that the Galaxy would need to get the result it needed. What are the names that are popping into your mind right now? I imagine that Alan Gordon was not the first name to roll off of your tongue? Give Gordon credit thought, he came on in the match against Houston and created the freekick that led to LA's first goal, and then was the player taken down inside the area to help Landon Donovan seal it from the penalty spot. Gordon would be the first to admit he isn't the cleanest or smoothest player to lace them up for LA, but one thing he can be is effective. LA might just need that effectiveness off the bench one more time.
Remember 2002? - On a couple of the last broadcasts for FS West, I mentioned to my on-air partner Jim Watson that there seemed to be a lot of parallels with the way things went for the Galaxy on 2002. The team won the Western Conference, and thus the #1 seed in the playoffs, the team passed the 48-point mark (finishing with 51 points), and LA was led to the MLS Cup final by the league MVP, Carlos Ruiz. Substitute the name Landon Donovan for Carlos Ruiz, and 2009 is very similar to 2002. All that is needed to finish it up would be Donovan finding the back of the net Sunday, earning the Finals' MVP, and raising the Cup. Sounds like a plan to me.
Third time is the Charm - Sunday will mark the third meeting of the year between LA and Real Salt Lake. The Galaxy was fortunate to get a point from the available six in the two regular season meetings. A stoppage time goal from Landon Donovan turned a 1-0 deficit to a 1-1 draw, which quickly became 2-1 for Jason Kreis' team before a late Mike Magee goal earned a share of the points at Rio Tinto. Then the Galaxy played one of their few forgettable performances of the season in a 2-0 loss at the HDC. Certainly the Galaxy is not just a much better team this time around, but clearly a different team. For starters, David Beckham and Landon Donovan were not in the line-up the last time these teams met. Although LA did come into the game riding a 10-game unbeaten run, the team was also playing their fourth match in 14 days time. Back to present day, and this is a very focused Galaxy team, maybe even a team of fate. There is now doubt that RSL coach Jason Kreis will have his squad ready to play as well. RSL is a team centered on the word heart and is playing with more confidence than they have had all year. This is a team that struggled on the road all season long, but in the past two weeks has gone away from Sandy, Utah and taken out the two top teams from the Eastern Conference, Columbus and Chicago.
Where the game will be won - The Galaxy has to control the midfield in this game for a number of reasons. Both side have some of their best players in the middle part of the field, Morales for RSL and Beckham for LA. Each of these players might not always end up on the scoring summary, but they are some of the best MLS has to offer when it comes to delivering a quality ball to a specific spot. Morales will be looking to spring former Galaxy striker Robbie Findley, while Beckham hopes to ignite the attack with service into Buddle and Donovan. For LA the best way to limit this from happening will be with Dema Kovalenko. Kovalenko, who spent last year with RSL, will have to stay glued to the hip of Morales and make it difficult for 29 year-old Argentine to find space. Kyle Beckerman will operate in a similar manner defensively for RSL. If the Galaxy can win this match-up on a consistent basis over 90 minutes, my money say LA will win their 3rd MLS Cup title.
I hope you have enjoyed reading my thoughts and comments throughout the season. Even more, I hope that it has given you a broader perspective to view the games each week. This will now make it five years that I have been a part of the Galaxy' broadcast team, and I can openly tell you it has been the most rewarding. Winning always helps that way. But I feel that even if the Galaxy were not playing for the Cup on Sunday, there has been a different feeling around the organization this season, one that has not been present for quite some time. It was something I first noticed when I came onto the broadcasts in 2005 as a sideline reporter for the TV coverage. One of the first guys to greet me when I came to the stadium for my first FS West broadcast was Doug Hamilton, the former General manager of the Galaxy. In my brief interaction with Doug in 2005, I learned that Hamilton was a man who had a passion for soccer, winning and for the Galaxy, not just as a team, but as a family. That family feeling has come back into the fold, and with it has come passion for soccer, the Galaxy and winning games. I think regardless of the outcome on Sunday, Doug Hamilton will be smiling down on Qwest Field because the Galaxy is back. Some might think that I am getting a bit carried away here, but it is coming from the right place when I lay these words down on the page. Take it for what it's worth, remember, it is just my "View from the Booth."
