LA Galaxy’s Buddlebeck Connection Delivers 1-0 Win over Philadelphia Union

On October 7, 2010, a new connection from midfielder to striker was born on the virgin grounds of PPL Park in the city of Chester, Pennsylvania. The name: The Buddlebeck Connection.The Buddlebeck Connection is a combination of Edson Buddle and David Beckham. The 37th minute set piece off a corner in front of the River End and the Sons of Ben told the story on a cool autumn night on the East Coast, where Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy defeated Peter Nowak's Philadelphia Union 1-0 before a crowd of 18,779.The goal was Buddle's 16th of the season and the assist was Beckham's first of the year.Aside from applying much needed pressure on Real Salt Lake in the ongoing race for the Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield, Los Angeles (17-6-5, 56 points) can credit their backline for putting on one of their better outings this year.“It was a good win for us,” Arena said. “We didn’t play particularly well, but the short week and having to travel cross-country, having played Sunday night made for a tough week."[It was] one of those games where we certainly know on the road if we get a goal, we're going to try to get off the ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Philadelphia Union: A Play-By-Play (and Other Miscellany)

Greetings, everyone. This is the very first Play-By-Play (and Other Miscellany) that will be posted using Bleacher Report's very own Live Blog feature. My name is Jo-Ryan Salazar, the Los Angeles Galaxy's Featured Columnist. In the past, I used to compile this in one fell swoop, but starting today, I plan to make this a live play-by-play. I hope you enjoy this live blog, and I thank you for following the Galaxy and Major League Soccer on Bleacher Report.Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Sanna Nyassi’s Two Goals Lead Seattle Sounders to U.S. Open Cup Win

Saturday afternoon in an important match against Toronto FC at the Xbox Pitch of Qwest Field, Gambian midfielder Sanna Nyassi scored the first goal of his MLS career in helping lead his Seattle Sounders teammates to a 3-2 victory. After the match Sounders coach Sigi Schmid said tongue-in-cheek, “After congratulating Sanna I told him we don’t want to wait two years for another goal.”The two years involved the time that it took the 21-year-old to achieve his first goal.  With the scene moving forward to the same Qwest Field venue Tuesday night Nyassi was primed for more goals in the Sounders’ defense of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup they won last year.The talk all week in Seattle was that the championship match would set a tournament record and it did as 31,311 turned out to robustly root the home team to victory.  The  previous attendance record in the 97 years of the tournament was 21,583 for the 1929 game in Brooklyn.Nyassi scored both goals in a tough, intensely contested defensive struggle won by the Sounders 2-1 against the same Columbus Crew team that they dispatched impressively 4-0 September 18 on the Crew’s home pitch.   Schmid, who had coached at Columbus ...

Los Angeles Galaxy Crank Up Intensity Ahead of Philadelphia Union Match

There are two areas that the Los Angeles Galaxy's Bruce Arena feels will accelerate the club's progress to becoming the finished product.Those two areas? Speed and passing. Two of the key fundamentals behind sound ball control were the lesson of the day during Monday's training session at the Home Depot Center.The week also saw defender Gregg Berhalter return to the pitch after being sidelined due to a neck injury and viral infection.When asked about the upcoming match against the Philadelphia Union, Bruce Arena noted the challenges of playing in a venue like PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania:"It will be tough," Arena said. "It's probably not a well-planned schedule in that sense. You play a match on Sunday night and travel cross country for a Thursday game, but it is what it is and the light at the end of the tunnel is that we have eight days, nine days off until out next game."I wouldn't say [Philadelphia] are a lesser team. I think that's a lesson to be learned from the league this year. I think Colorado can tell you that. I think Salt Lake can probably tell you from [their 2-1 victory over the New England Revolution on October 2], ...

Bouna Coundoul Is Like a Box of Chocolates; You Never Know What You’re Gonna Get

The name on the back of the New York Red Bulls’ starting goalkeeper’s jersey reads “Coundoul,” but it may as well be Jekyll or Hyde. Bouna Coundoul is a player with multiple playing personas, and you never really know which side of him will show up. Known for his catchphrase “It’s Bouna time,” Coundoul was named MLS Player of the Week for Week 27 for his heroic efforts in a 1-0 victory over the Kansas City Wizards. The Wizards were desperate for points in their pursuit of the playoffs, and they attacked with large numbers. Coundoul kept them at bay though, making a career-high 12 saves. The shutout was his 10th of the season, a new franchise record. His performance was so impressive that it prompted head coach Hans Backe to start his post-game press conference with the statement, “Bouna Coundoul saved us.” Literally. The win clinched a playoff berth and moved the Red Bulls into first place in the Eastern Conference. He’s also put together a strong season. In addition to his shutouts—which he ranks fourth in the league in—he posts a record of 13-7-5, a 1.04 goals against average, and 100 saves, good for second in the league. He has also earned several call-ups to ...

Seattle Sounders Defend U.S. Open Cup Trophy Against Columbus Crew

Seattle Sounders FC achieved noteworthy significance in its first year of MLS existence in 2009 by achieving the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Trophy.One year later as the 2010 campaign moves toward its close and the playoffs, with the Sounders very much in the hunt for a wild card spot, it is time to defend that treasured trophy.Earlier in the run to the finals Coach Sigi Schmid said with relish, “It would be nice to be able to raise that trophy aloft before our home fans.”Tuesday that opportunity will become reality.  At 7 p.m. PT before another capacity crowd at the Xbox Pitch of Qwest Field the Sounders face the Eastern Conference’s first place team in the U.S. Open Cup finale.While the Sounders are motivated toward defending a prestigious cup won last season and the thrill of winning it a second time in succession before their home fans, Columbus is seeking payback for Seattle’s recent visit.  That occasion marked the Sounders scoring won of the premier wins and inflicting one of the biggest losses on Columbus in that storied franchise’s history.Another element of drama is that Sigi Schmid coached at Columbus prior to taking the Seattle job when the team ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Philadelphia Union: The October Push Continues

Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy, fresh off a 2-1 victory over Chivas USA, are in the tightest of races ahead of the MLS Cup Playoffs: the dash for the Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield.With a record of 16-6-5 (53 points), the Galaxy lead Real Salt Lake by two points in the overall standings as well as the MLS Western Conference. They take on a Philadelphia Union side that is 7-13-7 (28 points) and have been eliminated from postseason contention.“We’re moving forward, starting to get some of our players back, but that’s obviously part of the plan in the last month of the season,” Arena said on Sunday. “We’re 27 weeks in and it hasn’t been perfect, but we’ve been in first place for 27 weeks. It’s not going to be easy the next three games.”When asked regarding the importance of Sunday's victory over the Goats, team captain Landon Donovan stressed the pressure it put on them.“We had real pressure on us," Donovan said after the match. "[Real] Salt Lake won [2-1 against New England], so we were in second [place]. Winning the Supporters Shield is really important to us. This was a big game for us. It is always going ...

LA Galaxy’s Buddle, Beckham Read Chivas USA Last Rites in 2-1 Victory

It was a tale of two halves for Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy and Martin Vasquez's Chivas USA before a late Sunday afternoon crowd of 24,283 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.It was a first half where the Galaxy went off to a flying start and a second half where they clamped down defensively when they went down a man. Together, they told the story in a 2-1 victory for Los Angeles, further securing their hold on the Honda SuperClasico by winning 4-1 on aggregate.In retrospect, it could have been 3-2 Chivas. And here's why.In the eighth minute, a shot from Giancarlo Maldonado sailed just to the right of the net. LA goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts was a sitting duck on that sequence, as well as in the 13th minute, when former Galaxy bookend Alan Gordon had a golden chance to score on his old team, but the ball sailed to the left.Gordon would make amends in the 64th minute with a sensational volley that Ricketts lunged in vain to clear. But for the most part, unlucky shot selections combined with an offense that got shredded to pieces by a Galaxy back line desperate to return to form, and ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Chivas USA: A Play-by-Play (and Other Miscellany)

T-180 minutes to kickoff: I have never been to a Chivas USA game in my life until this Sunday evening at the Home Depot Center. For this Play-by-Play (with Other Miscellany), you will see these words pop up here and there: The Man Screams. And yes, they will all be capitalized.Now, the reason why I will place the phrase "The Man Screams" at different intervals is because there is a voice that the people at the PA like to play with a push of a button: "ARRIBA LAS CHIVAS!" and the crowd roars accordingly—the few thousands who take the courage to, that is.It's actually quite hilarious, if you look at it from a rival standpoint.T-150: Aside from that, this is the Honda SuperClasico between Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy and Martin Vasquez's Chivas USA.The Goats are currently 7-14-4 (25 points) and are a draw/defeat away from seeing their postseason hopes go up in smoke. As for the Galaxy, who sit at 15-6-5 (50 points), a victory will keep them in the running for the Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield. The G's were the first team to punch their ticket to the postseason. Real Salt Lake, who drew with Toronto 1-1 in ...

African Connection Leads Seattle Sounders To Victory

One of the most rewarding aspects of soccer is its strong international base.  The Seattle Sounders tapped into their own talented African connection to score an important 3-2 win over Toronto FC Saturday at the Xbox Pitch of Qwest Field in a match replete with potential MLS playoff implications. Blaise Nkufo and Steve Zakuani were both born in the Congo and grew up in Switzerland and England respectively.  Sanna Nyassi was born, raisded, and began his career in Gambia.  Saturday each player scored a goal in delighting another sellout Seattle crowd numbering 36,079.  The visitors, who had scored an earlier 2-0 home win over the Sounders, jumped out on top in the  16th minute on Dwayne De Rosario’s 13th goal of the campaign on an assist from Maicon Santos.Sounders FC equalized in the 21st minute. Osvaldo Alonso played a through ball down into the middle of the box. Zakuani took it and used his patent speed to elude onrushing goalkeeper Stefan Frei.  The site of the empty net was good news for Zakuani as he tallied his ninth goal of the season.It then remained for the player on the hot streak to give the Sounders the lead for the remainder of ...