Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Chicago Fire: The Push for Win No. 10

Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy were unfortunate to have drawn scoreless with the Seattle Sounders on Monday. They will hope for a better result when they host the Chicago Fire on Saturday, July 9 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.“It’s good to get back into training, but playing in a game is different,” team captain Landon Donovan told LAGalaxy.com's Luis Bueno. “I wasn’t very sharp [Monday] either. That doesn’t have to do with the team. That just has to do with me individually.”Donovan was away on CONCACAF Gold Cup duty and the loss of minutes may have something to do with the whole situation, regarding his lack of form.“He looked a little bit tired for Landon,” Arena said. “In all honesty, he didn’t play a lot of minutes. He didn’t come back perhaps the way he left because he had limited minutes over his monthly stint there, and I think that takes a little bit away."“We gave him some time off when he came back so he hasn’t been in the swing of things like he needs to be. He’s certainly going to build with each game,” Arena added. Midfielder David Beckham is nursing a stress fracture and ...

2011 MLS Power Rankings: Week 16

In the aftermath of all the fireworks and Fourth of July barbecues going on in all corners of the United States of America and elsewhere, the 2011 Major League Soccer season marches on, with a full slate of contests over the weekend.Back at the top are Schellas Hyndman's FC Dallas, but creeping up on them are the red-hot light blues of Sporting Kansas City. Let's take a look at this week's Power Rankings, which set the stage for another exciting weekend of football.Begin Slideshow

Brian Perk Does the Work as LA Galaxy Hold Seattle Sounders Scoreless

Seattle, meet Brian Perk.Sure, he isn't the Big Cat from Montego Bay known as Donovan Ricketts or the trusty backup known as Josh Saunders, but he's a goalkeeper nonetheless.The Fourth of July was Perk's coming-out party, and he made the most of his debut appearance by making a number of stops and even saving a Fredy Montero penalty as the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Seattle Sounders played to a scoreless draw at the Home Depot Center on Monday night.It seems as if he learned his lessons from the U.S. Open Cup match with the Los Angeles Blues and stepped his game up when the team needed him most. You talk about continuity and consistency, and you talk about this humble third-stringer who probably might be a legit first-string keeper one of these days.“I think the final score is a fair result," said manager Bruce Arena to reporters. "That was a game that was pretty even. I would have liked the chance to make a couple of other substitutions in the second half, but obviously we had to make changes to the center backs that’s difficult. The first change to A.J. [DeLaGarza] was going to have us hampered in the ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders: Live Blog, Play-by-Play Analysis

Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy, with Landon Donovan returning to the fold, returns to action tonight as they take on Sigi Schmid's Seattle Sounders on Independence Day at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.Keep it here on Bleacher Report for continuing coverage of world football and the 2011 Major League Soccer season.Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Analysis, Reaction and More

Bruce Arena’s Los Angeles Galaxy take on Frank Yallop’s San Jose Earthquakes in what should be the final game without the services of LA’s Landon Donovan and San Jose’s Chris Wondolowski due to CONCACAF Gold Cup obligations. The Los Angeles Galaxy are currently 9-2-7 (34 points) and have the best record in Major League Soccer.  As for the Earthquakes, they are 5-5-4 (19 points) and are sixth in the MLS Western Conference.With David Beckham questionable due to back issues, Los Angeles will need to rely on their depth to win the day, with an emphasis on players like Chad Barrett, Juninho and Juan Pablo Angel. As for the Quakes, Steven Lenhart has been picking up steam and will be a target for the Galaxy defense, led by Todd Dunivant, Sean Franklin and Omar Gonzalez. Keep it right here on Bleacher Report for continuing coverage of the 2011 Major League Soccer season.Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com

Los Angeles Galaxy Ins and Outs, June 23, 2011

The Continuing Adventures of the Young AmericansThe USA Under-17 Men's National Team suffered their first loss of their FIFA Under-17 World Cup campaign, losing to Uzbekistan, 2-1. Alfred Koroma scored the only goal for the USA, in the 47th minute.The States must defeat New Zealand on June 25 to stand any chance of advancing to the knockout stages.Youth Academy UpdateThe Los Angeles Galaxy Youth Academy announced this week that Mauricio Cienfuegos would be hired as a Technical Director for the Youth Academy sides.Cienfuegos holds a USSF “A” coaching license and has experience as a head coach at the professional level, coaching Nejapa Futbol Club in El Salvador’s First Division in 2008.“I’m very happy to be back with the club, and to have the opportunity to work with the young players in the Academy is something that I’m very much looking forward to,” Cienfuegos told reporters. “I’m going to be doing something that brings a lot of joy to me, which is teaching the game to kids. Hopefully, one of those players will go on to play for the first team, that’s everyone’s goal.”Cienfuegos helped the Galaxy capture three of the club’s five ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Los Angeles Blues: It’s Time for Some Open Cup Action

Several weeks ago, I asked Los Angeles Blues manager Charlie Naimo about the possibility of facing Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup."Quite honestly, it would be a great opportunity for our club to draw some attention; that there is another great soccer team in LA besides the Galaxy and Chivas," Naimo said in the interview. "I hope it's an opportunity for us to draw some fans, and to teach people that we exist."Competitively, it's also an awesome opportunity to be able to play a level up. And just like it's a great opportunity for an amateur team to play us in the Open Cup, it's the same way when we get to play them, or just like when an MLS team gets to play Real Madrid."Guess what, Charlie? Your chance has finally arrived.The LA Blues of USL PRO and the LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer meet for a spot in the quarterfinals on Tuesday, June 28 at Titan Stadium on the campus of California State University, Fullerton.The Blues made it to the third round of the U.S. Open Cup with a 3-1 victory over the Hollywood United Hitmen in the first ...

Los Angeles Galaxy vs. San Jose Earthquakes: Revenge Tour at Buck Shaw

Depending on the United States's performance against Panama in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinals, either one—Donovan or both Donovans—will be available for Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy against a team they struggled to get a result against last year, the San Jose Earthquakes.Not that it really mattered in their last match; both Donovans—midfielder Landon Donovan and goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts—and David Beckham were not needed in the Galaxy's 3-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids on Saturday."It is a team game," Arena reminded reporters on Saturday. "If you are missing players, you are missing players it is all a part of it. We have missed Landon Donovan for about seven games this year, if you use that as an excuse, you are not putting yourself in a position to win any games."The good news for the Galaxy is that regardless of what happens Wednesday, Ricketts will be reporting back to work for this important encounter on the campus of Santa Clara University this Saturday.Los Angeles came into the match with a nine-game unbeaten streak and a 9-2-7 record (34 points), good for the best record in the league, although second-place FC Dallas have two games in hand and can be even ...

2011 MLS Power Rankings: Week 14

So Bob Bradley's hopes of managing the USA Men's National Team for the long haul have increased with their breakthrough victory over Jamaica in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals.Fair enough.Meanwhile, the 2011 Major League Soccer season rolls along, and the Los Angeles Galaxy have returned to the top of the 2011 MLS Power Rankings with their first win in the month of June.We got some movers. We got some shakers. We got it all. Here's this week's MLS Power Rankings.Begin Slideshow

Los Angeles Galaxy’s Depth Dooms Colorado Rapids in 3-1 Victory

The power of redemption can be a wonderful, powerful thing, especially when a city of 3.7 million people with a passion for sport are asking for production on a consistent basis.Case in point: the Los Angeles Galaxy's Chad Barrett and Juninho.Both players broke their slump on Saturday as they helped Bruce Arena's club to a comprehensive 3-1 victory over Gary Smith's Colorado Rapids on Saturday night at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colo.Midfielder David Beckham was unavailable due to back issues. The two Donovans—team captain/midfielder Landon Donovan and goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts—were still with their national teams and will be meeting on opposite sidelines later today in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Quarterfinals at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.And the Galaxy still won their first game in the month of June. Hello.In a league like Major League Soccer, production from the depth of any team will be critical to its chances of winning some hardware at the end of the year.They did get a little insurance from some bad luck, with Chris Birchall's cross attempt in the 25th minute finding the foot of the Rapids' Drew Moor, who proceeded to score an own goal. That's just inexcusable defending, but ...