photo courtesy of New York Red Bulls facebook page

Tim Cahill did it again! With a late game goal, the New York Red Bulls held onto their first place in the Eastern Conference. Sunday’s early game on ESPN against the LA Galaxy was touted as a clash of two giant teams. It was a nice follow-up to the early morning Premiere League game where Arsenal held onto their place in the league. But the NY v. LA game was anything but blue skies and sunshine…

photo courtesy of New York Red Bulls facebook page

The first half had the Galaxy dominating the game and creating plenty of chances but New York’s defense was up for the challenge. Both teams were putting in the work. NY’s Juninho, Cahill and Thierry Henry worked hard at making plays happen but those chances never found their mark. Espindola tried to get a slow roll past LA’s Carlo Cudicini but it was an easy catch and both teams headed into the half still at 0-0. Don’t think that the Galaxy didn’t have a remarkable attempt from Robbie Keane with a curling free kick that was reminiscent of the now retired, David Beckham.

photo courtesy of NYRB’s facebook page

Both teams came into the second half locked and loaded to make things happen. With the rain falling, it seemed that the Galaxy couldn’t gain their footing. The 61st minute had Landon Donovan launching one from just outside the 18 but his attempt at the far post goes over the crossbar. Some great passing from New York still couldn’t get through LA’s defense. Fan favorite, Dax McCarty was brought on in the 77th minute. With the clock ticking, some were wondering if we would have the game ending nil for both teams. That would change in the stoppage time goal for the man we’ve started calling, King Cahill.

photo courtesy of NYRB’s facebook page

This is New York’s fourth game in a winning streak that had Jamison Olave being named Man of the Match. The New York Red Bulls will have another chance to pick up three points when at home when they play the Columbus Crew.

The clash of the two MLS powerhouses is usually nothing short of entertaining. Every time these two teams meet the stars align and things fit perfectly. You would think since this is the only meeting of these teams this season it would be exciting. Except today; today’s game was kind of boring. From LA Galaxy’s perspective today’s game was a tough one; they had to play without their driving force Mike Magee. Magee is suffering from an ankle sprain that kept him out of the lineup. LA had a chance to win it, and looked like they would until New York Red Bulls’ Tim Cahill took it away. At least Cahill is on my fantasy team…

First half was interesting. In the 10th minute LA Galaxy’s Juninho had to be subbed out because he had a right shin injury. This plus the absence of Magee proved to be a difficult challenge for the midfield. They could not serve the ball into the box or make the critical passes that needed to be made. New York started breaking LA down piece by piece.

In the 28th minute NY strung together a string of passes that put LA in a hole, and Cudicini tried to save the day but FAILED, and as all hope was being lost AJ DeLaGarza came to the rescue and cleared the ball off the goal line. This is not the first time Cudicini has made a mistake like that, in the first two games he was off his line every two seconds. I thought he had moved passed that stage, but apparently he hasn’t. Even though NY had most of the possession LA still had a great chance on goal in the 40th minute.

Robbie Keane took a free kick that people deemed “David Beckham worthy”, it was good but NY’s keeper made the save to keep the score level 0-0 as the teams headed into the half.

Second half LA opened up their play, and took control of the game. In the 61st minute Donovan had a crack at goal, but shot it just over the bar. LA had shot after shot, but just could not finish. In the 87th minute Robbie Keane had a chance to take it home for LA, but his header was just wide. As time was winding down and three minutes of stoppage time were added, I was feeling good about LA coming away with a draw. Then, low and behold in the 91st minute Tim Cahill gave New York the goal they needed to steal the three points.

I can’t explain to you how annoying it is when the keeper yells at the other players like it is their fault. Cudicini did just that to Marcelo Sarvas, and it wasn’t even Sarvas’ fault! The ball was in the 6-yard box, which everyone knows is the keeper’s box and the keeper should get ANY ball that comes that close to goal… but no, Cudicini just stood there and gave away three points. Annoyed was an understatement. It was ridiculous, and something that hadn’t happened to LA in four games. UGGGHHH. As the final whistle blew NY had topped LA 1-0, and came away with the three points. On this three game road trip LA only came away with three points, disappointing but still not as bad as zero points in three games!

LA’s next game will be May 26th against Seattle.

In other LA Galaxy news, it was announced earlier this week that Frank Lampard was staying at Chelsea. This opened up tons of questions on who would be LA’s third DP. Many think they should get a midfielder who has a service that is near the accuracy of Beckham’s, because LA has been missing that. Other people think the third DP should go to Omar Gonzalez because if not, then LA could lose him next year. All of this is just speculation on things to come; I’ll keep you guys updated as things progress!

Going into tonight’s game, both LA Galaxy and the Philadelphia Union were in the middle of a three game stretch in eight days. Keane and Dunivant were back in the starting XI, while Sean Franklin was out of the starting lineup. Both teams were looking for a win, and LA pulled out all the stops in order to secure the three points.

First half started off perfectly for LA. In the 3rd minute LA Galaxy made a play that resulted in a corner, Donovan sent the ball in and it seemed as though the ball went off of Omar’s head and into the goal. But that was not the case, the ball went off of Philadelphia’s keeper Zac MacMath’s head and into the goal, resulting in an own goal for Philadelphia. But hey, anyway LA can get it goal, I’ll take it! From then on it was an interesting game from both ends of the field.

courtesy MLS Facebook

In the 10th minute, Robbie Keane got passed two defenders and was about to take a shot on goal when he saw AJ DeLeGarza running in the box. AJ ALMOST had a goal but MacMath made a good save that resulted in a corner. At this point LA was beginning to lose their footing and started making the same mistakes they made last week. In the 23rd minute it happened, Okugo evened the game and put Philadelphia back in the game.

This season the guys have had a tough time marking corner kicks, and that is exactly what happened tonight. Villaarreal lost his Okugo in the box and he ended up scoring… It was terrible. Union then gained control for the majority of time remaining, taking eight shots to LA’s two. In the 44th minute LA had a chance, and the ball went in the back of the net but Keane was “apparently” offside. Who knows. The first 45 ended 1-1.

The second half was all about some LA Galaxy. It took them about 20 minutes to get going, but when they did it was phenomenal. In the 71st minute, Robbie Keane proved he was back as he slid the ball into the back of the net to give LA the 2-1 lead. From then on LA looked like they were back into the swing of things. In the 80th minute Hector Jimenez brought it home for LA, he put the ball into the back of the net and made it 3-1. Just as you were thinking the game was over, the main man Landon Donovan proved why he should be called up to USMNT camp. He beat two defenders and it was GAME OVER as he made it 4-1.

This was a nice change for LA from the last two weeks. Having Keane and Dunivant back made a difference, and Landon Donovan also had something to prove to Jurgen. All of this made for a good game on LA’s behalf, not a [erfect game… but it was close enough!
LA’s next game will be May 19th against New York! It’s an early game; 1 p.m. EST/ 10 a.m. PST.

Tonight was game one of LA Galaxy’s three-game run away from home. They brought out the new blue kits, and boy did they look sharp. The four stars were as bright as diamonds! Not really, but they looked awesome. This was the ONLY positive thing from tonight’s game. Yes, the uniforms. The game from an LA fan’s perspective was something I never want to see again. Ughhhh.

The first half I enjoyed watching; it opened up early as Villarreal had a great header that put Vancouver’s keeper, Joe Cannon, on his toes. LA had great possession and the pace was quick. As the half went on Vancouver’s confidence began building, and they began attacking. In the 37th minute Gonzalez made an awkward clearance that had Cudicini making his best save of the night. Yes, Gonzalez had a “shot” on his own goal; it was a pretty one too, but at the wrong goal. Besides this one derp moment, neither team had a shot on goal that looked troubling. LA had five corner kicks in the first half, and couldn’t convert any. The half ended 0-0.

Second half was crazy, crazy, crazy. Around the 55th minute it started looking like last week’s game against Houston. LA gave Vancouver one too many chances, and it came back to bite them. In the 63rd minute Russell Teibert put Vancouver in the lead 1-0. This lit a fire under Vancouver, they kept pushing forward and they wanted the win. At this point LA’s whole team was not playing up to par; they were losing possession and just seemed to be all over the place. Something needed to change, and Bruce Arena apparently thought so too as he brought on Zardes for Sarvas in the 66th minute.

It was a fresh set of legs, but LA fell apart in the 76th minute as Teibert got his second goal of the night. LA had no energy; you could see the defeat on their faces. But in the 86th minute Zardes put on his big girl undies and put the ball in the back of the net to bring the score 2-1. With only four minutes left LA had a hope back in their eyes and pushed everyone up top. Just as you thought the game was over, Mattock scored the third goal and put the cherry on top for Vancouver. The final whistle blew and LA had lost 3-1 to Vancouver.

LA’s next game will be May 15th against Philadelphia Union.

I was going to have this long thing about it being Star Wars night and all of that, but after this game I wasn’t in the mood. UGH. I’m not holding back, so you’ve been forewarned! : ) Last night’s LA Galaxy game was a rematch from the 2012 and the 2011 MLS Cup. It was just five months ago when LA took on Houston at the HDC. There is a reason these two teams have made it to the MLS Cup for two years in a row. They play their hearts out and they put on a show. You have to admit, this is what soccer is all about. Last night LA played Houston for the first and only time in the regular season and it was a great game, if you were a Houston fan.

First half both teams turned it on, LA and Houston both had an excellent run of play. LA’s rookies stole the spotlight once again. Charlie Rugg had two chances, and Greg Cochrane dominated the back line. The first half was in the palm of their hands. In the 26th minute Josie Villarreal made a run and was taken down in the 18, thus he drew a PK. None other than Landon Donovan stepped up to take it, and… missed. Yes, he missed. This is the second PK Donovan has missed this season, which is odd. He’s still getting “back in to the swing of things” as Taylor Twellman stated in the broadcast.

I just wanted to go through the TV and give Donovan a pep talk, because it was a terrible PK. No power, a stutter step, and just flat out terrible. As the first half was winding down Houston started pushing forward and were looking to steal a goal before the break. They pushed all the way until the whistle blew, and lucky for LA, they couldn’t convert a goal. The teams went into the half 0-0.

Second half started just as it was hitting midnight on the East Coast, and boy was I tired. But hey, what’s a little beauty sleep sacrificed to watch LA play? Nothing, that’s what. Until the 56th minute I was really enjoying the game, and then Andrew Driver found the back of the net for Houston putting them ahead 1-0. This was a familiar place for LA though, as they were in this same position back in December. At this point in the game Mike Magee was furious. All night he was getting beat up and the referee was not calling anything Magee’s way. It was rather frustrating for LA and me (maybe because it was 12:30 a.m.).

Bruce made two crucial subs at this point trying to get a tying goal. Zardes came on for Rugg and Jimenez for Villarreal. This pushed Donovan up top, and made the game have a faster pace. Unfortunately this didn’t matter, as the final whistle blew LA fell 1-0 to Houston. Sad day, and a tough game to watch. Again the rookies proved they were tough players. Cochrane played the full 90 and never backed down from a one-on-one chance. I was impressed with all the players, but it just wasn’t their night. Even though it was hard to watch, you can’t win ‘em all!

LA’s next game will be May 11th against Vancouver.

Real Salt Lake managed to go through the entire 2012 season without conceding a goal in in first 15 minutes. On Saturday, they had already conceded two by that point. After Salt Lake had played Colorado and conceded a goal in the first 5 minutes, Head Coach Jason Kreis focused on having his team come out of the gates with lots of high energy, but his team didn’t give him that Saturday night.

After some bad defensive marking and untimely slips. RSL found themselves in a deep hole. Despite the offensive power and creativity from players like Javier Morales and Olmes Garcia, Real failed to find the back of the net. The crossbar and posts became Carlos Cuddicini’s new best friend as they denied RSL’s attackers of obvious chances.

When tonight’s LA Galaxy lineup was released, I was scratching my head. I knew some of the players were hurt but holy cow. This was a lineup I would expect for a CCL game, not a game against Real Salt Lake. LA’s lineup was: Rowe; Franklin, DeLaGarza, Gonzalez, Cochrane; Jimenez, Sarvas, Juninho, Magee; Rugg, McBean. That’s right. No Dunivant, Keane, Donovan or Cudicini. I had faith the young guys could pull off a win if they tried hard enough but I wasn’t going to get my expectations up. It’s a good thing I’m not a betting person…

Look at Magee’s beautiful hair.

First half, honestly, I was hardly paying attention and then BAM, in the 6th minute Mike Magee scored off a Juninho free kick and was tied for the Golden Boot with six goals. HELLO JURGEN KLINNSMAN. PAGING KLINNSMAN! Isn’t it about time y’all noticed the invincible Mike Magee? Just saying. Now back to the game; for the time being LA was WINNING. Yes, they were winning and it was awesome.

Then LA made me shut my mouth and the young guns showed what they were made of. In the 13th minute Charlie Rugg, the rookie, found the back of the net and put LA up 2-0. At this point in time my jaw was dropped and I was bowing down to LA Galaxy’s coaching staff for picking up some incredible rookies. The rest of the first 45 LA had plenty of chances but couldn’t finish. I wasn’t mad at all though because they were winning 2-0 against RSL. I was actually really happy. LA went into the half leading 2-0 and they knew they needed to pace themselves in the second half so the altitude wouldn’t take such a toll.

In the opening minutes of the second half Jack McBean took a hard knock and had to be subbed out. Gyasi Zardes was subbed in and he was the third LA Galaxy rookie to make his MLS debut in this game. Yes, another rookie, and a pretty amazing rookie at that. In the 78th minute Zardes had a terrific run and played the ball to Jimenez who had a chance but hit the near post. As I was beginning to think LA had this game in the bag, RSL turned it up in stoppage time. I can’t even begin to explain how they didn’t score in the 93rd minute. LA must have had an angel helping move the goal or something, it was crazy! When the final whistle blew LA had come away with a 2-0 win that surprised a lot of people.

I gotta say, at the beginning of this game as I said, my expectations were not high. But right now I take back everything I was thinking. The rookies, and the veterans played tough and they meshed really well. Brian Rowe showed up to play for that clean sheet. His play was solid tonight, and might give Cudicini a challenge for the starting spot. At the beginning of the year people were wondering how LA was going to “make it” without Beckham, and at the time Donovan. I think tonight Bruce Arena showed the rest of MLS to never underestimate the LA Galaxy team. It doesn’t matter if the big names aren’t in the lineup or even on the team, they can still kick some major booty.

LA’s next game will be May 5th against Houston. This is a game I’m looking forward to.

I was very entertained in last night’s MLS game between LA Galaxy and Sporting KC. It wasn’t a game where one team dominated; though the score may seem that way. It was two teams who fought against each other, both wanting the win. Robbie Keane was back in action after being away with International duty and an injury. It was a good sight, seeing him back on the field along with Dunivant and Franklin. It was a great game, let’s hop to it!

Courtesy Robert More Photography

First half both teams came out physical, it was less than 10 minutes before they both had a chance on goal. Then in the 27th minute Landon Donovan made a brilliant run that opened up Marcelo Sarvas in the box and put LA up 1-0. This ended Sporting KC’s shutout streak at 546 minutes, the 5th longest in MLS history.

Before Landon made the run that scored the goal, he played a ball to Keane that I certified as sexy. It was a classic LD ball, and one that had me almost drooling. It was that pretty. Playing out the rest of the half, LA completely dominated SKC. Even though SKC played in NY on Wednesday, they played the first half with everything they had and made it entertaining.

Second half was a half LA fans have begun to fear. In almost every game this season, LA has given up a late goal which has cost them greatly. But tonight it was a half that LA fans loved. LA once again dominated the run of play, every touch was flawless. Then in the 74th minute, Landon Donovan finally got his first goal of the season. It had me up out of my seat cheering! It was a breakaway that started with Keane, and ended with him being unselfish in the box and giving the ball to Donovan. Thus Donovan put the ball in the back of the net, and he was back in action.

You could tell that the sabbatical Donovan took at the beginning of the year was for the best. Last night he was on point with his play, and seemed to be enjoying every single minute. I’ll admit that I was skeptical about the “sabbatical”, but now I’m glad he took the time he needed and is back better than ever. As the final whistle blew LA had come away with a 2-0 win… and they didn’t give up a goal in the final minutes either! YAY!

LA came together and played a great game tonight. Everything seemed to mesh and all of the players played great. It took LA 13 games last season to accumulate the amount of points they have right now, and it’s only been 6 games. Bravo boys. LA’s next game will be April 27th against Real Salt Lake.

FC Dallas vs LA Galaxy is quickly becoming one of my favorite fixtures in MLS. This could be because the only two MLS games I’ve ever had the chance to go to were both Dallas versus Galaxy, but it’s always one helluva ride to watch. Saturday night was no exception.

Yet another late home winner to keep FC Dallas unbeaten at home this season

The first half was relatively calm with both teams only having one shot on goal by the halftime whistle. FCD controlled most of the play thanks to Andrew Jacobson and Michel, but LA’s defense led by Omar Gonzalez held firm.

All the excitement came in the second half. Both teams picked up the pace and really started going for each other. Raúl Fernández and Carlo Cudicini had fantastic performances and kept the scoreline 0-0 for a better part of the game. I totally thought Kenny Cooper had scored at one point, but eventually I realized he had been offside when the cheers of the crowd turned into boos. Then, at the hour mark, everything changed.

Leonardo pulled Blás Perez down inside the box and the ref saw fit to show his a straight red card. Granted Perez may have exaggerated the foul a bit, but it went in his favor as the LA went down to 10 men and Dallas were awarded a penalty kick. Kenny Cooper stepped up to take the shot…and Cudicini saved!!! 10 minutes of chaos ensued. The Galaxy seemed to start playing better down one man. And suddenly George John tripped Jose Villarreal and LA Galaxy were awarded a penalty kick too! Landon Donovan stepped up. And Raúl Fernández saved it!!! Crazy crazy crazy! Two penalty kicks and two saves in a matter of 10 minutes. Wild!

The game swung in FC Dallas’s favor when George John headed in a goal from a corner kick. Another goal from another set piece. The Galaxy were desperate and fought incredibly hard during the last few minutes of the game, but you could tell their legs were still tired from Wednesday’s game in Mexico. The game ended 1-0 to the home side, but it wasn’t as pleasant of a win as it should’ve been.

After George John scored he almost immediately collapsed on the field. I was sitting at the other end of the field when this happened so it was hard to tell what exactly had happened. Once we figure out who was injured, we started speculating that maybe he had hit the post with his head scoring or possible clashed heads with another player. Either way he obviously wasn’t celebrating. It took Twitter to tell us what had actually happened.

George John downed by projectile thrown from supporter’s section

Some idiot had thrown an aluminum beer bottle at the players on the field. This bottle hit George John hard enough in the back of the head that he required 5 staples to close the wound for him to continue playing. Who the hell throws beer bottles at players in the middle of a game?! Supposedly he was aiming for AJ DeLaGarza but still it was completely, absolutely unacceptable. And he hit George John of all people. Poor guy was fighting concussion symptoms last weekend! Rumor has it that this game was this person’s first game at FC Dallas Stadium. I hope it was his last. He was immediately taken into custody and will answer to FC Dallas and the Frisco PD.

The culprit had been sitting in the Dallas Beer Gardens in the north end of the stadium. I actually had been sitting with the supporter’s groups for a bit during the second half but I’d already returned to my seat by the time the incident occurred. Truly, it was a blast sitting with everyone there. The drums, the constant chanting and cheering, and how close you are to the field make the Gardens a fantastic place to watch the game.

Unfortunately, a lot of generalization’s have been made about the FC Dallas fan base thanks to this guy. It really makes me sad and angry because the fan base is growing slowing but surely, and an incident like this is a bitter setback. The FC Dallas fans are NOT hooligans and we’re incredibly proud of our players and we love to support them. At least I know I am. It’ll be interesting to see what happens next, but hopefully we can all move on.

Next weekend, FC Dallas host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET.

As LA Galaxy got back into MLS action, they had some interesting lineup changes for today’s game. With two games within four days who could blame them? The notable changes start with Robbie Keane, Todd Dunivant and Sean Franklin not being in the 18, and end with Greg Cochrane making his MLS debut. You can read about Cochrane, over here. Landon Donovan also made his first MLS start of the season, and Mike Magee was back in his usual spot. I’m keeping this short and sweet so I don’t end up going off the deep end with my emotions over this game.

First half LA struggled to keep up with FCD’s speed. It was a struggle for the guys, and not just because they were playing on tired legs. FCD had most of the possession, and LA didn’t have a single shot ‘on goal’ in the opening 45. It was a slow paced opening half, and one that wouldn’t carry on into the second 45.

Second half both teams picked up their play tremendously. In the first 10 minutes of the half LA had their first two shots on goal within 2 minutes of each other, but they couldn’t finish! Of course. Then, in the 60th minute it went crazy. Leonardo took down a FCD player in the box which resulted in a PK and a red card for Leo. I was hiding behind my blanket praying to God that Cudicini would make a smart move, and thank Heavens he did.

Cudicini stopped the PK and I loved him a whole lot more. This lit a fire under LA as they rallied to score a goal. And then BAM LA earned a PK by the work of Villarreal. Donovan stepped up to take it, I was shielding my eyes once again… and FCD’s keeper made the save. If you’re keeping count that’s TWO penalty kicks that have been saved in only 70 minutes of play. That’s some pretty awesome goal keeping. LA was still playing with ten men, but they played like they had a full team. They were taking chances but no matter how hard they tried LA couldn’t get the goal the needed. As it looked like both teams were settling for a tie, FCD brought it home for their fans in the 87th minute and took the lead 1-0. As an LA fan you would think by now I would be used to giving up goals in the final 15 minutes. But I’m not, and I shouldn’t have to be. As the final whistle blew LA had fallen to FCD.

Excuse me while I go on a bit of a rant right here; but there’s no reason for a team to be giving up goals in the final 3-5 minutes of a game. Just my opinion, but it’s the truth. LA has had trouble all season with this, and with finishing. Given it’s early in the season; this is just one of those things that LA need to work on as the season progresses.

LA’s next game will be next Saturday vs. SKC.

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