Relevant MLS Results
- SKC 0 - 0 Union
- Chicago 0 - 0 RSL
- Seattle 4 - 2 NYRB
- SKC 2 - 1 Vancouver
- Chicago 1 - 1 NYRB
- Seattle 2 - 1 NE
- Columbus 4 - 1 Colorado
MLS News
LA Midfielder Mike Magee was put in goal for the Galaxy in the 43rd minute after backup goalie Josh Saunders was given a straight red for an elbow to SJ forward Lenhart. Starting keeper Donovan Ricketts left the game in the 24th minute after landing awkwardly on his left arm. Magee kept a clean sheet for about 50 minutes as San Jose never really got it going. Magee did make a really nice save at about the 88th minute to keep the point for LA (about the 6:00 mark here).
Gold Cup
USA 2 - 4 Mexico
I don't really want to discuss this, but y'all feel free to if you want.
I didn't see the US-Mexico game because I thought it was going to be on Sunday (whoops), but I can't say I'm that disappointed. Without looking at it in close detail, I'd guess the Mexican team is better than the US on paper, especially with Altidore hurt. LA's not really going to give us a real home-field advantage against Mexico, either. With the likes of Lichaj and Chandler, hopefully we won't have to see the likes of Bornstein come 2014. And Adu showing well is a positive sign, hopefully he can continue to develop into a useful regular on the team.
this was just sad though:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Roc2lf6Zek
I'm not sure what you're getting at exactly.
i was referring to the stinky defense.
Even with that defense, it took an absolutely perfectly placed shot for them to score.
Cherundolo going out in the 10th minute due to injury changed the game and the US defense never really recovered.
I think you are right in that this Mexico team featured vastly superior striking capability to the US. Javier Hernandez is world-class at one of the top clubs in the world, and for some reason Gio Dos Santos shows up for Mexico in ways that he never does for his club(Spurs). Other than that though it was a pretty even on paper.
I'm having a hard time seeing it as even on paper. The US started Bedoya (Sweden), Goodson (Denmark), and Adu (Turkish second division) in the final. I'd bet FMF is a better league than any of those leagues. Most of the Mexican players that aren't in FMF seem to be in England or Spain. Maybe their players have as hard a time getting first-team minutes as some of our players, but I wouldn't bet on it.
I'd say the biggest thing is just that Mexico kills us in depth. (Hence the 5-0 shellacking in the last Gold Cup with mostly backup squads for both teams.) So any kind of injury puts the US in a bind, and after Cherundolo went down, we were missing Jozy, Dolo, Chandler, and effectively Gooch from chronic injuries and we don't really have the depth to deal with it.
Looking at the big, big picture, I think we'll have a difficult time making the WC semis until our second team is as good as our first team is now. Given the brutal club/international schedule, injuries are going to happen so you need to have high quality replacements at the ready.
I'd be so pissed at Lenhart if I was a Galaxy fan. I wonder if the ref whistled that play dead assertively when Lenhart made his illegitimate challenge. Of course, I'd be pretty disheartened if I was a Quakes fan. An entire half with the opponent down to 10 men and a field player in goalkeeper and they couldn't score.
Of course, it works out pretty well for the Sounders, since Ricketts and Saunders won't be available for their upcoming game, but I'm not expecting anything but disappointment for a road game in LA.
Kansas City is shooting up the standings. Unbeaten in the last 7 (3 wins and 4 draws), they're only 2 points back of Houston in fourth place with 2 matches in hand. I'm glad to see it.
That away stretch was brutal and they were never as out of it as their raw point total indicated, but I'm still glad to see them getting some results for their fans with the new stadium and all.
I think Chicago is trying to get some new world record for draws.
I knot it's better than losing, but over 3 games it's the same as winning 1 and losing 2. It isn't that much better than losing.
In the grand scheme of things, three draws is better than a win and two losses. With three draws, you gain 3 points and allow 3 points. With a win and two losses, you gain 3 points but allow 6 points.
If you look at Dallas last year, they had 9 ties through 17 games. Of course, overall, they were 6-2-9 instead of 2-4-11, so I wouldn't start making MLS Cup plans yet, but they are still in position to make a little run to get in contention.