American Soccer News

Chalk up another win for the Los Angeles Galaxy

Only this one wasn’t just for them, it perhaps was an important win for MLS as well. Despite massive offers from numerous European clubs, David Beckham officially chose to remain in the United States, agreeing to new multi-year contract with the Galaxy that keeps the famed midfielder in Los Angeles through the 2013 MLS season.

“I’m committed to the Galaxy. I’m excited about this beginning again,” Beckham said. “We’ve got a very special team, special players, a great staff (and) great owners who look after us and make our lives very special to be a part of the team, this franchise.”

As part of the new agreement between Beckham and the Galaxy, the midfielder will be allowed to be absent from the team during the Summer Olympics, which will be held in London this July. Beckham is expected be one of three overage players selected to compete for the Great Britain squad in the Olympics. The new contract also affirms his right to purchase an MLS franchise once his playing career ends.

“The Galaxy had to be right for him and the league had to be right,” Galaxy head coach/general manager Bruce Arena said. “David coming back to LA confirms that MLS is making progress (and) he believes in the sport in America and he believes in the Galaxy. ”

Beckham enjoyed his finest season in 2011, as he helped the Galaxy win the MLS Cup while setting up 15 goals, which was one behind Houston Dynamo midfielder Brad Davis. Beckham’s stellar season earned him a spot on MLS’ Best XI team and also the league’s Comeback Player of the Year Award, as Beckham’s great season came one year after missing most of the 2010 season due to injury.

Beckham began to draw interest from several European clubs, even before the season began, as Beckham was entering the final year of a five-year 250 million dollar contract (though the actual number was 32.5 million). Interest from abroad only picked up as the season went along, with clubs such as Tottenham Hotspur, Queens Park Rangers and clubs in Asia and the Middle East being linked to the midfielder.

No club was ambitious about securing Beckham’s services more than Paris Saint Germain. The French Club, owned by Qatar Investment Authority, aspires to be on the same level as European powers Manchester United and FC Barcelona, and they saw the acquisition of Beckham as the first step towards that goal. PSG was serious enough to offer Beckham and 18-month contract that would’ve paid him approximately one million dollars a month.

Yet PSG’s massive riches was apparently not enough to overcome the lure of living in Los Angeles and more importantly, the desires of his family. Beckham and his family have more than established themselves in LA and the possibility of having to uproot his family to another location for a third time apparently did not sit well with Beckham.

“We’ve been very happy here for the last five years, and we felt ‘why change something that works,’” Beckham said about his family situation. “The kids love here (and) I love living here. Los Angeles has been good to us as a family.”

Beckham’s return to Los Angeles for the next two season continues the wild ride of Beckham’s time in Los Angeles and MLS that began five years ago, almost to the day when Beckham rocked the sports world by announcing his intention of signing with the Los Angeles Galaxy. Beckham’s glorious introduction on a sunny July morning at the Home Depot Center was seen as the first step towards taking the Galaxy, MLS and the popularity of the sport in the United States to new heights.

That adventure though got off to a rocky start, as the Galaxy missed the playoffs his first two seasons with the Galaxy, but even worse, turmoil gripped the organization, as players and managers went in and out and the Galaxy locker room became a toxic situation. The low point came in August 2008, when after a 2-1 loss to the then-expansion San Jose Earthquakes, then-manager Ruud Gullit resigned and then-manager Alexi Lalas was fired.

In stepped Bruce Arena, who assumed both positions and immediately began the process of re-tooling the club, but first Arena had to concern himself with Beckham, who went to AC Milan on a short term loan in January of 2009. Immediately, speculation began that Beckham would try to force a permanent stay in Italy, but the Galaxy stood firm, and ultimately, an agreement was worked out that allowed Beckham to remain with the Rossoneri through the end of the Serie A season before returning to LA for the remainder of the 2009 MLS season.

The drama though was only heating up. Just before Beckham was set to rejoin the Galaxy that year, excerpts from a book entitled “The Beckham Experiment” revealed a falling out with the Galaxy’s other star, Landon Donovan. That fire was quickly put out, but then came a highly publicized confrontation with a member of Galaxy supporters group LA Riot Squad in his first game back in a Galaxy shirt. Yet through all the distractions, Beckham played a key role in the Galaxy’s turnaround season that culminated with a trip to the MLS Cup final, but ended in cruel fashion, as they lost to Real Salt Lake on penalties.

Beckham almost didn’t have a 2010 MLS season, as he returned to AC Milan on another short-term loan with the hopes of making England’s World Cup roster, but that quest ended abruptly, as he tore his Achilles in March, and his status as far as the 2010 MLS season was thrown into doubt. Beckham however defied the odds, returning to action in September, but his presence wasn’t enough to get the Galaxy back to the MLS Cup final, as they lost in embarrassing fashion to FC Dallas in the Western Conference Final. 2011 however was a different story, as the Galaxy, bouyed by the mid-season of Irish striker Robbie Keane won its second straight Supporters Shield and in front of 30,000 at the Home Depot Center on a rainy Sunday evening in November, captured the franchise’ third MLS Cup.

“We’re very grateful for what David has done the past five years, but we’re even more excited about the upcoming year,” said Tim Leiweke, president of Galaxy ownership group AEG.

The year begins Monday with the start of preseason training. The Galaxy’s first competitive match of 2012 will be in CONCACAF Champions League play, as they play the first of a two-match series against Toronto FC at the Rogers Centre on March 7 before they open the MLS season three days later, as they host Real Salt Lake in a rematch of last year’s thrilling Western Conference Final.

It didn’t feel like one day, or even a whole season was riding on Sunday night’s MLS Cup matchup.

No, for the Los Angeles Galaxy, Sunday night’s final against the Houston Dynamo had more like a weight of five years. From the moment David Beckham arrived in Los Angeles in 2007, to all the ups and downs, to Bruce Arena coming in as head coach and general manager a year later to the midseason acquisition of Robbie Keane this year, all the attention, all the pressure, all the weight was on the Los Angeles Galaxy to win the 2011 MLS Cup.

Well, after 90 minutes and one strike from Landon Donovan, all off the pressure, whatever you want to call it, its all out the window now, as a 72nd minute strike in which all of LA’s three Designated Players took part was all LA needed to hold off a resilient Dynamo squad 1-0 and celebrate the Galaxy’s third MLS Cup title in front of 30,281 rabid fans at the Home Depot Center.

“This year, we were determined,” Arena said. “We worked our asses off to build this team into a champion. It’s been great year for our team and our organization,”

The win caps off a historic season for the Galaxy, which adds the MLS Cup to a long list of achievements in 2011, such as its second straight Supporters’ Shield, advancement into the knockout stages of the CONCACAF Champions League, an undefeated season at home and are also the first team with Designated Players to win an MLS Cup.

“This has been a long year (and) a trying year,” Donovan said. “There are times through it all when you get tired and mentally wear down, but this guy (Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena) keeps us going.”

After 71 minutes, the Galaxy got the long awaited goal. Beckham flicked a header forward for Robbie Keane to chase down, Keane then laid a ball inside the penalty area for Landon Donovan, who the touched a ball past Dynamo keeper Tally Hall that squeaked inside the far post for a goal that Los Angeles made sure it held up. When referee Ricardo Salazar blew the whistle after the 93rd minute, Beckham and Donovan embraced in celebration, their teammates and later the coaches joined in, and the Home Depot Center, save for the Dynamo fans who were in attendance, erupted as well.

“I didn’t care who scored, I didn’t care if it was an own goal or how the ball went in,” Donovan said. “I just wanted that ball to go in.”

LA did have several chances to get a goal early in the match. The first opportunity came in the 12th minute, when Keane won LA a corner, Beckham sent a ball into the 18 for Adam Cristman, but he instead sent his header wide right. Cristman had another chance in the 27th minute when an unmarked Beckham crossed a ball into the box, but again Cristman missed the far post. LA continued its onslaught in the second half, as Omar Gonzalez sent a ball off a Dynamo player in the 4th minute and Robbie Keane quickly made his run into the box. Keane shot for the far post, but missed. Keane actually did find the back net in the 57th minute, but was called back due to offside.

“We certainly didn’t do well inside the penalty area,” Arena said. “We struggled in our finishing tonight.”

While LA was buzzing around the Houston net, the same could not be said for the Dynamo, who surely felt the absence of midfielder Brad Davis. Of the eight shots Houston attempted in the match, only one, a long attempt by Danny Cruz, required the action of Galaxy keeper Josh Saunders. Adam Moffat was unmarked in the 18 in the 66th minute as Corey Ashe crossed a ball in, but Moffat’s header missed the far post.

“Houston put up a great fight,” Beckham said. “We knew it was going to be a difficult game, so a lot of respect to them.”

Houston, which had won two straight cups since the franchise’s move to Houston in 2006, suffers its first final loss.

“When we got into those good areas, our delivery was off,” Kinnear said. “We gave ourselves a chance, (but) to not put them under pressure, we let them off the hook.”

For the Galaxy, the 2011 MLS Cup title was a championship five years in the making. It mostly began in 2007 when the Galaxy shocked the world by brining in David Beckham not only to win trophies for the storied MLS franchise, but more importantly, to raise the profile of the league and the sport in the Unite States. Beckham’s U.S. adventure didn’t get off to a good start his first two years in LA, as the Galaxy missed the playoffs his first two years in the league and making matters worse, the Galaxy locker room during those two years were not the most harmonious place to be.

In stepped Bruce Arena, who assumed both the head coach and general manager duties midway through the 2008 season. Arena incurred some bumpy roads during his first few months in charge of the Galaxy, with the most bumpiest being Beckham’s flirtation with Italian superpower AC Milan during the first two months of 2009. The 2009 season itself was a roller coaster, as the Galaxy at one point played to draws in nine of ten matches. Yet despite all that, the Galaxy quickly asserted themselves midway through that season and made all the way to the final, but more heartbreak ensued, as they lost in penalties to Real Salt Lake.

Last season, the Galaxy started strong, reeling off wins in 10 of its first 12 matches and won the Supporters Shied, but lost in embarrassing fashion to FC Dallas in the Western Conference final, so this season had to be the time for the Galaxy, especially with Beckham in the final season of his contract and speculation running rampant about where he will play next. LA was atop the league throughout the season, but Galaxy management felt more was needed, especially up top at the striker position, so another bold move was made, this one in the form of celebrated Irish national striker Robbie Keane in August. Keane made an immediate impact, scoring in his first match with the team, but was in and out of the lineup due to national team commitments and injuries. Keane was there for Los Angeles in the Galaxy’s most important moments, scoring a fantastic goal in the Conference final against Real Salt Lake and posing numerous threats to the Houston defense on Sunday night.

“We’ve all played our part this season,” Beckham said. “Being successful always feels good. We’re proud to be a part of this.”

Los Angeles Galaxy 1, Houston Dynamo 0
2011 MLS Cup Final
November 20, 2011; Home Depot Center

Scoring Summary:
LA — Landon Donovan 3 (Robbie Keane 1, David Beckham 4) 72

Misconduct Summary:
HOU — Bobby Boswell (caution; Handball) 13
LA — Adam Cristman (caution; Reckless Tackle) 40
HOU — Andre Hainault (caution; Reckless Foul) 74
LA — David Beckham (caution; Tactical Foul) 82
LA — Landon Donovan (caution; Delaying a Restart) 94+

Lineups

Houston Dynamo — Tally Hall, Andre Hainault, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Jermaine Taylor, Danny Cruz (Colin Clark 78), Luiz Camargo, Adam Moffat, Corey Ashe (Je-Vaughn Watson 84), Brian Ching, Calen Carr (Carlo Costly 66).

Substitutes Not Used: Will Bruin, Hunter Freeman, Eddie Robinson, Tyler Deric.

LA Galaxy — Josh Saunders, Sean Franklin, Omar Gonzalez, A.J. DeLaGarza, Todd Dunivant, Landon Donovan, David Beckham, Juninho, Mike Magee, Adam Cristman (Chris Birchall 57), Robbie Keane.

Substitutes Not Used: Gregg Berhalter, Paolo Cardozo, Frankie Hejduk, Jovan Kirovski, Michael Stephens, Donovan Ricketts.

Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referee’s Assistants: Craig Lowry; Peter Manikowski
4th Official: Hilario Grajeda
Attendance: 30,281
Time of Game: 1:52
Weather: Rain and 53 degrees

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The Los Angeles Galaxy will be finishing its season at the Home Depot Center approximately two weeks from now.

The only question now is will they be ending it holding the 2011 MLS Cup trophy. The Galaxy took one more step towards answering that question in the Western Conference Final on Sunday. A first half goal by Landon Donovan on a penalty, followed by second half strikes by Mike Magee and Robbie Keane enabled the Galaxy to punch the last ticket to the 2011 MLS Cup final with a 3-1 win over Real Salt Lake.

“Just a great effort for our team,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “I thought Salt Lake played very well too.”

The win means the Galaxy will become the first team to play the final on its home field since the New England Revolution played the 2002 final against the Galaxy in front of 66,000 at Gilette Stadium. Los Angeles will face the Houston Dynamo, who defeated Kansas City 2-0 at Livestrong Sporting Park to claim the Eastern Conference title.

“It was a great performance overall,” Galaxy midfielder David Beckham said. “We knew it was going to be a difficult game tonight, but we stuck together.”

Tied at one going into the second half, the Galaxy came back out with renewed fervor. LA got an opportunity five minutes in when Beckham sprung Keane on the right side, Keane crossed into the box to Barrett, but his header was stopped by Will Johnson’s face. LA finally pulled ahead in the 58th minute when Beckham crossed into the 18 and Mike Magee slipped through Robbie Russell and Chris Wingert to head a ball through the hands of RSL keeper Nick Rimando into the back net for his third straight postseason goal.

“I think we didn’t go anyone close enough to him (Beckham),” Real Salt Lake head coach Jason Kreis said. “You can’t give a player like that that kind of time or he’ll punish you.”

RSL immediately countered, and almost got a second equalizer a minute later. Alvaro Saborio headed a ball to Fabian Espindola, who evaded AJ DeLaGarza to get inside the 18 and let loose for goal, but saw his shot foiled by the crossbar. That missed chance eventually came back to bite RSL, as LA got its third goal in the 68th minute when Landon Donovan sprung Keane from the right side. Keane got inside the 18, juked out Jamison Olave and fired the ball past Rimando far post to give LA a cushion two-goal lead and Los Angeles , with help from keeper Josh Saunders, who made two spectacular saves on Luis Gil and Javier Morales inside the final 15 minutes, killed off the remainder of the match.

“We thought as the game slowed down, it would favor us,” Arena said. “Salt Lake threw an awful lot into this game,”

In a wild first half, The Galaxy got its chance in the 23rd minute when Omar Gonzalez was fouled from behind in the penalty area by Andy Williams while leaping for header. Donovan, who missed a penalty in the 09 final and has struggled against Nick Rimando from the penalty spot in the past came through this time, as he went right while Rimando went left to give LA the lead. That lead though only lasted two minutes, as Jamison Olave headed a Javier Morales corner towards Alvaro Saborio, who then touched a ball past Josh Saunders far post to level things up.

“We put a little pressure on them, then they put a little pressure on us,” RSL midfielder Kyle Beckerman said. “It was back and forth, and both teams created chances.”

Both teams had chances throughout the first half. RSL’s first good look came in the fifth minute when Javier Morales’ corner was headed by Alvaro Saborio to Robbie Russell, who immediately shot for goal, but was miraculously caught at the goal line by Saunders. The Galaxy had two great looks, both of them coming from Robbie Keane. The Irish international’s first opportunity came in the 33rd minute when he launched a laser towards the near post area, but the post won that battle. Keane had another chance to put LA back on top ten minutes later when Barrett laid a ball for him, Keane evaded Olave and curled a ball for the far post, but missed. RSL then had a chance to grab the lead just before halftime. Following a RSL free kick, Beckerman launched a bullet on goal, but saw the ball ricochet off the far post.

Los Angeles Galaxy 3, Real Salt Lake 1
Western Conference Final
November 6, 2011

Scoring Summary
LA – Landon Donovan (penalty) 22
RSL – Alvaro Saborio (Jamison Olave, Javier Morales) 25
LA – Mike Magee (David Beckham) 58
LA – Robbie Keane (Landon Donovan) 68

Discipline Summary
LA – Juninho (Reckless foul) 56
RSL – Javier Morales (Reckless foul) 70
LA – Sean Franklin (Delaying a restart) 93+

Real Salt Lake – Nick Rimando, Robbie Russell (Ned Grabavoy 70), Jamison Olave (Tony Beltran 82), Chris Schuler, Chris Wingert, Andy Williams (Luis Gil 75), Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales, Will Johnson, Fabian Espindola, Alvaro Saborio.

Substitutes not used – Kyle Reynish, Nat Borchers, Yordany Alvarez, Paulo Araujo Jr.

Los Angeles Galaxy – Josh Saunders, Sean Franklin, Omar Gonzalez, AJ DeLaGarza, Todd Dunivant, Landon Donovan, David Beckham (Michael Stephens 90+), Juninho, Mike Magee, Chad Barrett (Chris Birchall 63), Robbie Keane.

Substitutes not used – Donovan Ricketts, Frankie Hejduk, Dasan Robinson, Paolo Cardozo, Adam Cristman.

Referee: Jorge Gonzalez
Assistants: Greg Barkey, Jeff Hosking
Fourth Official: Andrew Chapin
Weather: Partly Cloudy and 57 degrees
Attendance: 23, 247
Time of match: 1:53

After the feistiness of the first leg of the two-game Western Conference playoff series between the Los Angeles Galaxy and New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena on Sunday, the return leg at the Home Depot Center on Thursday night was sure to be entertaining.

The two teams delivered alright. An early New York goal, followed by one player who quickly asserted himself as the Galaxy fans’ public enemy No. 1 and an overall gutsy effort from David Beckham was followed by two LA goals, which were more than enough to send Los Angeles back into the Western Conference final courtesy of a 2-1 win over the Red Bulls.

“Certainly a difficult game tonight,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “Our players showed the kind of character they did to get back in the game in the first half and have a pretty good second half.”

The win clinches a two-goal victory over New York and brings LA to its third straight conference final, where the only obstacle standing between them and what would be literally a home game in the MLS Cup final two weeks from Sunday evening will be Real Salt Lake, the team that denied them the 2009 MLS Cup in Seattle.

“We played a decent game,” Red Bulls head coach Hans Backe said. “We gave it a go for 90 minutes and I would say it was two even games.”

Trailing in the match 1-0 and tied on the aggregate from the fourth minute on, LA was on the offensive for most of the half, but found the go-ahead goal elusive. In the 38th minute, Chris Birchall launched a long volley was collected by Rost, but he spilled it back into play towards Keane. Rost though recovered and stuck his left hand out at Keane’s rebound attempt just enough to prevent the goal. LA’s chance finally came in the 41st minute, as Beckham’s corner went into the box and Magee headed the ball over Rost and into the back net for the match equalizer and aggregate lead.

“We dropped a little too deep after our goal and gave LA too much possession in the first half,” Backe said.

LA then got its chance to put the series on ice in the second half. It started in the 74th minute when Beckham had the ball inside the 18. Beckham, who had been physically mangled by the Red Bulls for most of the night, received a boot by Roy Miller near his neck, thereby forcing referee Hilario Grajeda to whistle for the penalty spot. Donovan did the rest a minute later, as Rost went right and Donovan went left for LA’s second goal of the match and what proved to be an insurmountable two-goal aggregate lead.

Despite playing a goal down against a Galaxy side that had not lost at home all season, New York showed that they weren’t simply going to step aside for the Galaxy. In the fourth minute, Thierry Henry sent a ball forward for Luke Rodgers, who sprinted past Omar Gonzalez into the penalty area and proceeded to beat Josh Saunders far post to give the Red Bulls the aggregate equalizer.

Rodgers though was just getting started. The controversial English striker tried to disposes David Beckham on the ensuing restart, but his studs up challenge instead resulted in a yellow card. Rodgers was fortunate to avoid a sendoff in the ninth minute while chasing down a forward ball. Rodgers didn’t keep the ball alive, but he also didn’t win any further popularity contests with the fans when he launched a dangerous howler into the crowd, further enraging the LA fans.

“We started off bad and it wasn’t what we had planned,” Beckham said. “It was a dissapointing start, but the way we adjusted ourselves showed the character of our team.”

LA’s first chance came in the ninth minute when Beckham led a Galaxy break and fired a rocket on target, but sailed an inch over the crossbar. Momentum looked to further swing towards the Galaxy in the 16th minute when midfielder Teemu Tainio had to leave the match with what coach Hans Backe stated was a hamstring injury.

However, a scary moment occured for the Galaxy around the 28th minute when Beckham collided with Dane Ricahrds. The collision looked to further aggravate the back spasms that had plagued him throughout the season. Beckham was in a state of wooziness for several minutes, to a point which smelling salts had to be applied, but Beckham somehow shook it off and made his way back onto the pitch.

“They would’ve had to carry him off the field tonight.” Landon Donovan said of Beckham’s effort.

For Los Angeles, they move on despite the absence of midfielder Juninho, who was serving a one-match suspension due a red card given for his role in the post-match fireworks during Sunday’s first leg. Chris Birchall filled in Juninho’s spot and started off slowly, but recovered to turn in a solid performance as the match went on.

“He had Henry, he had about four other guys buzzing around in the middle of the field and he did an amazing job doing it by himself,” Mike Magee said of Birchall’s effort. “You can’t say enough good things about the things Birchie did tonight.”

LA now looks ahead to its mouth-watering matcup with incoming Real Salt Lake for the Western Conference championship. The match is set for Sunday evening.

Los Angeles Galaxy 2, New York Red Bulls 1
Western Conference semifinal, second leg
November 3, 2011; Home Depot Center

Scoring Summary
NY – Luke Rodgers (Thierry Henry) 4
LA – Mike Magee (David Beckham) 42
LA – Landon Donovan (Penalty) 75

Discipline Summary
NY – Luke Rodgers (Unsporting Behavior) 5
LA – Landon Donovan (Unsporting Behavior) 46+
NY – Thierry Henry (Reckless Tackle) 61
NY – Jan Gunnar Solli (Tactical Foul) 81

New York Red Bulls – Frank Rost, Jan Gunnar Solli, Stephen Keel, Tim Ream, Roy Miller, Dane Richards, Dax McCarty (Juan Agudelo 64), Teemu Tainio (Stephen Auvray 17), Joel Lindpere (Medhi Ballouchy 87), Luke Rodgers, Thierry Henry.

Substitutes not used – Bouna Condoul, Carlos Mendes, Matt Kassel.

Los Angeles Galaxy – Josh Saunders, Sean Franklin, Omar Gonzalez, AJ DeLaGarza, Todd Dunivant, Landon Donovan, David Beckham (Michael Stephens 78), Chris Birchall, Mike Magee, Chad Barrett (Adam Cristman 81), Robbie Keane (Paolo Cardozo 89).

Substitutes not used – Donovan Ricketts, Frankie Hejduk, Dasan Robinson, Jovan Kirovski.

Referee: Hilario Grajeda
Assistants: Kermit Quisenberry, Paul Scott
Fourth Official: Ramon Hernandez
Weather: Partly Cloudy and 63 degrees
Attendance: 20,000
Time of match: 1:53

Fresh off its win over archrival that saw it’s newest star score its his debut, the Los Angeles Galaxy now resumes its quest to advance in CONCACAF Champions League Play when they host Costa Rican superpower LD Alajuelense at the Home Depot Center.

The two teams head into its matchup tied for first in Group A. The Galaxy got off to a good start in the tournament last Tuesday when it defeated Honduran club CD Motagua 2-0. Adam Cristman started things off with a strike in the 13th minute and Landon Donovan’s goal early in the second half was all LA needed to assert themselves in a very tough Group A, as evidenced by Alajuelense upsetting Mexico’s Monarcas Morelia on its home turf last week.

More recently, the Galaxy defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 2-0 on a memorable Saturday night at the Home Depot Center. The Galaxy unveiled the latest splashy namel, Ireland striker Robbie Keane, to Los Angeles and he did not dissapoint, scoring his first ever MLS goal in the 20th minute, and a second half stoppage time strike from Mike Magee sealed the three points for Los Angeles. The Galaxy lead the Western Conference standings with 51 points, which is also the highest point total in MLS.

Alajuelense is one of the most storied clubs in Central America. The La Liga, as they’re also known by, have won 26 Costa Rican titles, and are the reigning league champions. Alajuelense has also had success on the international level, winning the inagural CONCACAF tournament in 1986 when it was known as the CONCACAF Champions Cup. It won another Champions Cup in 2004 and has made it to the final three other times. Alajuelense has also won three UNCAF titles and participated in the Copa Sudamericana in 2006 and also the Copa Merconorte in 2000.

Keller Serves Up Beers and Stories to Seattle Fans at the Atlantic Crossing

It was a beautiful night in Seattle last Wednesday and the beers were flowing at Atlantic Crossing for the Kasey Keller-Arlo White meet and greet.  Arlo and Kasey make a great pair on the microphone with a lot of interesting banter covering the Sounders games, EPL and Kaseys’ stories from his successful career overseas and of course the topic all of Seattle is interested in his retirement and what will happen next for Keller.

Kasey will be hanging up his boots after this season with the Sounders and is optimistic about finishing with some hardware in the case as the team is playing really well. When asked about retiring when he is clearly still able to perform as a top goalkeeper in the MLS, Kasey simply said he didn’t want to “fade away”. He wanted to end his career playing well and not by pushing it until the fire has burnt out. He feels good about where he is at right now and rumor has it he’s just ready to relax with his family off the pitch.

There is a clear void coming to the Sounders in the leadership dept after Keller leaves. Keller is definitely the most qualified and best captain for the Sounders and when asked about who might fill his role after his departure, Kasey seemed unsure.  ”I believe it is going to be central position on the field, a player that sees the game from the middle of the field and can lead from that position.” But who that would be he could not predict, Osvaldo Alonso was one person that he mentioned that shows potential but the Sounders will be missing out on a key leader and player for next year. He did not seem to be showing any signs of “favre-esc” wavering, he will retire.

The Atlantic Crossing bar and Budweiser presented this night through Rezin Marketing with giveaways and promos. Kasey is a true talent on the microphone and from the looks of things he should be doing more work with Arlo broadcasting we hope.

There’s about two months left in the 2011 MLS season, but the Los Angeles Galaxy hope Saturday’s match against the San Jose Earthquakes is the start of something big.

When the Galaxy play the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday, the Galaxy will unveil its latest and brightest acquisition to date, as celebrated Ireland international Robbie Keane will make his debut for the Galaxy Saturday night at the Home Depot Center.

“Robbie is a fabulous addition to our team,” Galaxy general manager and head coach Bruce Arena said. “We’ve lacked a little bit in the final third of the field (and) Robbie is a player with a proven goal-scoring record .

It’s been a busy week for both Keane and the Galaxy. Keane’s acquisition by the Galaxy had been rumored since last Friday, but the two sides did not officially seal the deal until this past Monday, part of the deal included a hefty transfer fee being paid to Keane’s now former employer, Tottenham Hotspur. Keane then had to wait for a visa, which he received on Wednesday, then immediately arrived in LA on Thursday to a warm reception from Galaxy fans. Keane trained with the team on Friday and was formally introduced to the media shortly after.

“It’s been a hectic 6-7 days for me,” Keane said. “It’s a very exciting opportunity for me, its something that I’m going to relish, something that I’m really looking forward to and bringing something different to the team and score a lot of goals.”

Keane is expected to boost the Galaxy’s offense, which has been absent at times even as Los Angeles has amassed itself to the top of the league. Keane takes the Galaxy’s third Designated Player spot from Juan Pablo Angel, who was traded to Chivas USA shortly after Keane’s arrival was made official. LA hopes Keane’s presence can surpass that of Angel, who in his five months wearing the Galaxy shirt, had only three goals to justify his occupation of the Galaxy’s third DP spot. Keane on the other hand has scored 156 goals while playing for eight different clubs across Eurpoe, mainly in England. Keane has also scored 51 goals playing for Ireland. Keane insists playing in MLS will have no bearing on his future with the Irish national team as it attempts to qualify for the European championships next summer.

“The most important thing to do is do what you do best, and that is to play well and score goals,” Keane said.

Keane joins a Galaxy side that is among the best in MLS. Los Angeles has a record of 13-3-9 points 48 points. Landon Donovan leads the team in scoring with 11 goals, one behind another international superstar, New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry, in the race for the golden boot. The goals after that though have been very sparse, as striker Chad Barrett is second with just four goals this year. Most of the Galaxy’s goals have been supplied by the right foot of Beckham, whose 10 assists places him one behind the Houston Dynamo’s Brad Davis for the league lead.

Oh, did we mention the Galaxy are playing the San Jose Earthquakes. One year removed from getting to within a win of the MLS Cup final, the Quakes are now fighting just to stay in the hunt for the playoffs. It is unknown whether or not Keane will start the match, though Arena and Keane speculated that Keane will play some significant time on Saturday.

“I can tell you one thing; Robbie wants to play about 100 minutes,” Arena said. “We want to be smart, we realize there’s been a lot of travel and we don’t want to position him to be injured.”

The two teams met back on June 24 at Back Shaw Stadium. The meeting featured some very strange circumstances. The Galaxy’s starting keeper, Donovan Ricketts, making his return between the pipes after representing Jamaica in the Gold Cup, left the game with an arm injury on a collision, then backup keeper Josh Saunders was red carded after a confrontation with Steven Lenhart. The Galaxy turned to midfielder Mike Magee to be the last line of defense and amazingly succeeded, making four saves and helping Los Angeles get the shutout and the point.