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Johnston Wants More Depth Next Season
Oct. 12, 2007
The Los Angeles Galaxy, without injured celebrity midfielder David Beckham, have won four games in a row to thrust themselves, improbably, into Major League Soccer playoff contention.
By winning their final three games of the season, the Galaxy would qualify for the playoffs. Depleted Toronto FC would seem to be ideal opponents tomorrow night in Carson , Calif. , for them to keep the playoff drive going.
Before that string of victories, Los Angeles was last in MLS with 18 points after a 2-2 draw with Real Salt Lake on Sept. 19. TFC had 21 points after its draw with RSL on Sept. 15.
Now, the Galaxy have 30 points and TFC is nestled at the bottom of the table, tied with RSL at 24 points, with each team having two games left in the season.Tomorrow night's game will be a familiar story for Toronto. Last week, Jim Brennan was added to the lengthy injury list because of a knee problem, and midfielders Carl Robinson ( Wales ) and Maurice Edu ( United States ) and defender Andrew Boyens ( New Zealand ) are away on international team duty.
This depletion through injuries and call-ups is a reason why head coach Mo Johnston has already started his push to add to the team's depth for its second season.
"We need to add some depth here, Saturday is challenging," he said yesterday.
Tomorrow's match should be another opportunity to gain experience for such young players as Gabe Gala, Joey Mello and Trevor Hemming. Johnston would also like to give a chance to Nana Attakora-Gyan, who has had a groin injury.
Toronto and Los Angeles tied 0-0 on Aug. 5 at BMO Field, a game Beckham missed because of a lingering ankle injury.
As the season winds down, Johnston is trying to work out deals with teams in MLS for next season.
"I've got a few proposals in to a few other MLS teams for next year to see if they're biting," Johnston said.
He also said he is bringing in a player for a trial next week. He would not reveal the player's identity, other than he is 31 to 33 and has played in the English Premier League and in Spain 's La Liga. He would not be a designated player, something the league has introduced to allow the signing of a player such as Beckham.
Beckham has played little for the Galaxy, at first because of the ankle and now because of a knee injury. He is listed as out of tomorrow's game.
Johnston said Brennan and Danny Dichio, who also is injured, will go with the team to Los Angeles , not to play, but to provide encouragement.
Toronto was supposed to train at noon yesterday before departing for the West Coast, but BMO Field had been booked (the field is available for $75 an hour) for a group playing soccer. Usually, the team trains at 10 a.m.
So it was a session in the gym instead of on-field training. Johnston said conditioning isn't a problem at this stage of the season anyway.
Toronto has added some players under MLS hardship rules for today's reserve match against the Galaxy.
Toronto will end its regular season on Oct. 20 at BMO Field against the New England Revolution. It will then play an exhibition game against the Portland Timbers of the United Soccer Leagues in Portland on Oct. 28.
Meanwhile, the shoes Dichio wore when he scored Toronto 's first goal on May 12 sold at auction for $13,000, with the money going to the Bloorview Kids Rehab.
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The Galaxy opened their stadium, the Home Depot Center on June 7. But in order for their home to be ready, the team had to play a record 8 games to start the season and failed to win a game. In fact, the Galaxy finish the season without a win away from home the whole season. After the season's final game, the Galaxy had the final playoff spot in the West. In their aggregate series with the Earthquakes, they seemed well on to vindication for the MLS Cup loss 2 years earlier as they held 4 goals to 0 lead midway through the 2 nd game. A thing happened as the Earthquakes scored four unanswered goals to force a tiebreaker. In that session, the Earthquakes' Rodrigo Farina score to send the Quakes onto the next round.
In 2004 Looking to return to the top, the Galaxy would go through a mediocre 1 st half of the season before 3 straight wins over the summer. But from July 14 on, the Galaxy won only 2 more games, one in September and one in October. The Galaxy had a record of 11-9-10, good enough for 2nd in the West and the playoff, remaining the only club in MLS to have a playoff spot in every year of league in the playoffs, the Galaxy withstood an early challenge from the Rapids to win the aggregate goal series, 2-1, scoring 2 times in Game 2. In the conference final, the Galaxy's season would come to an end in Kansas with a 2-0 loss to Arnaud and the Wizards.
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