THE WEEK THAT WAS
Saturday, April 10, 2010; Galaxy 2 – Houston Dynamo 0 – Robertson Stadium –
Attendance: 16,459
Edson Buddle scored two goals in the first half to earn the Galaxy a 2-0 win at Houston on Saturday night. The win was the Galaxy’s third straight on the season and gave them their first win at Robertson Stadium since a 2-1 victory on Oct. 7, 2007. Buddle opened the scoring in the 27th minute running on to a long ball over the top and from an impossible angle beat goalkeeper Pat Onstad at the near post with a powerful left footed blast. Following the sending off of Houston forward Luis Angel Landin in the 44th minute, Buddle added his second goal of the game just a minute later volleying home a cross from Sean Franklin. The Galaxy would go on to earn their third consecutive shutout and move into sole possession of first place in the Western Conference.
INJURY REPORT
Galaxy Injury Report
OUT – None
DOUBTFUL – None
QUESTIONABLE – Gregg Berhalter (Left Knee – Soreness), Dema Kovalenko (Right Hamstring – Strain), Eddie Lewis (Left Foot – Contusion), Clint Mathis (Left Knee – Surgery)
PROBABLE – None
TEAM NOTES
GALAXY BECOME THIRD TEAM IN MLS HISTORY TO START SEASON WITH THREE SHUTOUTS: With their third consecutive shutout to start the 2010 season, the LA Galaxy become just third team in MLS history to start the season with three shutouts. The other two teams were the Dallas Burn in 1999 and Seattle Sounders FC in 2009. The 2007 New York Red Bulls, who were coached by Bruce Arena, hold the record for most consecutive shutouts to start the season with four.
NO SAVE NECESSARY FOR THIRD STRAIGHT SHUTOUT: With his third consecutive clean sheet to start the season, goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts did not need to make a save in order to record the clean sheet his 12th shutout in 29 games with the Galaxy all-time and ranks second in the club’s all-time history for most shutouts. Ricketts ranks three ahead of former goalkeeper Matt Reis, who is third, and 50 behind goalkeeper Kevin Hartman, who is the club’s all-time leader in this stat.
GORDON AND KIROVSKI BACK IN ACTION: Forwards Alan Gordon and Jovan Kirovski both made their 2010 Galaxy debuts on Saturday against the Dynamo. Gordon replaced Edson Buddle in the 67th minute while Kirovski came on in the 83rd minute for Chris Birchall. Both Gordon and Kirovski missed the first two games of the season with a left knee bruise and a left knee sprain, respectively.
FRANKLIN CONTINUES TO PROVIDE ASSISTS: Despite a move to right midfield against the Dynamo, defender Sean Franklin registered his second assist of the season on Saturday night. Following a blocked shot by Mike Magee, Franklin chased down the rebound and sent a chip back to the top of the box for Buddle, who hit a first volley past as scrambling Houston defense for the second goal of the match. Franklin now has two assists on the season, setting a new career high for most assists in one season.
THE DREAM CONTINUES: Now in its fourth year, Sueño MLS comes back to LA this weekend to host more than 400 aspiring professional soccer players at the Glendale Sports Complex. A group of Galaxy scouts, led by former LA Galaxy assistant coach Ralph Perez and U-16 Galaxy Academy Team Assistant Coach and UCLA Assistant Coach Eddie Soto, will look to select 10 players that will with the LA Galaxy Youth Academy for a week. Of those 10, five will be selected to advance to the Sueño MLS finals, which will be held at The Home Depot Center from May 5-9. In attendance at Glendale Sports Complex giving out autographs and posing for photographs will be Univision's Republica Deportiva Senadora Natalia Saenz and members of the Miss LA Galaxy Court. The Glendale Sports Complex is located at 2200 Fern Lane, Glendale, CA 91208. Members of the media interested in covering the Sueño MLS tryouts, or for more information, please contact Galaxy Communications Coordinator Jaime Cardenas by sending an email to jcardenas@lagalaxy.com
EDSON BUDDLE SITS DOWN FOR CUP OF JOE: Tune-in to the Galaxy's weekly live web show, Cup of Joe, with radio play-by-play announcer Joe Tutino every week. On Thursday, Tutino will be interviewing Galaxy forward Edson Buddle at 12:30 p.m. Fans can participate asking by questions either beforehand or live during the chat. Start submitting questions for Edson now to socialmedia@lagalaxy.com.
YOUTH ACADEMY
GALAXY RETURN FROM ENGLAND TRIP: The Galaxy’s U-16 and U-18 Academy teams have completed their trip to England and played against the Academy teams from Blackburn Rovers, Manchester City, Ipswich Town and West Ham. During their 10 days in England, the Galaxy attended two games, including the FA Cup semifinal between Chelsea and Aston Villa, and train at Everton’s training grounds, Finch Farm. For more information on the trip, please visit www.lagalaxy.com.
NEED TO KNOW
LOOKING FOR MORE UPDATES?: If you are looking for continuous updates from the Galaxy all week long, be sure to visit the club’s official websites www.lagalaxy.com and www.lagalaxyfutbol.com, or the club’s official blog at www.thelagalaxy.blogspot.com for all the latest news from the club. The Galaxy can also be followed on Twitter at www.twitter.com/lagalaxy and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lagalaxy.
