CARSON, Calif. – LA Galaxy left back Greg Cochrane has been provided many opportunities to prove himself in his rookie season and it appears that he'll get another chance to start on Sunday against Seattle Sounders FC.
Following training on Friday, LA’s regular left back Todd Dunivant stated that he is still dealing with an MCL sprain and is “doubtful” for Sunday’s match in Seattle. If Dunivant is unable to go, then another opportunity will be presented to Cochrane, who has started eight of his 11 appearances including last Sunday’s scoreless draw against the San Jose Earthquakes.
Against the Quakes, Cochrane equipped himself well as he helped negate any influence from San Jose midfielder Cordell Cato. The Sounders pose a much stiffer test for Cochrane, however, as they boast a variety of attacking options including Clint Dempsey, Obafemi Martins, Eddie Johnson, and Lamar Neagle.
“Any time that I get an opportunity, I want to help the team out. I’m always ready and I've been ready the whole year. I'm just going to go out there and play my game so we can get three points,” said Cochrane. “They have a ton of great attacking players, but every single day with the Galaxy, I train against Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan so I don’t think it'll be anything that I haven't seen before.”
Cochrane’s likely start should be the culmination of what has been a wild regular season ride that saw the rookie move from final pick of the 2013 MLS SuperDraft to a starter in a season finale loaded with playoff implications.
“Every day I just try to get better and a lot of times, I'll be staying late after practice to work with assistant coach Curt Onalfo to work on my defensive positioning and technique,” said Cochrane. “I've worked a lot of that and I believe that the more that I play; the more comfortable I'll be at this level. It’s been a progression and I know that if I can take it day-by-day, I'll reach my full potential which I’m not even closer to yet.”
