Galaxy game day notebook: Sigi Schmid is back, back again

The Galaxy doesn’t have a lot of time.

Still, Sigi Schmid knows what needs to happen if the club is get things on track this late in the season.

The first area is the defensive effort.

“Sometimes you need a little bit of luck,” Schmid said. “When you look at the goals scored against, obviously that’s no secret to anybody, you can’t be successful if you’re averaging three goals against a game.

“I think offensively this team has capabilities to score goals , but we have to make sure we keep teams off the board to give our offense a chance to carry the team.”

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Sigi Schmid’s Saturday morning plan was supposed to include a stop at a local coffee shop with some of former players with the Seattle Sounders.

Understandably, he might have to cancel those plans.

“I have a lot of friends still in Seattle,” he said. “It’ll be interesting. I have a lot of friends on that sideline and my years in Seattle were fantastic, something I’ll always be grateful for, but now my job is to help the L.A. Galaxy win.

“It means a lot to be able to come back and coach.”

Schmid coached Seattle from 2009-2016. Now, he’s faced with the task of getting the Galaxy of the doldrums and headed upward in the standings. The Galaxy is ninth place in the Western Conference.

“Our expectations, our hopes are to make the playoffs,” Schmid said of the Galaxy. “It is a challenge, but challenges are something we want to embrace. We’re not going to run away from the challenge.”

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Injuries and suspensions have been the theme of this season and tonight, it will impact again.

Dave Romney (hamstring) and Jack McBean (suspension) are both out. Gyasi Zardes is back from the national team and could see time out wide. The Galaxy midfield is crowded, but not as crowded as it will be when Sebastian Lletget returns.

“We’ll figure it out,” Schmid said. “A lot of times things get answered for you because of injuries or suspensions. It just a matter of who looks ready, who looks in form and we’ll come out with a group for the game on Saturday and then we’ve got some more days to train next week and it could change.”

 

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Wild day of events for Southern California soccer fans

The rivalry between the Galaxy and LAFC will hit the field next year. Thursday, they were battling to upstage the other with big news.

First, came the Galaxy’s announcement that they had fired Curt Onalfo and hired Sigi Schmid.

By the time Schmid was leading the Galaxy through his first training session, LAFC dropped the news that they had hired their first coach and it is a familiar face and name in Bob Bradley.

The Galaxy then ended the day with the official word that Johnathan dos Santos, Giovani’s brother, had signed with the club as the third Designated Player.

https://twitter.com/LAGalaxy/status/890766764933431296

what will tomorrow hold?

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100 Percent Soccer column: Real stars on show at MLS All-Star game and the return of Sigi Scmid to the LA Galaxy

(Photos courtesy LA Galaxy).

Given today’s news, this week’s 100 Percent Soccer column that was filed Wednesday afternoon before word broke of Sigi Schmid’s Galaxy return, was rather prescient.

Also: Continue reading “100 Percent Soccer column: Real stars on show at MLS All-Star game and the return of Sigi Scmid to the LA Galaxy” »

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New George Best documentary airs at 5:30 p.m. Thursday on ESPN ahead of Manchester derby in Houston

George Best was simply the best for a fleeting few years in the late 1960s.

It didn’t last as his career and life collapsed into a quagmire of alcohol abuse.

Best himself understood his self destruction even if he was incapable of stopping it.

“If I’d been born ugly, you’d never have heard of Pele,” he once famously said, as well as “I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered.”

You can read more here.

Columnist Tom Hoffarth has more on the documentary here.

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100 Percent Soccer column: Can the Galaxy turn their season around after deflating home loss to Vancouver Wednesday?

Read the match report here.

Short answer from fans: no (see more reaction below).

This was not what coach Curt Onalfo and the Galaxy wanted when they embarked on the second half of the season Wednesday against Vancouver.

Read more at this week’s 100 Percent Soccer column (full disclosure it was filed just before last night’s game kicked off).

Fans are not happy:

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Manchester City to host soccer festival Sunday in Los Angeles

Manchester City will host a soccer festival at the East LA Boys and Girls Club, Sunday. The location is 324 N McDonnell Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90022.

The event begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 7 p.m. The event is free to the public.

Children ages five-14 will get the chance to test their abilities in a range of tasks developed by Manchester City coaches, including speed and passing drills.

All entrants for the day will be in competition to win some amazing prizes.

For more information visit www.mancity.com.

Manchester City will face Real Madrid at the L.A. Coliseum, July 26 in the International Champions Cup.

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World famous European clubs kicking off International Champions Cup this week

All of your favorite European clubs are headed to the U.S. for the fifth annual International Champions Cup.

The lone Southern California stop is July 26 when Champions League winners Real Madrid face Manchester City from the L.A. Coliseum.

Here are the other match-ups for the U.S. locations

Wednesday

AS Roma vs. PSG, 5 p.m.  (ESPN2)

Thursday

Manchester United vs. Manchester City, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Saturday

Juventus vs. Barcelona, 3 p.m. (ESPN)

PSG vs. Tottenham, 5 p.m. (ESPN2)

Sunday

Real Madrid vs. Manchester United, 2 p.m. (ESPN)

July 25

Tottenham vs. AS Roma, 5 p.m. (ESPN)

July 26

Barcelona vs. Manchester United, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

PSG vs. Juventus, 6 p.m.  (ESPNN/ESPN2)

Manchester City vs. Real Madrid, 8:30 p.m. (ESPN)

July 29

Manchester City vs. Tottenham, 3 p.m. (ESPN2)

Real Madrid vs. Barcelona, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN/ESPN2)

July 30

AS Roma vs. Juventus, 1 p.m. (ESPN)

The tournament begins in the early morning hours Tuesday in China as AC Milan faces Borussia Dortmund (4:15 a.m.) on ESPNU. Early Wednesday, Bayern Munich faces Arsenal at 4:15 a.m. on ESPN3.

Early Saturday morning, July 22 will see Bayern Munich facing AC Milan (ESPN2) at 2:30 a.m.. Inter Milan and Lyon will meet Monday at 5 a.m. (ESPN3) and Chelsea faces Bayern Munich, Tuesday morning at 4:30 a.m. on ESPN3.

Bayern Munich faces Inter Milan, July 27 at 4:30 a.m. and July 29, Chelsea and Inter Milan kick off at 4:30 a.m. on ESPN2.

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The CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals are set

The final eight for the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament is set.

Costa Rica will face Panama in the first quarterfinal, Wednesday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia at 3 p.m. Afterward, the U.S. will take on El Salvador at 6 p.m.

The next night at University of Phoenix Stadium, the second set of quarterfinals will take place. Jamaica  and Canada will kick off the day at 4:30 p.m., with Mexico taking on Honduras at 7:30 p.m.

The winners of Wednesday’s games (Costa Rica-Panama; U.S.-El Salvador) will face off in the semifinal, July 22 at AT&T Stadium in Dallas.

The Thursday winners will advance to the Rose Bowl for their semifinal, July 23.

The final will take place July 26 at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara.

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Bruce Arena makes six changes for upcoming Gold Cup quarterfinals

The U.S. men’s national team won their group in the CONCACAF Gold Cup to qualify for the quarterfinals.

Per tournament rules, teams are able to make up to six roster changes before the start of the quarterfinals. Here are the changes made by the U.S. coach Bruce Arena.

IN: Jozy Altidore; Michael Bradley; Clint Dempsey; Tim Howard; Darlington Nagbe; Jesse Gonzalez

The U.S. Men’s soccer team practice with Coach Bruce Arena at StubHub Center in Carson. Photos by Brad Graverson/SCNG/01-11-17

OUT: Brad Guzan; Sean Johnson; Alejandro Bedoya; Cristian Roldan; Kelyn Rowe; Dom Dwyer

“We have added some experienced players to the roster that can help us in the Knockout Round of the Gold Cup,” Arena said. “The players leaving all made a good impression, and I’m optimistic for their future with the National Team program.”

The U.S. will face a team to be determined in the quarterfinal, Wednesday in Philadelphia.

Here is the updated roster:

GOALKEEPERS (3): Jesse Gonzalez (FC Dallas) Bill Hamid (D.C. United), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids)

DEFENDERS (8): Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca/MEX), Matt Hedges (FC Dallas), Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest/ENG), Matt Miazga (Chelsea/ENG), Justin Morrow (Toronto FC/CAN), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna, MEX), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)

MIDFIELDERS (8): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana/MEX), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC/CAN), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana/MEX), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Chris Pontius (Philadelphia Union), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)

FORWARDS (4): Juan Agudelo (New England Revolution),Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC/CAN), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC), Jordan Morris (Seattle Sounders FC)

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Rumored LAFC target Keisuke Honda opts for Mexico and Club Pachuca

Japanese midfielder Keisuke Honda was rumored to be a potential signing by LAFC. The former AC Milan man spent a couple of days training with the Orange County Soccer Club in the USL. OCSC is LAFC’s affiliate.

Honda signed with Club Pachuca in Mexico on a free transfer. Honda has been one of the European-based players that had been rumored to join MLS for years. He’s been linked with Seattle, the Galaxy and LAFC, just to name a few.

 

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