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| Friday, September 14, 2001 24:18 EST |
2000 Los Angeles Galaxy at a glance
[SportsTicker]
Division: Western
Stadium: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, Calif.
Soccer capacity: 26,100
Investor/Operator: Philip F. Anschutz
Head coach: Sigi Schmid
1999 record and finish: 20-12 (54 points), first place in West; won Western Conference title
1999 offensive ranking: 5 (49 goals, 1.53 per game)
1999 defensive ranking: 1 (29 goals, 0.91 per game)
Top returning scorer: Cobi Jones (8 goals + 8 assists = 24 points)
Key returning players: Cobi Jones, Robin Fraser, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Kevin Hartman, Clint Mathis
New players of note: Danny Califf, Sasha Victorine
Key departed player: Carlos Hermosillo
Outlook
After finishing on a down note as the MLS Cup '99 runner-up
to D.C. United, the Los Angeles Galaxy returns a core group of
veterans in 2000 in hopes of bringing home the Alan I. Rothenberg trophy.
After Sigi Schmid took over as the Galaxy's head coach in early 1999, the
team went 17-9, including a 15-6 run following the acquisition of Costa
Rican midfielder Roy Myers from the MetroStars. Myers gave the Galaxy
a second playmaker in the midfield alongside Salvadoran sensation Mauricio
Cienfuegos, the league's number three all-time assist man (56 assists).
The attack, which also features the quicksilver Cobi Jones and young
sniper Clint Mathis, is so amazingly balanced that Los Angeles was the
only MLS playoff team that did not feature a 10-goal scorer. Jones
led the team in scoring with eight goals and eight assists for 24 points.
The key to the Galaxy's success last year was the emphasis and execution
on defense, which for the second consecutive season allowed the fewest
goals of any team in MLS. Led by goalkeeper Kevin Hartman, who became
the first netminder to average less than a 1.00 goals against average
(0.91 GAA) during the course of a season, the defense returns numerous
star-quality personalities in 2000. Captain Robin Fraser and veteran Paul
Caligiuri, both U.S. National Team veterans, guide young players Ezra
Hendrickson, Steve Jolley and Joe Franchino. Draftee Danny Califf will
spend most of 2000 learning from the likes of Fraser and Caligiuri,
but Schmid sees the Project-40 star as the club's central defender of
the future.
Players to watch
Cobi Jones was the top performer for the U.S.
National Team during the offseason. Galaxy playmaker Mauricio Cienfuegos,
and fellow midfielder Roy Myers provide plenty of scoring opportunities for
Galaxy forwards. Robin Fraser was the league's 1999 BIC Defender of
the Year. Kevin Hartman, who had 11 shutouts in 1999, was the league's
1999 Pepsi Goalkeeper of the Year. Defender Greg Vanney has looked solid
with the U.S. National Team during the offseason and Clint Mathis can
play a variety of attacking positions.
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