Galaxy Hopes Good Signs Lead to Another Victory
It was only one goal, not even a winning goal, but for Coach Sigi Schmid it may have been the most important goal the Galaxy has scored this season.
Now, a week later, Schmid is still talking about the inspired sequence of events he watched unfold in the 32nd minute of last Saturday’s game against the Chicago Fire.
Danny Pena began the play by sending a through pass toward Simon Elliott. Elliot dummied the ball, letting it scoot past him to teammate Roy Myers, who then passed right back to Elliott.
Bearing down on the Chicago keeper, Elliott snapped a pass to forward Carlos Hermosillo who tucked the ball into the back of the net.
That started the Galaxy on its way to a 2-1 victory and, more important, exemplified the kind of play that Schmid hopes to see when his team faces league-leading D.C. United today at RFK Stadium. “A really good goal,” Schmid said. “It shows the players are starting to understand what we need to do.”
Which is to shift the philosophy from last season, when the team relied on speed to counterattack. Schmid believes the strategy tended to falter against defenses that laid back.
“We still have the ability to counterattack,” he said. “But when teams play tighter and it becomes--to use a basketball term--a half-court game, we need a half-court offense.”
Crisp passes and physical play in the box. As the coach said: “Knock it around and penetrate.” After taking control at midseason, Schmid has been trying to remake the team in that image.
New players were signed. A resident star, Welton, was traded. The lineup has been juggled to the point where Schmid appears to have the makings of a controlled attack, an artful matching of veterans Pena and Mauricio Cienfuegos with newcomers Elliot and Myers.
This foursome did everything necessary to complement Hermosillo against Chicago, the reigning Major League Soccer champion. Now Schmid is focusing on defense, asking for more aggressive play, asking his players to pressure the ball.
The team’s new approach, not to mention its two-game winning streak, will be tested against D.C. United, which had a seven-game streak snapped by the Dallas Burn on Wednesday night.
The Galaxy has not defeated D.C. United in almost two years and hasn’t won at RFK Stadium since 1996. This is the first time the teams have met this season.
“It’s a chance to measure ourselves,” Schmid said. “Another chance to learn.”
