They’re Off to Play the Wizards
The Galaxy’s chance of retaining Major League Soccer’s Western Division title has come down to two games.
Second-place Los Angeles plays first-place Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium today and at the Rose Bowl next Saturday.
Already trailing the Wizards by seven points, the Galaxy must win both matches to make a race of it, and Kansas City still will lead by a point and have one game in hand.
If Los Angeles loses both, the Wizards’ lead will be 13 points and there won’t be any contest. If the teams split, the advantage still will rest with Kansas City.
The top eight teams advance to the MLS playoffs and are seeded according to points earned. No. 1 plays No. 8, No. 2 plays No. 7 and so on.
The Wizards lead with 44 points, followed by New York/New Jersey (41), Chicago and Tampa Bay (both 38), the Galaxy (37), Columbus and Dallas (both 34) and Colorado (33).
Trailing in the playoff race are New England (32), Miami (26), defending champion D.C. United (24) and San Jose (23).
Los Angeles might be better positioned had it not endured a season of constant disruption.
First there was the Luis Hernandez saga, which necessitated the trade of starters Clint Mathis and Roy Myers to New York and Joe Franchino to New England.
Then there was the loss of as many as eight players to Olympic and World Cup qualifying games.
Most recently, knee injuries have taken their toll, with starting defensive midfielder Danny Pena lost for the season, starting goalkeeper Kevin Hartman out after surgery and utility player Zak Ibsen also sidelined.
The Galaxy’s most recent MLS game was July 22, a 2-0 loss at Tampa Bay preceding the All-Star break.
After that game, Coach Sigi Schmid said he hopes the league can work out a schedule next season that will minimize the impact of losing players to national teams.
The final round of CONCACAF regional qualifying for the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea will feature 10 playing dates in 2001, which could cut significantly into the MLS season.
“They have a good idea right now of what the fixture dates are for 2001,” Schmid said. “Everywhere else in the world, if Germany’s playing or England’s playing or Argentina’s playing, then there are no league games. Or if you’re missing four players, you’re allowed to reschedule your games.
“MLS has to look at it like that. It’s not fair for the fans, either. They want to see certain players.”
The league is considering going from a 32-game season to 28 games in 2001.
