Galaxy Could Be Decimated by World Cup 2002 Qualifying
There’s no crystal ball on Sigi Schmid’s desk in his office at the Rose Bowl, but chances are there’s one tucked away in a cupboard somewhere for him to consult when he wants to gaze into the future.
Which should be any day now.
World Cup 2002 qualifying play begins in two months, and Schmid is likely to find that the Galaxy’s depth will be tested as never before. There could be Major League Soccer games in July, August and September, in fact, where Schmid will be without more than half of his starters.
Cobi Jones, Robin Fraser and Greg Vanney will be with the U.S. national team; Mauricio Cienfuegos could be with El Salvador; newly signed Luis Hernandez will be with Mexico; Simon Elliott will be with New Zealand, and if St. Vincent and the Grenadines reaches the next round, Ezra Hendrickson also will be absent. In addition, if Haiti advances, another newcomer, Sebastien Vorbe will be gone.
One reason for the Galaxy’s success during its first five seasons has been that the team is packed with international players, but that can backfire when World Cup qualifying comes around.
The main worry for the moment, however, has to do with Cienfuegos. He is the team’s playmaker, its main creative force, but if something happens to him--either injury or recall to the Salvadoran national team--who takes over that duty?
Not Clint Mathis. He has been traded away. Not Roy Myers. He too is gone.
“We’re looking into activating myself, right now,” Schmid joked. “I play a very good diagonal in the center circle, I hit good balls from there.”
Then he turned serious.
“Certainly, we’ve got to find other solutions. With what’s going on [the trading of players to bring about the Hernandez deal], we basically have two player openings, so we’ve got to find two players someplace. That’s one [possibility].
“[Or] it’s an opportunity for Peter Vagenas to step up. It could be a situation where Sasha Victorine steps back into midfield [from his forward position]. We’ve brought Zak Ibsen on as a substitute to play deeper in midfield for a game or two. So maybe we would do that and push Simon Elliott up into more of a playmaking role. Although, we lose Simon for a bit of time in June as well, for the Oceania Nations Cup.
“I think we’re going to find a way to make do. Maybe in that series of time that Cien’s gone, maybe we’ll play more of a 3-5-2 [formation] and change it around a little bit.
“Right now it’s not 100% that Cien’s going to play with El Salvador. That’s still up in the air too.”
Cienfuegos is suspended by El Salvador after his squabbles with the federation last year during CONCACAF Gold Cup qualifying. But an upcoming election could change the federation leadership and restore the midfielder to the national team.
In short, there are a lot of ifs and maybes in the Galaxy’s future that no crystal ball can clear up.
QUICK QUOTES
* From Miami Fusion midfielder Henry Gutierrez, after he had knocked down referee Sandra Hunt, apparently accidentally, and been tossed out of a game against the Colorado Rapids in Denver:
“If she’s a referee at this level, she has to get out of the way. I didn’t see her. . . . It was the worst call I’ve ever seen.”
* From Colorado Coach Glenn Myernick, after the Rapids had blown a one-goal lead at home and lost to the Fusion:
“It’s not basketball. I can’t call a timeout, bring them over to the sideline and tell them what to do now. They’re experienced professionals, and not one stepped to the plate.”
Must be baseball, apparently.
* Brian O’Donovan, the New England Revolution’s general manager, trying to explain why attendance has declined at Foxboro Stadium:
“You can’t ignore the fact that we’ve been a bad team.”
* Nick Sakiewicz, the New York/New Jersey MetroStar general manager, on the play of Lothar Matthaeus, who is leaving MLS this weekend to rejoin the German national team for the European Championship:
“I hope we go on a massive win streak, so when he comes back it is a difficult decision on how to integrate him into our team. We’ve yet to see the best of Lothar. It’s evidence that our league is not a pushover. . . . As many foreigners do, he’s had a tough time adjusting to the speed of our league.”
Yes, he was being serious.
