Galaxy Able to Recapture Youthfulness

The band is back together.

The Galaxy’s trio of Olympians, which helped make U.S. history at the Sydney Games, rejoined its Major League Soccer brethren Monday for a workout at Pasadena’s Jackie Robinson Field.

And while the body clocks of defender Danny Califf and midfielders Peter Vagenas and Sasha Victorine were still some 18 hours off, the Galaxy roster is at full strength with the return of the three starters.

It couldn’t have come at a better time for the Galaxy as it plays host to the Kansas City Wizards tonight at 7:30 at the Rose Bowl in Game 2 of their MLS semifinal series. The teams tied, 0-0, in the opener Friday at Kansas City and will return to Arrowhead Stadium to play a series-deciding Game 3 on Friday.

Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid said that none of the Olympians would start tonight, citing their travel and frenetic schedule of the past few weeks. Besides, Paul Caligiuri, Zak Ibsen and Brian Kelly have performed admirably in the Olympians’ stead.

“It’s nice to have the whole team together; we haven’t had the whole team together in a long time,” Schmid said. “They are certainly options that we have. We’re not going to start any of them [Tuesday night] but they’re options that we have off the bench with all three.”

Califf, who recently was voted the Galaxy’s rookie of the year, said that while he wasn’t exactly thrilled with sitting, he understood Schmid’s reasoning.

“I was disappointed, obviously, because you’re always disappointed not to play and I felt that I could go, but that was his decision and I respect that,” said Califf, who played in six Olympic matches, scoring one goal. “So my role is basically to be a cheerleader, but that’s fine.”

Califf also said there was an ongoing competition for bragging rights between the members of the U.S. Olympic team, which had 13 MLS players on its roster.

“It was about whose team was still alive in the playoffs,” he said. “It’s great to come back and be in the playoffs and be in a spot where we really have a chance to make a run at the MLS Cup.”

Vagenas converted three penalty kicks in Australia, two of which tied matches. He said coming back from the Olympics to join the Galaxy in the middle of the semifinals is a unique situation.

“It’s kind of a double-edged sword scenario,” Vagenas said. “You come back dead-exhausted from playing six international matches in 18-some-odd days, so ideally you’d like to come back and get some rest, not just from the jet lag, but you’re mentally and physically exhausted. It’s great that we get to come back and our team is still in it. But at the same time they’re going full-bore out there so it’s like jumping from one horse onto another.”

Victorine, who played in three Olympic matches and converted the game-winning penalty kick in the quarterfinals against Japan, understood the importance of the U.S. advancing to the medal round, the furthest the U.S. men’s soccer team has advanced in Olympic history.

“It was a tremendous experience in Sydney,” he said. “There were so many fans out and TV screens all over the place, bands playing. The atmosphere was tremendous. It’s something that you’ll always talk about and you’ll remember forever and talk to your kids about it. Especially having a good run as our team did.”

Victorine also said he wasn’t surprised to come back and find the Galaxy thriving in the playoffs.

“They told us when we left ‘Hey, go have a good time and we’ll hold the fort down, we’ll take care of business,’ ” Victorine said. “And they proved it.”

Nothing, though, was proven in the scoreless opener at Kansas City.

Schmid said that the Galaxy has to shoot more to create more chances, what with the Galaxy credited with only six total shots, one on goal, in last Friday’s draw.

“When you shoot on goal there’s deflections, there’s all sorts of things that can happen, there’s rebounds, even with good goalkeepers like [the Wizards’ Tony] Meola,” Schmid said. “If a shot gets blocked or is deflected, changes direction, there’s a chance to score, so we have to look to shoot more.”

With the three Olympians back, the Galaxy has more bullets in its gun.