Galaxy Not Done With Job at Hand
Still savoring Friday’s night’s penalty kick victory over Washington D.C. United that qualified it for the second FIFA World Club Championship in Spain this summer, the Galaxy goes back to work today.
Coach Sigi Schmid’s team plays Olimpia of Honduras at 1 p.m. at the Coliseum in the title game of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the club championship for teams in the North and Central American and Caribbean region.
Does it mean anything?
“It matters to us because we want to win a title,” Schmid said. “We’ve accomplished a great thing by being able to qualify for Spain, but we want to be able to put a title next to our name and say the L.A. Galaxy is a champion.”
Olimpia will not be an easy opponent. The club from Tegucigalpa has won 14 Honduran league championships and twice has been a runner-up in the Champions Cup, in 1972 and 1988.
It clinched its place in the World Club Championship by defeating Toluca and Pachuca, denying both Mexican teams a chance for a trip to Spain in July.
“I think it’s a tremendous statement for U.S. soccer, to know that a team from the U.S. is going to play in this competition and that no teams from Mexico are going,” Schmid said.
“That’s a tremendous statement for our league and hopefully that will help it gain respect not only from the teams down there and in CONCACAF but also respect from the fans. The fans will realize that, ‘Wait a second, the U.S. is accomplishing things that our own teams aren’t,’ and they’ll give us a little more respect for what we do.”
The Galaxy has had superb goalkeeping and solid defense in the tournament, but its attack is struggling.
“It’s no secret that goal scoring is something that we need to improve upon,” Schmid said. “If Luis Hernandez was here instead of sitting in Mexico City enjoying a break, it might make things a little bit easier. But by the time we get to Spain, we’ll be scoring goals.”
Having thrust itself on the world stage, the Galaxy is suddenly in demand. It has games in Japan and possibly China scheduled for late February and has been invited to play South American champion Boca Juniors of Argentina.
Today’s Champions Cup third-place game will feature D.C. United against Pachuca at 10:30 a.m.
CONCACAF Champions Cup
SEMIFINALS
* Olimpia (Honduras) 4, Pachuca (Mexico) 0
* Galaxy 4, Washington D.C. United 2, PK
TODAY (COLISEUM)
* Third-place--D.C. United vs. Pachuca (Mexico), 10:30 a.m.
* Final--Galaxy vs. Olimpia (Honduras), 1 p.m.
