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It's a arrow-shaped, inch-thick silver plaque on a pedestal that sits at about two-foot tall. It has been blessed with the names of eight different clubs—current season leader included—etched on it, their place in league history secure for all to see.
And this Saturday, Bruce Arena's Los Angeles Galaxy are a victory away (or a draw and a heart attack away, depending on your end of the spectrum) from lifting the Major League Soccer Supporters' Shield for just the third time ever in their existence.
On Oct. 16, the Galaxy clash with the Colorado Rapids in the hopes of claiming their place as the most consistent team in a season that saw their consistency questioned, their collective will interrogated, their tenacity and resiliency tested.
"Let’s be fair, it could go down to the end,” Arena said after training on Monday. “We can control our destiny with a win. If we win, it’s done.
"If there’s a draw, it’s a possibility given some other results. I think it’s important we’d like to have that … it obviously qualifies us automatically for group play in the (CONCACAF) Champions League, which is important. If you look around this league, there’s not a whole lot of difference from top to bottom. After 30 games, if you’re the team that comes out on top I think that’s pretty good.”
Los Angeles is currently 17-6-5 (56 points), good for first overall in the league and the MLS Western Conference. It seems that the G's have recovered from their midseason slump, winning four out of their last five matches.
There are three scenarios that could wrap this shield up for Los Angeles:
Clincher Scenario No. 1: Los Angeles wins, and it's a done deal.
Clincher Scenario No. 2: Los Angeles draws, Real Salt Lake draws with FC Dallas. The Galaxy clinch the shield because RSL and FCD cannot catch up on the final match day.
Clincher Scenario No. 3: Los Angeles draws, FC Dallas wins. FC Dallas cannot catch up because even if Dallas wins, they would be down by one point, and it would be the same case with Real Salt Lake.
Arena chose to go with the "Haters Gonna Hate" approach to his club's detractors on Monday, opting to take the current circumstances all in stride.
“I’m constantly amazed at the sense of people feeling we haven’t accomplished anything,” Arena said. “We’re at 56 points now, we had 48 last year. We have 22 goals against, we had 31 last year. We have 41 goals now, we had 36 last year. Has it been perfect? No. But come on, it ain’t that bad.
“In all honesty, I think we’ve done fine. We’ve had a sluggish period … we’re still not out of it but we’ve won four out of our last five games. I’m not sure there’s too many teams in this league that have won four out of five games and gotten 12 out of 15 points at any time."
“Are we playing as well as we would like? No. It’s been a very awkward year with injuries, suspensions, personal matters, the World Cup … it’s been awkward from start to finish. It’s been much more difficult this year than last year with regards to that. At the end, to be able to say you came out on top, that would be fabulous.”
Defender Omar Gonzalez pointed out that the 2-1 victory over the Puerto Rico Islanders in the CONCACAF Champions League was a turning point for the team's chances in the ongoing race.
“We were away for four days, and there was great team bonding,” Gonzalez said. “That game really showed a lot of heart, and ever since then we’ve been on the up-and-up.
“To win the Supporters' Shield would be pretty amazing. The fact we’d have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs would be a great morale boost going into the playoffs.”
Fellow defender Sean Franklin shared the same mindset.
"It would be very special," Franklin said. "That was one of our goals this year. We’re sitting in a good spot right now, and we have a chance to clinch it at home.
“There’s not a better place to win it.”
Kickoff between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Colorado Rapids is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT and will be televised on tape delay at 8:30 p.m. PT by Fox Sports PrimeTicket.
INS & OUTS
Youth Academy Update
The Los Angeles Galaxy Youth Academy Under-18s and Under-16s continued their 2010-11 campaign in the US Soccer Development Academy. Last Saturday, the Galaxy U-18s and U-16s took on the De Anza Force with mixed results.
The Under-16s, led by Erik Gonzalez, defeated De Anza 1-0, while Eric Verso scored the only goal for the Under-18s in their 3-1 defeat. However, it was a different story on Sunday when they took on the Santa Cruz Breaker Academy.
A Jack McBean brace combined with insurance goals from Sean Dhillon and Drew Murphy paced the Under-16s to a 4-3 goal-festival victory. The Under-18s also scored a 4-0 shutout win, thanks to a brace from Juan "Crabby" Gutierrez and goals from Angel Ayala and Neil Ignacio.
The Galaxy Under-16s and Under-18 will have the week off. Up next for both those sides is a match on Saturday, Oct. 23 against the Seattle Sounders Academy. Kickoff for the U-16s is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT; kickoff for the U-18s is scheduled for 10 a.m. PT.
On Sunday, Oct. 24, the Galaxy U-18s and U-16s will clash with Crossfire Premier. As with Saturday's contests, kickoff for the U-16s is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT, while kickoff for the U-18s is scheduled for 10 a.m. PT.
The Under-14 squads were also in action over the weekend. The A squad is a perfect 4-0-0 after their 2-0 shutout win over Cosmos Academy West and will take on Cruz Azul Academy on Saturday. As for the B squad, they improve to 3-1-1 with their 6-0 blowout win over Deportivo Morelos and will take on West Covina FC this weekend.
Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com Source: Click Here
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