What David Beckham’s Departure Means for the Los Angeles Galaxy

In 2007, he came with controversy. Now, he leaves with countless thanks. David Beckham's last game with the Los Angeles Galaxy will be on Dec. 1 in the 2012 MLS Cup.Team officials released a statement in which Beckham said,I've had an incredibly special time playing for the LA Galaxy, however, I wanted to experience one last challenge before the end of my playing career. I don't see this as the end of my relationship with the league as my ambition is to be part of the ownership structure in the future.The English midfielder has contributed greatly to the growth of Major League Soccer and the success of the Galaxy. Beckham has been a staple in LA's midfield for many years, so the big question now is how the Galaxy will fare without him.Manager Bruce Arena has always liked to send out a central midfield pairing of Beckham and Juninho—the young Brazilian that is on loan from Sao Paulo—when possible.In the Galaxy's previous game against Seattle Sounders FC, Juninho was injured and could not start, so Beckham was paired with another Brazilian midfielder, Marcelo Sarvas.Assuming Juninho returns on loan, a central midfield pairing composed of the two Brazilians would still be one ...

Los Angeles Galaxy: 5 Things We Learned About the Galaxy in the Loss to Seattle

The Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders FC met on Sunday night in CenturyLink Field to decide who will be crowned the Western Conference Champions.It was the second leg of the series that had L.A. leading by 3-0 after a spectacular first game by the Galaxy.The three-goal deficit seemed almost insurmountable, but Seattle sure did make L.A. sweat it out. They went up 2-0 and had all the momentum until Robbie Keane earned and converted a penalty.In the end, the Galaxy held on and defeated the Sounders 4-2 on aggregate. But in the process, a lot was learned about this team.Begin Slideshow

Los Angeles Galaxy: How the San Jose Earthquakes Were Finally Beaten

The San Jose Earthquakes' magical season finally ended on Wednesday night as the Los Angeles Galaxy defeated them 3-1 in the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinals.The "Quakes" brought a 1-0 advantage with them to Buckshaw Stadium after stunning the Galaxy with a stoppage time goal from a set piece in the first leg of the series. That lead was not enough for the Supporters' Shield winners. Not even their seemingly magical tendency to find ways to score late in games could help them.Before the Galaxy take on the Seattle Sounders on Sunday in the Western Conference Finals, let's take a look at how Los Angeles defeated the Earthquakes.Begin Slideshow

2012 MLS Playoffs: What to Watch for in Galaxy vs. Earthquakes

The Los Angeles Galaxy will meet the San Jose Earthquakes at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California for the first leg of the Western Conference Semifinal matchup.Coming off a nerve-racking 2-1 comeback win against Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the knockout round of the playoffs, the Galaxy look to defend their title and spoil the Earthquakes' impressive season.This will be San Jose's first playoff match since they qualified as the No. 1 seed in the West. After winning the Supporters' Shield (most points in the MLS regular season), the 'Quakes hope to carry over their dominance over L.A. this season into the playoffs.The Galaxy are coming into this match winning seven of their last eight home games in MLS. But they haven't had much success against the Earthquakes this season. They most recently tied the 'Quakes 2-2 in San Jose without the likes of David Beckham and Landon Donovan. San Jose has been able to pull off some late game heroics and beat L.A. twice. Once they were down 2-0 and went on to win 3-2. Another time the Galaxy had a 3-1 lead, which was squandered as the 'Quakes won 4-3.It doesn't get much better than this in terms of ...

2012 MLS Playoffs: Preview and Prediction for Each Conference Semifinal Matchup

With the conclusion of the knockout rounds of the 2012 MLS Cup Playoffs, it's now time for the Conference Semifinals to get started. In case you missed it, here's what happened in the opening round of the playoffs.The Houston Dynamo were able to defeat the Chicago Fire 2-1, which earned them a spot in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.In the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Galaxy pulled off a 2-1 victory against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC to advance.The Conference Semifinals are formatted as a two-game series that has the lower-seeded team playing at home first.The league and its fans couldn't have asked for better matchups this round, as three of the four are true rivalries, and all have great history behind them. Here's a preview and prediction for each Conference Semifinal series.Begin Slideshow

2012 MLS Playoffs: What to Watch for in Galaxy vs. Whitecaps

The Los Angeles Galaxy will host Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the Western Conference knockout round on Nov. 1. Whichever team wins the match will move on to the Western Conference Semifinals and face No. 1 seeded San Jose Earthquakes.The Galaxy are fortunate to make the playoffs this season after a terrible first half, while Vancouver surprised many people by beating out FC Dallas for the final playoff spot.We've already seen fifth-seeded Houston Dynamo beat the Chicago Fire in the Eastern Conference knockout round. Will we see another upset in the West?Here's what to watch for during Thursday's crucial playoff matchup. Begin Slideshow

2012 MLS Playoffs: Making the Case for Each Knockout Round Team to Advance

With the 2012 MLS Cup Playoffs looming, there's no doubt that we're in store for an exciting postseason with what seems to be one of the more competitive fields in recent playoff history. It all starts on Halloween night with the first of two matches of the knockout round to be played.The new playoff format this year pits the fourth and fifth seeds of each conference against each other in a single-elimination game to determine who goes on to play in the Conference Semifinals.In the Eastern Conference, we have the No. 5 Houston Dynamo traveling to the Windy City to face the No. 4 Chicago Fire on Oct. 31.And in the Western Conference, the No. 4 Los Angeles Galaxy will host Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Nov. 1 to begin their title defense.The great thing about the playoffs is that anything can happen. It's like a brand new season, and nothing matters except the match that's right in front of you.Here's a breakdown of why each of the four knockout round teams can advance to the Conference Semifinals.Begin Slideshow

2012 MLS Playoffs: Previews and Seeding Scenarios for Each Team

It's that time of year again. With only a few matches left to be played in the regular season, the Major League Soccer Cup playoffs are quickly approaching.The new playoff format stresses the seeding of teams in each conference. The fourth and fifth seeds must play a single-elimination play-in game to advance to the Conference Semifinals.In addition, with the Conference Finals now being a two-legged, aggregate series, having home-field advantage in the second leg will be a boost for whichever team is seeded higher.Here's a team-by-team breakdown of current playoff seedings and how they may change in the final weekend of the season.Begin Slideshow

LA Galaxy Lose 2-1 in Pivotal Game Against Real Salt Lake

The Los Angeles Galaxy came into Saturday's game against Real Salt Lake unbeaten in seven straight MLS matches. LA came off a disappointing 1-1 draw against the Colorado Rapids, while RSL was dominant in a 4-0 shutout of Chivas USA.As the playoffs near, this game was of utmost importance as it featured the second- and third-place teams in the Western Conference. RSL was only ahead of LA by two points in the standings, and both teams wanted to capture points in order to stay as far away as possible from dropping to fourth place.Avoiding the play-in match between the fourth- and fifth-place teams in the playoffs will provide rest and an automatic berth to the conference semifinals.The Galaxy's defense took a big hit last week when center back AJ DeLaGarza injured his knee, likely sidelining him for the remainder of the regular season.In addition, right before kickoff, it was reported that left back Todd Dunivant was out with a hip pointer injury. Losing half of their championship backline against a potent RSL attack did not bode well for LA.Replacing the two injured defenders were rookies Bryan Gaul and Tommy Meyer. Both turned in decent performances, but Meyer did make a few mistakes ...

Los Angeles Galaxy: Depth Is Key to Success in CONCACAF Champions League

After a disappointing CONCACAF Champions League campaign earlier this year, Bruce Arena’s Los Angeles Galaxy look to bounce back this time around. The key to success for the Galaxy during their CCL run is quality roster depth. Even Landon Donovan agrees that winning the CCL has a lot to do with a team’s roster depth. In an interview with L.A. Galaxy Insider Adam Serrano, Donovan said, "The most important thing is having a number of players that can contribute because you can’t play the same 11 guys 45 or 50 times a year." Starting with the defense, the Galaxy have not changed much at all. The championship backline of Todd Dunivant, A.J. DeLaGarza, Omar Gonzalez and Sean Franklin is still intact.Through the 2012 MLS supplemental draft, the Galaxy added some much-needed depth in Bryan Gaul at left-back. Although Todd Dunivant is much better defensively at this position, Gaul is a solid backup. What makes Gaul so unique as a left-back is that he’s 6'5" and played forward for a year in college. As for the midfield, Bruce Arena tends to send out the likes of Mike Magee, David Beckham, Juninho and Marcelo Sarvas. With the recent addition of Swedish international Christian ...