With the confluence of the CONCACAF Champions League and the beginning of Major League Soccer's regular season, the Los Angeles Galaxy have been pushed to the limit over the last week. Three games in seven days will seriously limit how much Bruce Arena can lean on stars David Beckham, Edson Buddle, Robbie Keane and Landon Donovan. Still, L.A. has a proven style of play and as such here are a few things to look out for on Sunday.
On Defense:
Though the Galaxy line up in a traditional4-4-2, the formation is far from static. Beyond Juninho, the rest of L.A.'s midfield are extremely ambitious offthe ball, making non-stop runs in behind the opposition's back line. Mike Magee may not be the mostwell-known of the bunch, but his runs in particular seemed to be dangerously ignored by Toronto in their recent CONCACAF Champions League tilt.
On top of that, Landon Donovan's atypical roleas an outside midfielder can create a numerical advantage for Los Angeles ontheir right flank. As Donovanshifts up the field, or moves centrally, Sean Franklin often races forwardfrom his right back spot. Withplenty of pace, Franklin - who is most dangerous when overlapping with Donovan - must beaccounted for no matter how late he joins the attack.
In Attack:
Los Angeles won't apply the same type ofpressure through their forwards as Kansas City did in the opener, but theGalaxy still manage to shrink the field through their positioning. L.A.'s back four play extremely high attimes, clogging the midfield but also allowing plenty of space to get in behindA.J. DeLaGarza and company.
Since losing Omar Gonzalez to injury, the Galaxy have had notableissues in organization and marking. Against Toronto, early - but not necessarily quality - crosses createdproblems for Los Angeles. To thatend, a match-up to keep an eye on will be Andy Najar against Todd Dunivant downUnited's right flank. If thespeedy Najar can best Dunivant and provide service, D.C. will be in good shape.
