Somehow Bruce Arena struck me as a bit of a foodie, though I never heard much more about his taste in cuisine other than "he likes a good steak". Simply from the hotels that he approved for the U.S. national team, one could surmise that Arena liked to pick from the best options available. Nothing too remote and spa-like, though, usually something in the heart of the city (often with a good steakhouse on site).
I could picture Arena as the host of some traveling food show, "Bruce's Beef" where in some remote location of Guatemala, for example, Arena tries to find someplace that cooks a decent steak.
Anyway, that's a bit of a wandering intro for an article in which I'm of the opinion that the heat is on Bruce. He's going to have to whip up something good, and I'm not sure he has the ingredients he needs. It's not that I think that Eddie Lewis is a disaster move, but not shoring up the defense immediately could really come back to haunt Arena.
6 comments:
I have yet to hear a decent explanation for why the galaxy passed on Cory Gibbs....health issues? doesn't want to play there?
Certainly you would think he'd fit the bill of what they need...
Word is he didn't want to play for us.
I'd say a combination of all (he prefered the goats, had a very dodgy injury past) + Bruce (probably was on board a bit earlier than public known) maybe prefered Lewis...
We can't know at this point, who would have helped the team more...
I'd argue shoring up the midfield, in other words, finding replacements for Pete and Pires, is a bigger need. Cronin and Co could handle a few chances a game, not the 15 they face weekly.
Just look back at how many times per game the other team's midfield is running freely at our defense. That spells disaster.
Bruce has a preference for aging midfielders with a limited shelf life. Claudio Reyna, anyone?
I'd say it's the central four spots that need an upgrade. The Galaxy have a wealth of talent on the perimiter, but not much experience in the on-field core: GK, central D, central Mid. You need a couple really good players sprinkled in those five spots to control a game. LA doesn't have a single one. I like some of the players who regularly fill those 5 spots, but none of them is good enough to carry the group.
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