April 24, 2007 GALAXY'S CUP QUEST First step: qualifier in Columbus
By Luis Bueno LASoccerNews.com Editor
Galaxy coach Frank Yallop said he would not risk injured players against Columbus. Photo by Luis Bueno/LASoccerNews.com
The Galaxy begins its quest for its third U.S. Open Cup title today in Columbus. This year, however, there is a bit of a twist.
Unlike years past, the Galaxy must qualify in order to get to the tournament proper. The Galaxy will face the Crew and a win would set up a home game against the New York Red Bulls sometime in May.
A loss and the Galaxy will not participate in the tournament the club won in 2005 and 2001.
Last season, the Galaxy made an Open Cup run and reached the final before losing to Chicago. For those games, Galaxy coach Frank Yallop used mostly starters instead of backups and reserves.
Against the Crew, Yallop said he would take several things into consideration when filling out his lineup.
“Will I risk all of our guys in the game tomorrow night? No, I’m not. Anyone with any kind of injury will not be risked because of our game on Saturday,” said Yallop, who must prepare for a league match against Chivas USA as well.
Yallop said he had to take everything into consideration when planning out the lineup, including the possibility of penalty kicks. Real Salt Lake and Kansas City played a U.S. Open Cup qualifier a week ago and finished regulation even at 1-1. Real Salt Lake scored in extra time. Several regulars on each side went the entire 120 minutes.
Both Real Salt Lake and Kansas City lost over the weekend. RSL fell 4-0 at Chivas USA while the Wizards lost 2-1 at Chicago.
Yallop did not tip his hand too much with regards to a possible starting lineup but said it would be a combination of regulars and backups, and injuries would sort of force his hand a bit.
“We’ll mix and match a little bit. We’re down some players,” Yallop said. “Robbie Findley’s got a little bit of a calf (problem). It would be nice to give him a good run out in this competition but he’s not quite fit for 90 minutes. Tyrone Marshall he’s not even here with us.”
Marshall stayed in Southern California to try and recover from a calf injury. Other potential starters with injuries are Alan Gordon (fractured left foot), Santino Quaranta (Achilles) and Troy Roberts (hip). Also, Yallop said Chris Albright stayed behind an extra day to take care of personal matters but was expected to join the Galaxy Monday night.
“We’re trying to protect the guys and get them ready for Saturday,” Yallop said.
Columbus is led by former Galaxy coach Sigi Schmid and former Galaxy players Joseph Ngwenya and Ned Grabavoy. The Crew has three ties to show for three regular-season games. Columbus and the Galaxy have some Open Cup history. The Galaxy lost their double bid in 2002 when they fell to the Crew in the 2002 Open Cup final. The title remains the only championship in Columbus history.
