By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Jun 21, 2017) US Soccer Players - There is still quite some time until LAFC takes the field. Many things with this club are still up in the air, but the possibilities seem unlimited. The roster will not start to take shape until sometime after a team lifts the 2017 MLS Cup. Already, rumors swirl linking a top Mexican player to LAFC and the potential for more such . . .
The LA Galaxy plays their schedule
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Jun 14, 2017) US Soccer Players - Bruce Arena’s shadow looms large over Curt Onalfo. The new LA Galaxy coach has tried to do his best to focus on the present without looking to the past. How he handles the Galaxy over the next few weeks will determine if others will stop looking at the past as well. The Galaxy will play their busiest stretch of the year, beginning . . .
El Tri in qualifying, the Confederations Cup, and the Gold Cup
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Jun 7, 2017) US Soccer Players - Busy summers are part and parcel for national teams. For Mexico though this summer will be busy and historic, with long-lasting effects that could set El Tri up well for the next few years. Whether or not all that comes to fruition depends on how coach Juan Carlos Osorio and the players respond and what they prioritize. Mexico’s . . .
The Galaxy starts their transition
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 31, 2017) US Soccer Players - Transitions can be tough on soccer clubs. Swapping out coaches and players en masse, as the LA Galaxy did following the 2016 season, can lead to a difficult transitional period. Transitions can also work in a team's favor. Not quite through with their transitional phase from the Bruce Arena era to the Curt Onalfo one, the Galaxy has . . .
Chivas needs a trophy
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 24, 2017) US Soccer Players - There is no greater club in Mexico than Club Deportivo Guadalajara, known more commonly as Chivas. At least, that’s what their supporters say. Chivas indeed have a storied history. Famous for their red-and-white striped jerseys, Chivas is the only team in Mexico to use only Mexican-born players and, more recently, players of Mexican . . .
Gio Dos Santos for club not country
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 17, 2017) US Soccer Players - Earlier this week, Mexico released its roster for upcoming friendly matches against Croatia in Los Angeles on May 27 and Ireland in New Jersey five days later. One name not on the list was the LA Galaxy’s Giovani Dos Santos. Perhaps that was not surprising. The Galaxy play at San Jose on May 27 and at DC United on June 3, two . . .
2017 Liga MX Clausura playoffs preview
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 10, 2017) US Soccer Players - The sprint that is Liga MX’s Clausura regular season finished Sunday when Santos and Toluca drew 2-2. The result means the same two teams meet in the playoffs. While the regular season was hotly contested, the postseason will ramp that up quite a few notches. The playoffs will deliver four quality series in Tigres vs Monterrey (Wed . . .
Why do the Los Angeles MLS teams insist on a Mexico connection?
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 3, 2017) US Soccer Players - In the early days of MLS, the league pandered quite a bit. The strategy in the mid-1990s seemed simple. Bring in players from certain countries and fans/citizens of those countries residing in MLS towns would turn out en masse to watch them play. For every Raul Diaz Arce and Carlos Valderrama who indicated that was the correct . . .
Is patience a Galaxy virtue?
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Apr 26, 2017) US Soccer Players - When Bruce Arena’s long and successful career with the LA Galaxy ended at the end of 2016, a coveted job vacancy emerged. Guiding the league’s most successful club seems like the job to have in MLS. Sure, the Galaxy struggled in 2016 but with a slew of new players heading to the club, deep finances and the wonderful setting that is . . .
It’s hard to forget Chivas USA
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Apr 19, 2017) US Soccer Players - When Dan Kennedy retired last week, a link between MLS and Chivas USA’s history died. After all, nobody embodied the defunct club more than Kennedy. Earlier this decade, Kennedy was one of the top goalkeepers in the league. When the lights shut off on the failure that was Chivas USA, it was Kennedy who could say that no one else did . . .
