That’s right. This is not an Olympics post.
The Los Angeles Galaxy fired Alexi Lalas and accepted coach Ruud Gullit’s resignation in a major shakeup of the struggling Major League Soccer team today.
Can’t say the moves were without merit; the Galaxy hasn’t won in seven matches, and that’s with David Beckham and Landon Donovan on the club. And healthy, too.
Cobi Jones is taking over as coach, at least in the interim, and that seems a bit strange. Cobi is a great guy, but he never struck me as a deep thinker, in terms of soccer’s X’s and O’s. But he was an assistant coach, and the coach left, so somebody has to do this.
Meanwhile, Gullit always had the feel of a mercenary, here for a short term, until something else interesting came along. Or he couldn’t stand the frustration of the MLS game, and that seems to be the way it went.
It’s Lalas’s demise that I find most interesting.
I’ve always liked Lexi. As a player, as a commentator and then as an executive.
I liked dealing with him, I should say. He was a good quote, as a player. Well-read, opinionated, not afraid. You couldn’t miss him, with the wild red hair and the bright orange goatee. He was the face of the 1994 World Cup team that got to the second round. He even milked a year in Seria A (Italy) out of it, the first American to make that jump.(Even if he was a plodding, if smart, defender.)
He made news again at the 1998 World Cup when he led the mutiny against coach Steve Sampson, who had installed a 3-6-1 formation that cost Lalas his starting job. The club suffered a couple of tough losses, and Lalas went off on Sampson, in France, and it was good copy — if quite unpleasant.
His image and shoot-from-the-lip style made him good TV, too.
And fun as a team executive. He effectively and wittily defended the Galaxy and MLS when the club signed Beckham. After Beckham came over from Spain, and English newspapers suggested he was going into semi-retirement in MLS, Lalas popped off at the critics in England.
This, from an AP story in June of last year:
“The fact that a segment of the world worships an inferior product in the Premiership is their business,” Lalas said in an interview with The Guardian …
“In England, our league is considered second-class, but I honestly believe if you took a helicopter and grabbed a bunch of MLS players and took them to the perceived best league in the world they wouldn’t miss a beat and the fans wouldn’t notice any drop in quality.”
OK, so that’s a bit over the top. If you took an MLS all-star team over there, it might be able to hold its own, but any random collection of MLS guys would probably do well to make it in Division II. But you have to give Lalas credit for standing up for the league.
Anyway, Lalas was the point man for AEG’s “global brand” strategy, pertaining to the Galaxy, and the club has played to some very big crowds while circling the globe. That’s mostly about Beckham, of course, but the club also added some recognizable names in Carlos Ruiz and Abel Xavier.
But they never quite got it going. They never have displayed any consistent stretch of competence. This particular club was burdened by a foreign coach who couldn’t seem to grasp MLS culture (and didn’t bother to try) … and a lack of competence on the roster once you looked past the stars.
Some of that was about Lexi. Who hasn’t really covered himself in glory at any of his MLS stop — San Jose, New York and, now, Los Angeles. He had trouble finding a coach who worked, in his two-years-and-change here. He fired Sampson (vengeance is sweet!), who had only won an MLS title, and tried Frank Yallop, then ditched the taciturn Canadian for the ultra-famous Gullit, who had a sketchy record running teams.
And if it were Lexi, and not AEG honcho Tim Lieweke, who was making all those bizarre, roster-shuffling trades … well, another reason he deserves to be gone.
Lalas is only 37, and dedicated to improving the American game and the MLS … but perhaps he is best-suited to doing that from the television booth.
It’s not too late for the Galaxy, 6-8-5 in a bad division. They can still do some damage. As they did in 2005, when they parlayed a hot finish into an MLS Cup. But they need to find some sort of statis, some equilibrium, and keep the roster steady for, oh, a month and see what happens.
23 responses so far ↓
1 Doug // Aug 12, 2008 at 3:00 PM
I think you are being too kind about Alexi’s lack of success as a GM. Ask any Quake or Red Bull fan what they think of Lalas and you will get an ear full — and it won’t be of compliments. I expect to see Alexi in the broadcast booth where he can be quite entertaining.
2 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 12, 2008 at 8:37 PM
Paul, you’re letting your affection for Lalas as “good copy” affect your judgement. Lalas never showed any serious business acumen, nor any ability to judge talent. He was all show, all mouth; that’s what AEG paid him to be.
You also haven’t seen this team play in a long time. The backline is pathetic, the central midfield is a sieve and the left flank is a black hole. It’s not just a matter of “keeping the roster steady;” no team would reach the playoffs with those deficiencies.
But the *real* culprit in this fiasco is Leiweke. He hired Lalas. He allowed Simon Fuller (Beckham’s agent) to have influence in soccer-related personnel decision (like hiring Gullit). He fosters the corporate atmosphere of arrogant entitlement, suffocating pressure and constant intimidation that defines the Galaxy.
Read Leiweke’s comments to the L.A. Times. He blames the players for the situation while assuming none of the responsibility. This is how a major executive in a “cutting-edge” entertainment and promotions conglomerate is supposed to behave?
Frankly, Paul, it’s a wonder you lasted as long as you did as a sports editor — given your ignorant opinions.
3 DPope // Aug 15, 2008 at 10:10 AM
Man, for someone who obviously doesn’t like PaulO’s “ignorant opinions,” you sure do leave a lot of comments (mostly cheap shots) on his blog, Mr. D’Hippocrito.
I’m no PaulO apologist, but I find it interesting that you have so much to say to someone you clearly don’t enjoy reading.
Perhaps you should channel some of that venom and vigor into your own blase writing because I find myself yawning frequently whenever I skim across something of yours in USA Today.
That is, whenever I get that free copy.
4 Joseph D'HIppolito // Aug 15, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Well, DPope, I’m glad I’m able to help you get to sleep at night. Then again, I’m surprised you can read.
There’s a reason why my writing is “blase.” It’s called journalistic integrity. Perhaps you’ve heard of it?
Then again, I guess not….
5 Doug Padilla // Aug 16, 2008 at 8:15 AM
Hey, JoeD how about dialing it back about 10 notches. We get it, PaulO sucks. Do we have to hear about it on every other blog entry? Let it rest.
They’re called opinions. You’re not the only person that gets to have them. If you don’t like what you see here, start your own friggin blog. I’m sure everybodysopinionsucks.com is available.
6 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 16, 2008 at 10:42 AM
Doug, I didn’t say that “PaulO sucks;” that’s a comment about the man’s personality and I don’t know him, personally. All I’m saying is that his opinions on certain areas are ignorant. I understand your wanting to defend him because he’s your friend and you worked with him. Fine. But don’t confuse personal attacks with criticism of ignorant opinons. If you can’t differentiate between the two, that’s your problem.
7 Doug Padilla // Aug 16, 2008 at 4:29 PM
If you don’t know him personally then dump the personal attacks. You know the ones I’m talking about. They’re all over this blog. Save the smug routine for the fool that cares.
PaulO needs no defending. His credentials stand on their own. I’d ask for yours if I didn’t think we’d all be bored to tears.
With that said, do you know the difference between attacking the opinion and attacking the man? From the looks of it, I would say you don’t.
It’s called class. Buy a couple gallons.
8 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 16, 2008 at 5:20 PM
Doug, what exactly did I say to Paul that constitutes a personal attack?
Let’s get a few things straight here, Doug. First, I’ve been covering the Galaxy since its inception for various out-of-town clients on a free-lance basis. I’ve been covering the team for Associated Press since 2003, when they moved into the Home Depot Center. Since that year, I have rarely seen Paul cover the team. Oh, I’ve seen him at HDC to interview Landon Donovan and do ensuing columns or features, and that’s fine. But that doesn’t mean that he knows what’s happening with the Galaxy now, or why it’s happening. Sure, he can register an opinion; nobody prevents him from doing it. But when he sounds like he doesn’t know what he’s talking about — and, in the case of the Galaxy, he doesn’t — then he should expect people who know the situation better to say so.
It’s called freedom of speech, Doug. It’s how you make your living, remember?
Besides, anybody has the right to question the professional credentials of any sports editor — regardless of how revered he might be — if they constantly express opinions that bear no resemblance to the facts on the ground.
As far as buying a couple of gallons of class goes, I suggest you take your own advice.
I’d also suggest saving a few bucks to get a new brain.
9 Doug Padilla // Aug 16, 2008 at 5:43 PM
Good to see you’re above personal attacks.
10 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 16, 2008 at 5:53 PM
Good to see that you are, too, big guy.
BTW, you never addressed the substance of my criticism, did you?
Figures.
11 mark // Aug 17, 2008 at 8:46 AM
JoeD — I’m a little confused here. Paulo does say it just might have been Leiweke’s decisions that has led to the troubles with The Galaxy, BUT IF IT WASN’T… and then you go on your tangent — which actually backs up what Paulo states, that Lalas was simply doing the job AEG hired him to do — but then SLAMMED Paulo. I don’t get what you’re really trying to say and if that’s journalism, well, it’s a good thing I’m out of the biz.
12 Doug Padilla // Aug 18, 2008 at 9:57 AM
In an attempt to get back on subject, let me say this about the personal attacks you fail to recognize Joe:
Finishing a comment by saying that a blog entry shows ignorance, constitutes a personal attack. Finishing a comment by saying that a blog entry shows why somebody is unemployed at this point of their career, constitutes a personal attack. Finishing a comment by saying that a blog entry could explain why somebody was recently laid off, constitutes a low-blow personal attack. Just making that comment about being laid off shows that you know nothing of what happened there. Who is the ignorant one now?
Saying that Dennis Pope can’t read, I need a brain and that people east of the toll road, like PaulO, don’t know jack about sailing all are examples of your over-aggressive nature here. Just the fact that I continue to comment on this tired subject shows that perhaps I do need a brain.
If you have something to add on a subject, just add it. Something like: “Here’s what most people overlook about the Galaxy, blah, blah, blah.†That would be nice. The other stuff is just plain irritating.
PaulO’s accomplishments in this business deserve more respect. If that respect won’t come from a self-promoting stringer, it will at least come from me, defending him from a cheap-shot artist.
And to those many colleagues that are baffled over why I am even bothering with this guy, let it be known that I am finally finished with this subject. So go ahead Joe, the floor is yours. We all know you can’t stop without getting in the last cheap shot … I mean, word.
13 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 18, 2008 at 11:16 AM
Very well, I shall respond:
1.Finishing a comment by saying that a blog entry shows ignorance, constitutes a personal attack.
No, it doesn’t. It states that the individual making the blog entry doesn’t know what he’s talking about regarding the subject at hand.
2. Finishing a comment by saying that a blog entry shows why somebody is unemployed at this point of their career, constitutes a personal attack…
I read the story of Paul’s dismissal. I know it had nothing to do with his opinions but with Singleton’s meat-grinder approach to personnel matters. I’ve been fired myself, so I know what Paul must be enduring right now.
Nevertheless, Paul has made numerous ignorant comments about various matters on this blog. Frankly, for someone to criticize Mark Teixeira’s long-term defensive ability after the man has won two Gold Gloves is ignorant. Criticizing Erick Aybar’s long-term defensive ability because of one game after a season in which he has demonstrated superior range and throwing is ignorant. For someone to defend Alexi Lalas, who has ravaged three MLS teams in less than five years, is ignorant — especially, when that same someone hasn’t covered the team in nearly five years!
And, quite frankly, any sports editor who demonstrates that kind of ignorance should have his credibility questioned.
3. Saying that Dennis Pope can’t read…and that people east of the toll road, like PaulO, don’t know jack about sailing.
First, if Paul knew anything about sailing, he wouldn’t have made the comment that he did about sailing not involving serious training.
Second, what’s the difference between my comment about people east of the 241 and the comment that the Brits don’t know from swimming pools and soap — a comment that Chuck Hickey sited and received no criticism on this very blog!
Third, if Dennis Pope did not attack my name or my ability, I would not have reacted the way I did. If he doesn’t like my response, then he shouldn’t put himself in that position in the first place with his own cheap shots. What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander…
To be continued…
14 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 18, 2008 at 11:25 AM
Now, Doug, to you….
You criticize my cheap shots yet you make no attempt to restrain yourself, do you? You and your fellow ex-Sun staffers are nothing but whiny hypocrites. You love to dish it out but you can’t take it… and you settle for the low road because you don’t have the intelligence to use elementary reason or even common sense.
It took two posts for you to address the actual substance of my criticism…and you wouldn’t have done that if I didn’t challenge you to do so, just to save your own sorry posterior.
You call me a “self-promoting stringer.” Doug, just what would you do if you had to work for yourself? Would you have the drive to seek out stories and contact potential clients? Would you have the resources to pay for your own health insurance? Would you have the gumption to keep going following rejection after rejection after rejection? That’s the way self-employment works, big guy.
I’m proud of my career. I’m proud of what I’ve been able to do and the clients I’ve been able to work for. If that bothers you, I don’t really care. I don’t have to answer to nitwits like you.
I’m also proud of never having worked at the San Bernardino Sun. If people like you and Pope are the products of Oberjuerge’s stewardship, then that doesn’t say very much about the boss you seem to worship like a golden calf.
15 Guy McCarthy // Aug 18, 2008 at 3:05 PM
Galaxy put Arena in charge today, as you all know by now.
Also interesting on a local level, I think, is Fontana native Maurice Edu has signed a five-year deal with Glasgow Rangers.
Fontana, home of former high school gridiron state champs a few times, is a pretty decent futbol factory too.
16 mark // Aug 18, 2008 at 4:26 PM
Just to show you can be wrong Joe, Chuck Hickey didn’t STATE that comment about brits and soap, the Australian chief said it. So before you go off and attack again, take a deep breath, let it out, take another and hold it until you pass out. Oh, and for the record, never worked for paul but if he has this kind of support from his former employees, he must be a heck of a guy.
17 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 18, 2008 at 4:40 PM
Mark, I never said that Chuck Hickey “stated” that comment. I said he “cited” it. I know he was quoting somebody else; go re-read the post in question.
18 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 18, 2008 at 5:05 PM
Yes, I misspelled “cited” as “sited.” Perhaps that was the reason for your confusion.
19 Administrator // Aug 18, 2008 at 8:47 PM
This is Leah — I think we’ve all had enough of this back and forth.
I will delete any more off-topic posts on this matter.
20 Guy McCarthy // Aug 18, 2008 at 10:10 PM
Moving forward then, I’d say this Thursday’s match in Carson shapes up at least as interesting as the Galaxy’s last outing.
For the third match in a row, the league’s showcase team has a different head coach.
Whatever the new coach/general manager brings to the table, at least he has relevant experience.
21 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 19, 2008 at 9:17 AM
Thank you very much, Leah. You provide some much needed discipline around here.
I had said elsewhere that Arena would not take the job unless he received control over all soccer operations. That what he got as President and GM. I never thought that Leiweke would give anybody that much control.
Then again, Leiweke wants to survive. If Arena doesn’t work out, I think Leiweke’s gone.
BTW, I like this hire, if only for the fact that if Leiweke tries to mess with Arena the way he did with Yallop, Arena will tear him limb from limb — subtly and rhetorically, of course, but tear him up nonetheless.
Only by being not being intimidated by delusions of the Galaxy being a “superclub” can Arena succeed.
22 Dennis Pope // Aug 20, 2008 at 12:22 AM
For the record — I can’t read. I just come here to get my Spanish-language Olympic highlights and all the Hugh Downs I could ever want.
23 Joseph D'Hippolito // Aug 20, 2008 at 11:50 AM
Here’s what Landon Donavan told the Washington Post’s Steven Goff about Arena’s hiring:
I talked to him briefly over the weekend when he was still considering and figuring out what he was going to do. It was nice to hear his voice and I am excited about it.
It is easy to have an expectation that he is going to turn us into a champion in two weeks. The reality is, we haven’t been to the playoffs in two years, we are struggling right now, so while short term I think he is going to help us this year, long term his abilities as a people manager, as an organizer, that is where we are going to see massive benefits down the road – putting the right people in place, having a structure and a vision.
I want him to do well. We both have a bad taste left from the 2006 World Cup. I feel personally responsible because I feel I could have done more. So I will be very motivated to succeed myself, but to help him succeed as well.
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