Four players the Galaxy should be chasing

If Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena shows up at the Home Depot Center on Saturday night to watch Chivas USA in its must-win playoff game against Real Salt Lake, he might want to take along his notebook. Or his checkbook.

Real Salt Lake has exactly what the woeful Galaxy lacked in 2008 -- a spine.

If Arena could persuade these four players to trade Utah for California, it would give the Galaxy strength from back to front and make it a vastly improved team next season:

Goalkeeper: Chris Seitz, 21, is the backup to starter Nick Rimando, but the former University of Maryland player from San Luis Obispo has all the tools. He has represented the U.S. at the under-18, under-20 and under-23 levels, was the backup to starter Brad Guzan at the Beijing Olympics, and, at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, is an imposing presence in the nets.

Central defender: Jamison Olave, 27, has been a revelation for Real Salt Lake this season and is a major reason why the team is in the playoffs. From Medellin, Colombia, Olave has seven years of pro experience and won a Colombian league championship with Deportivo Cali in 2005. Physically powerful and with good mobility and positional sense, Olave has everything the Galaxy needs. Better still, he is only on loan to Real, making him perhaps more easily available.

Midfielder: Kyle Beckerman, 26, is as underrated a player as there is in Major League Soccer, given his talents. He has made three appearances for the U.S. national team, two of them at last year's Copa America in Venezuela, but he should have far more caps. The dreadlocked Beckerman is a feisty competitor with a keen soccer brain, and is a tireless worker. Originally from Denver, he is in his ninth MLS season and is the type of hustling, ball-winning midfielder the Galaxy sorely lacks.

Forward: Yura Movsisyan, 21, has shot to prominence in recent weeks by scoring back-to-back, 90th-minute goals, the first of which earned Real Salt Lake its playoff spot in the final regular-season game and the second of which defeated Chivas USA in the playoff opener. But the former Pasadena High and Pasadena City College standout is about more than that. He has size, he has speed, he can play centrally or out wide, and he has a natural goal-scoring instinct. His Armenian heritage won't hurt in the stands either. The Galaxy has not had a good Armenian player since the days of Harut Karapetyan in the 1990s.

To get any or all of four players, the Galaxy would have to give up something, and Arena doesn't really have much to offer. A 12-for-4 trade?

Whatever it takes, the Galaxy has to make major moves, and these four players would be an excellent start. What do you think?

-- Grahame L. Jones

Photo: Real Salt Lake defender Jamison Olave, left, and Chivas USA's Justin Braun collide while going for the ball in Saturday's game. Credit: Douglas C. Pizac / Associated Press

Comments

[Brian]

Beckerman is actually originally from Crofton, Md., near Annapolis. He started with the Fusion, then ended up in Denver after contraction. Everything else you said is right, though. he also has a wicked shot.

[Jeff]

What do I think? I think.....you're insane.

There's no way Kreis is going to part with any of these players (with the possible exception of Seitz) for anything less than the soccer equivalent of a small fortune. He's not stupid - he knows that these players essentially built a playoff team. Why would RSL give any of them up?

Every player has his price I suppose, but what bargaining chips does LA have? I can't think of many. Tell me who on LA (besides the two obvious ones) RSL would want, and then this article will move out of the realm of pure fantasy.

Tell you what.....we'll trade you Seitz for Donovan straight up. Howz that sound?

[RSL]

i know MLS changes the rules for the LAG but there is no way you are going to get these players. at the most you could get one. and that would have to be for Buddle or klein. LAG just doesnt have any other players to offer.

[The Wolf]

Seitz is the only real possibility on this list. The Galaxy have a good number of draft picks and some allocation money to bargain with.
The other three would be hard to pry from RSL, but I agree that those are the type of players most needed in L.A.

[chad]

how about the galaxy steal from someone else and leave rsl alone. we went through three horrid seasons to get these players in place and finally have a nucleus to build around for the future.