Edson Buddle is here to stay after a wonderful performance against the Expansion Union of Philadelphia. I can honestly say that I didn’t see this coming, but I am pleasantly surprised at how wonderfully this dude is playing for a Galaxy team that looked to be dead-in-the-water because of the loss of David Beckham.
I think the funniest part of all this is that Buddle assisted on the first goal of the game and that is first goal this season that he HASN’T scored for LA. How hilarious is that? Somehow, this dude came out of nowhere and became an offensive force for LA and now the team has basically ceded control of the offense to him. Honestly, it was a smart move to give him the offense–now all they have to do is learn not to mess with it.
Here’s the danger for LA. They see that Buddle can do anything and they start using him too much. Or, he has one bad match and suddenly they go in a different direction. If it ain’t broke then don’t fix it! That’s my motto!
Now, how will this play out for the Galaxy this season? Well, if they have Buddle running the entire offense he’s going to have to find a way to make other guys on the team responsible for some of that offense. I’m not sure how he will do that, but I know that if he doesn’t get everyone else involved then the Galaxy are going to look like the pre ’91 Bulls or the ’05-’07 Lakers–NOT GOOD.
So, give this guy the “C” tell him he’s your new leader and just move on. The Galaxy could play this whole season like this and–I’d dare say–might have more success than with the “Sensei of Soccer” who isn’t in town anymore.