Alan Gordon is staying with the Los Angeles Galaxy after the 12-year Major League Soccer (MLS) veteran announced on Friday that he is re-signing with the Galaxy on his Instagram account.
The 6'3" forward had been in negotiations with LA for a month, until yesterday the two sides came to an agreement. The details of his contract have not yet been made public, but one thing is for sure Galaxy’s head coach Bruce Arena will have the Long Beach native back on the roster.
Gordon will be heading back to a competitive forward pool for the Galaxy. The current size is now seven players with him returning. The other players are: Mexican international Giovani Dos Santos, captain Robbie Keane, U.S. international Gyasi Zardes, Spanish native Ignacio Maganto, homegrown players Bradford Jamieson IV and Jose Villarreal.
However, the MLS journeyman has always found a way to get some playing time. The 34-year-old forward has played in 223 games between four clubs (Toronto FC, San Jose Earthquakes, Chivas USA and the Galaxy.). With LA alone he has participated in a 142 matches.
He also has managed to put the ball in the back of the net a few times, scoring a total of 49 goals in his MLS career. In the years he has played for LA, Gordon has scored 26 times.
In 2015, the veteran scored 11 times for the Galaxy. He scored five goals in the 2015 MLS Regular Season. Plus another five times in the 2015-2016 CONCACAF Champions’ League (CCL) group stages. And once in the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Gordon has become a fan favorite with the Galaxy faithful. After announcing he was coming back to LA, 1,293 people have liked his post. His hard work for the club has paid off as he has helped the team win a total three trophies while in LA.
Gordon has enjoyed winning the MLS Cup twice.
The first time Gordon won the MLS Cup was in 2005. The Galaxy defeated the New England Revolution 1-0 on Nov. the 13th at Pizza Hut Park (Present day Toyota Stadium). The second time the MLS veteran lifted the trophy was in 2014 at the Galaxy’s home stadium, the StubHub Center. LA defeated the Revolution 2-1 on December the seventh.
The other competition he has won with LA was the U.S. Open Cup in 2005. The Galaxy beat FC Dallas 1-0 at the Home Depot Center (Present day StubHub Center.) on Sept. the 28th. It is safe to say that Gordon has had success with the Galaxy, but he has yet to taste international glory with LA.
The 34-year-old has come close to winning an international title with the LA Galaxy a few times. Twice Gordon and the Galaxy have lost in a final of a tournament. In 2007, LA lost to C.F. Pachuca in the North American SuperLiga, 4-3 in penalties at the Home Depot Center on Aug. the 29th.
In 2009, he tasted another defeat in the final of an international tournament, this time in the Pan-Pacific Championship. The Galaxy lost to South Korean club, Suwon Samsung Bluewings 4-2 in penalties on Feb. 21st at the Home Depot Center as well. However, the 34-year-old striker has another chance to lift an international trophy with the Galaxy in 2016.
The Galaxy won their group in the CCL. Gordon guided the team by finishing as the second highest scorer in the Champions League during the first round. Now LA has a quarterfinal match up against Liga MX side, Club Santos Laguna. LA will host the first game of the series on Feb. 24th and then the final match will be played at the Estadio Corona on March the first.
However, whether he adds an international trophy to his resume or not, Gordon will be staying put in LA in 2016.