Los Angeles Galaxy Manager Ain’t Down With Tinseltown

The San Jose Earthquakes of the MLS have agreed to buyout Los Angeles Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop’s contract. It would be an understatement to say that Yallop had a bad reign in Los Angeles. What was it like? Yallop had to put up with the most annoying General Manager (Alexi Lalas) in the league; he had to deal with overwhelming scrutiny for capsizing with a group of players that gloated more about their international prestige than their MLS dominance; and he was the pawn to usher in the biggest sports flop of 2007 via David Beckham.

Yallop will return to the site of his biggest success as an MLS coach. He was enormously popular during his four years with the previous Earthquakes, who moved to Houston in 2005. Yallop inherited a team that finished with the league’s worst record in 2000, and coached it to the MLS Cup title in ‘01, his first season on the job. He then guided the Quakes to a second league title two years later.

It really isn’t that big of a deal considering ANY coach will probably be better, but good riddance. He’s more of a surburban Wal-Mart shopping shmo anyway. Someone tell Alexi Lalas (LA General Manager) to get ex-Real Madrid hotshot Fabio Capello on the phone and ship his Italian ass to Los Angeles asap. Oh wait, he’s still pouting somewhere in Tuscany about losing the aforementioned job.

Earthquakes hire Yallop [SI]
Image [AP]