Change evident as Galaxy camp opens

CARSON, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Galaxy are barely into their first week of training camp under head coach Bruce Arena, and an air of change is unmistakable.

And it's not just because Arena is running his first camp since coming to Los Angeles last Aug. 18. There are 33 players on the roster, and only 20 of them were with the team at the end of the 2008 season. There are several absences, most notably David Beckham and Landon Donovan, who are on loan to AC Milan and Bayern Munich, respectively, and are not expected back until mid-March.

Defender Sean Franklin, the 2008 MLS rookie of the year, was lost to sports hernia surgery but is expected to return before the start of the regular season. Also missing is top draft pick Omar Gonzalez, who is taking final exams at the University of Maryland.

The revamped roster features two trialists, Tony Sanneh and Henry "Leo" Bautista, among 29 players at practice. The 37-year-old Sanneh is a veteran of the U.S. national team who was out of soccer last year. Bautista, 25, is a highly regarded defender from Caracas FC of the Venezuelan Primera Division. There also is midfielder Dema Kovalenko, who was acquired from Real Salt Lake earlier this week for a conditional draft pick in the 2011 SuperDraft.

But if you think the Galaxy's makeover is finished, think again.

"It's still very early in the process," Arena said, "and it remains to be seen how much more we need to do on the roster in terms of improving it.

"I think we're headed in the right direction. We'll just take it a day at a time in preseason and continue to examine what we think we have and try to improve wherever we can."

Forward Mike Magee, who played for Arena with the Red Bulls and was acquired from New York for a second-round 2010 draft pick on Jan. 14, said he is happy being reunited with his former coach.

"He's a player's coach," said Magee, a six-year MLS veteran. "He's going to make you work real hard, but he's not going to overdo it. He's the kind of coach who knows preseason is long and we have time to get people ready for the (season) opener. It's a very professional environment."

Magee said he expects camp to get even tougher next week, and whether that will feature more changes remains to be seen. Arena said he had no particular expectations at this point.

"Let's just wait and see," he said. "All we want to do right now is get the team better and do the things you have to do in preseason and continue to identify the issues within the team and try to make them better.

"It's too early to say where this team is and all of that. We're three days into preseason and two months away from the opening game," Arena continued. "I'm not real worried about today as much as how we can move forward in the process of getting this team better and making the changes we have to make."

The Galaxy, which opens the regular season on March 22 at The Home Depot Center against D.C. United, kicks off the preseason at home on Feb. 12 against Houston, followed six days later by the start of the Pan-Pacific Championship, which includes the Suwon Samsung Bluewings of the K-League, Oita Trinita of the J-League and Shandong Luneng Taishon FC from the Chinese Super League. The Galaxy's preason concludes on March 14 against the Chicago Fire in the inaugural PHX Soccer Clasico, which will be held at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz.