Chivas USA's quest for a playoff spot is over after the club clinched a postseason berth on Saturday.
But getting into the playoffs has become merely a formality for the Red-and-White.
"Nothing's done," Chivas USA forward Ante Razov said. "Numerically they say we're in, but there's a lot more work to do."
Chivas USA joined Houston Dynamo, D.C. United and the New England Revolution in the postseason. Chivas USA sit alone atop the Western Conference table with 46 points after Saturday's 2-1 win against Kansas City vaulted them over Houston. With five games remaining to Houston's four, Chivas USA control their own conference fate.
A playoff spot already in hand, Chivas USA's regular-season goals are now two-fold, players said.
"Our goal all year has been making the playoffs, but our goal lately has been winning the Western Conference and winning the Supporters' Shield," Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan said. "Now that we've made the playoffs, I don't think there will be a letdown or that we'll be resting players or anything like that."
Reaching the playoffs is no small task, though, and players relish the opportunity to compete for the MLS Cup, they said. After all, the rival Los Angeles Galaxy have virtually no shot at making the playoffs while D.C. United, for all their glory, missed out on the postseason three years running earlier this decade.
Simply gaining entry into the postseason, however, is no cause for festivity.
"There are no champagne celebrations ... or anything like that," Razov said. "We've got work to do. We want to get that top spot and see if we can get home-field advantage."
Players said having a spot secure will not change the focus of what's left of the regular season too much. The approach to every game from now until Oct. 20 will be the same as it has been all year.
"We want to make sure we get three points against Chicago on Saturday ... and make sure come playoff time we're rolling," Chivas USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan said. "It's nice to know we're in, but depending on other results maybe we can get the Supporters' Shield."
Chivas USA will finish the season with three games at home -- where the club has been virtually unbeatable this year -- and a pair of road games against Western Conference foes. After Saturday's match against the Fire, Chivas USA play at Real Salt Lake on Oct. 6 and at FC Dallas on Oct. 11 before finishing off the 2007 regular-season campaign with games against Colorado (Oct. 14) and Houston (Oct. 15). The club has gone a combined 5-3-1 against those teams this season.
Much like it has most of the year, if players and coaches continue to punch the clock daily and carry over the work from the training session into games, everything else will take care of itself, players said.
A playoff spot alone doesn't necessarily indicate that the club is suddenly a quality side.
"Without really saying it, I think everybody kind of sees we've become a good team," Chivas USA midfielder Jesse Marsch said. "Those kinds of goals are realistic for us at this point, but I'm not a big fan of talking about the grandiose visions and the possibilities. I'm more about the day-to-day work and the week-to-week work and trying to keep this thing going in the right direction."
A year ago, Chivas USA also secured a playoff berth against Kansas City. However, it came under completely different circumstances. The match was a loss and came in the club's penultimate match of the season. The focus was also different as any successes the club enjoyed were a change from the inaugural season.
Much has changed over the course of one year.
"Last year was a completely different year. It was a turnaround year and getting into the playoffs was a big deal. This year, we feel we have a little bit more," Razov said. "Last year I think we were happy to get in even though we felt we could have done some more. This year, we certainly have bigger goals."
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
