REAL SALT LAKE v CHIVAS USA
RICE-ECCLES STADIUM, Salt Lake City, Utah
7 p.m. MT (HDNet; FSN-PT)
Oct. 6, 2007 (WEEK 27) / MLS Game #179
Fortunes could not be more different for the 2005 expansion brethren as they meet for the final time this season. Chivas USA are in a tie for the lead in the Western Conference and still have designs on the MLS Supporters' Shield, having qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs for the second consecutive year. Real Salt Lake officially saw their postseason aspirations come to an end last week, something the club has yet to achieve. However, both teams come into the game as two of the hottest recently in Major League Soccer: Chivas USA are riding a nine-game unbeaten streak, while Real Salt Lake haven't lost in their last four.
REFEREE: Ricardo Salazar. SAR (bench): Corey Rockwell; JAR (opposite): David Bragg; 4th: Richard Heron
MLS Career: 64 games; FC/gm: 31.0; Y/gm: 3.6; R: 14; pens: 23
Games involving Real: P6 W2 L3 T1; FC/gm: 23.2; Y/gm: 3.8; R: 3; pens: 2
Games involving Chivas USA: P6 W2 L2 T2; FC/gm: 31.0; Y/gm: 3.5; R: 2; pens: 1
INJURY REPORT: REAL SALT LAKE - OUT: DF Nik Besagno (R knee surgery); MF Javier Morales (L torn labrum); PROBABLE: FW Alecko Eskandarian (R hamstring strain), DF Willis Forko (L hip strain) ... CHIVAS USA - OUT: DF Carlos Llamosa (L knee ACL surgery)
SUSPENDED: CHV: Maykel Galindo (five cautions; through Oct. 7)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: RSL: Kyle Beckerman, Atiba Harris, Carey Talley ... CHV: Sacha Kljestan, Paulo Nagamura, Orlando Perez
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: RSL: Fabian Espindola, Jean-Martial Kipré, Ritchie Kotschau, Chris Lancos, Chris Wingert ... CHV: Jason Hernandez, Jesse Marsch, Lawson Vaughn
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (10 meetings): Real Salt Lake 2 wins, 9 goals ...Chivas USA 5 wins, 19 goals ... Draws 3
AT SALT LAKE: (4 meetings): Real Salt Lake 2 wins, 7 goals ...Chivas USA 0 wins, 4 goals ... Draws 2
• This is the third of three meetings between the 2005 expansion rivals, the only one this season on the Wasatch Front. Chivas USA won both previous meetings, both at The Home Depot Center.
• A year ago, Chivas USA claimed the season series by winning the first of four meetings between the teams before they played to draws in each of the next three.
• In their inaugural season, the then-expansion clubs evenly split their season series, each winning twice, each winning both of their home matches.
• The 5-1 Chivas USA against Real on July 9, 2005 is the largest margin of victory for the rojiblancos in club history.
• Coaches record: Jason Kreis vs. CHV: P1 W0 L1 D0 ... Preki v RSL: P2 W2 L0 D0
2007 (MLS):
4/21: CHV 4, RSL 0 (Galindo 1, 9; Razov 45; Taylor 89)
8/26: CHV 1, RSL 0 (Marsch 31)
• For the second time in as many seasons, Chivas USA handed their expansion brethren a heavy defeat in the first meeting of the season, a 4-0 whitewashing at The Home Depot Center on April 21.
• A historic night got off to a fast start as Maykel Galindo opened the scoring after just 28 seconds, the sixth-fastest in MLS history. Then eight minutes later, Galindo's pace again got the better of the RSL backline as he doubled the Chivas lead.
• Just before the halftime break, Ante Razov powerfully head down into the goal for the 100th league goal of his MLS career. The Red-and-White finished off the match in the 89th minute when Matt Taylor drove home a rebound to complete the 4-0 scoreline. The win equaled Chivas USA's most lopsided victory.
• Then on Aug. 26, the game's lone goal came in the 31st minute. A corner kick was just knocked back out wide, and Ante Razov latched onto it on the right. He drove in a low ball toward the near post where Jesse Marsch got in front of his marker and touched the ball past Nick Rimando for his second goal on the year.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-3-1-2): Nick Rimando - Jean-Martial Kipre, Eddie Pope, Ritchie Kotschau, Chris Wingert - Kyle Beckerman, Carey Talley, Atiba Harris - Andy Williams (Matias Mantilla 72) - Fabian Espindola (Chris Lancos 68), Robbie Findley (Chris Brown 56). Substitutes Not Used: Nikolas Besagno, Kyle Brown, Javier Morales, Chris Seitz
• Here's Preki's team (4-4-2): Brad Guzan - Jonathan Bornstein, Jason Hernandez, Claudio Suarez, Orlando Perez - Sacha Kljestan, Jesse Marsch, Paulo Nagamura, Francisco Mendoza (John Cunliffe 71) - Ramon Nunez, Ante Razov (Maykel Galindo 79). Substitutes Not Used: Preston Burpo, Jorge Flores, Rodrigo Lopez, Laurent Merlin, Shavar Thomas
REAL SALT LAKE
Real Salt Lake extended their unbeaten streak to four games, though they were twice pegged back by the New York Red Bulls before settling for a 2-2 draw on Saturday evening at Giants Stadium. While Real have 24 points with three matches remaining, they are now officially eliminated from playoff consideration.
LAST MATCH
• Real Salt Lake were coming off a victory that put an end to a four-game winless run that followed their only back-to-back wins on the year, while the Red Bulls had won just once over their last six games.
• And for the second game in a row, the Red Bulls fell behind early at home. Andy Williams bent in a long cross from the right touchline and Chris Brown got free at the back post to send a glancing, diving header into the turf and past New York 'keeper Ronald Waterreus for the 22nd-minute opener.
• Four minutes after the break, the Red Bulls pulled level. A long pass was flicked on to Francis Doe, leaving him one-on-one with RSL defender Matias Mantilla outside the area. The Liberian striker cut and slashed his way to goal, finally turning Mantilla before lashing a low shot inside the far post for his second goal in as many games.
• But Real pulled ahead again 15 minutes from the end. Alecko Eskandarian freed Fabian Espindola on the left flank, and after turning the corner he cut back a rolling pass for Kyle Beckerman to side-foot home for his second goal with the Utah club and third on the year.
• Yet the Red Bulls followed the script, and for the second week running, got a late equalizer from Juan Pablo Angel. This time, Carey Talley tripped up Seth Stammler as the center back tried to reach the rebound of a ball bouncing in the area, and Angel converted from the penalty spot for his 17th goal of the year, setting a New York club record.
• RSL head coach Jason Kreis made four changes to the team that defeated the Colorado Rapids 1-0 the weekend before. Willis Forko and Eddie Pope returned to the back four, coming in for Chris Landos and Ritchie Kotschau. Carey Talley came back from suspension, replacing Atiba Harris, and Alecko Eskandarian came back in for Kyle Brown.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-2-3-1): Nick Rimando - Willis Forko, Matias Mantilla, Eddie Pope, Chris Wingert - Carey Talley, Kyle Beckerman - Chris Brown (Fabian Espindola 61), Andy Williams (Atiba Harris 74), Alecko Eskandarian - Yura Movsisyan (Robbie Findley 81). Substitutes Not Used: Kyle Brown, Ritchie Kotschau, Chris Lancos, Chris Seitz
• "To have a lead twice in the match, you feel that you should walk away with three points - especially when you have a lead in the as late in the second half as we did," Kreis said.
TEAM NEWS
• The loss left Real Salt Lake with a maximum attainable point total of 33 points, meaning they can catch only one team currently in the top eight, the Chicago Fire. However, as Chicago holds the advantage in head-to-head play between the teams, they would win the tiebreak and so Real cannot claim one of the eight playoff spots.
• "We did enough to win that game and felt we deserved it and it kind of got taken from us. It was frustrating, but I thought we did a lot of good things tonight," Kyle Beckerman said. "In different circumstances, if it were earlier in the year then we'd be happy with it, but we needed a win to stay in the playoff race, or at least to be considered for it, so that kind of hurt."
• Still, since the beginning of August, RSL has won four games, lost four and tied three - a vast improvement over the first four months of the season where they won just a single game.
• "We keep coming back to the fact that we didn't have a preseason, we didn't have a long stretch of time to do a lot of coaching and coming together," said Kreis. "We're just lagging behind the rest of the league in our opinion, so we are very much looking forward to planning our preseason, just mapping it out completely during the offseason."
• In addition, RSL has been fighting back to get results in recent weeks. Even though they lost the early lead in New York, they jumped ahead a second time before the penalty kick equalizer.
• "I guess there are positives there, because this is a tough place to play. We're going up and we're not chasing the game, but there's some negatives at well - we give up a penalty kick, we give up an early goal in the second half. It's tough because we get a rhythm going, but then we give it back. But again, we got a point coming out of here and we have to feel really good about the way we played tonight, even though I think we should have gotten three points."
• Both goals came from quality buildups, and two assists were credited on each. It was the first two goals this season for RSL where double assists were credited.
• "It's good for next year," Beckerman said."Tonight we had two really nice goals, team goals. When you are scoring goals from the run of play it's a great sign. It's coming together. We're really starting to gel together, get results on the road and get wins at home. We're becoming a hard team to beat, which is a good sign. If we can continue that for the rest of the year and then go into preseason with that mentality, then we'll be a playoff team next year for sure."
• It's been a month since Jason Kreis installed the 4-2-3-1 system, and Real have won three games over that time. With the injury to Javier Morales, Andy Williams has filled the central attacking midfield role for the past three games and RSL has a win and two draws.
• "My job is to possess the ball as much as I can, to slow down the pace or pick up the pace. With Carey (Talley) and Kyle (Beckerman) in the midfield, it's been great. We've been playing well and hopefully we can keep on building on that," he said.
CHIVAS USA
Chivas USA extended their unbeaten streak to two months in length, coming back to maintain their undefeated home record with a late goal for a 1-1 draw with the Chicago Fire on Saturday evening at The Home Depot Center. With the single point, Chivas USA ended the weekend back into a tie for the top spot in the Western Conference with Houston Dynamo with 48 points for both teams, though Chivas have a game in hand.
LAST MATCH
• It was Cuauhtemoc Blanco's first visit to face Chivas, in a small resumption of the storied Club America-Chivas rivalry. The Fire had tied three games in a row, while Chivas were unbeaten in their last eight games.
• Blanco did not disappoint, and he opened the scoring in the 24th minute. Some 30 yards straight out from goal, he took a long run-up for a free kick that he won, and whipped a remarkable effort around the wall and inside the right-hand post for his fourth goal since arriving in MLS.
• Yet eight minutes from the end Chivas pulled level through their own Mexican national team legend. Cuban striker Maykel Galindo was upended from behind in the area by Fire center back C.J. Brown, and Suarez converted from the spot to continue the Fire's slide and his own club's good run.
• Chivas USA head coach Preki made one change to the team that defeated the Kansas City Wizards 2-1 the Saturday before. Jesse Marsch returned from suspension, Lawson Vaughn going to right back as Alex Zotinca returned to the substitutes' bench.
• Here's Preki's team (4-4-2): Brad Guzan - Lawson Vaughn (Alex Zotinca 78), Claudio Suarez, Shavar Thomas, Jonathan Bornstein - Sacha Kljestan, Jesse Marsch, Paulo Nagamura (Laurent Merlin 68), Francisco Mendoza - Maykel Galindo, Ante Razov. Substitutes Not Used: Preston Burpo, John Cunliffe, Jason Hernandez, Ramon Nunez, Orlando Perez
• "It was a hard fought game. I thought that we started very well, we dominated the play with chances we did not put away. On one play that I'm not sure if it was a foul or not, the referee calls it and Cuauhtémoc scores a really good goal. He is superb when it comes to those situations and he can punish you," Preki said. "After that, we attacked and I feel very unfortunate that we did not score a couple goals. We hit the crossbar a couple times."
TEAM NEWS
• In front of a sold-out Home Depot Center and a team fighting for its playoff life, the game gave Chivas USA a taste of what could be coming later in the month.
• "Playing in games like that, we need that," Chivas USA defender Lawson Vaughn said. "That game is going to help us in the playoffs whether we like it or not."
• While Blanco showed his brilliance with the free kick goal, the Chivas players weren't necessarily pleased with his style of play. He suffered eight fouls on the day, including the one that provided the set piece from which he put Chicago into the lead.
• "As frustrated as we could have been, I still think for the most part our group stuck to our game plan and did our thing," Chivas USA midfielder Jesse Marsch said. "And even though he's cheating the game all over the place I still think we did our job."
• Chivas also felt they could have done a better job defending the set piece. "It's just kind of one of those things that we need to do a better job, either myself setting it up and making sure it's in the place it needs to be or kind of as a whole unit taking care of that situation," goalkeeper Brad Guzan said.
• The game ended with a bit of controversy where Blanco felt he was taken down in the box by defender Alex Zotinca. He vehemently disputed referee Tim Weyland's decision to allow play to continue, and Fire coach Juan Carlos Osorio received a red card for his objection.
• "It was a controversial play but I don't think it was a penalty," Claudio Suarez said. "Alex knocked the ball away cleanly even though there was contact. They argued a lot but to us who were a lot closer, we saw it wasn't."
• The draw pulled Chivas into a tie for the top spot in the Western Conference with Houston Dynamo; while Houston currently holds the tiebreakers between the teams (if the playoffs were to begin this weekend), Chivas still have a game in hand. The teams also conclude the regular season against each other at The Home Depot Center, on Oct. 20.
• While Chivas have clinched their playoff spot, Preki said his first-choice lineup will be in every game down the stretch. "There are no plans to rest anybody," Chivas USA coach Preki said. "We're going to keep the best group we have on the field as many minutes as we can."
• Some veterans have missed games recently through injury - both the 33-year-old Ante Razov and Claudio Suarez, 38, missed the Colorado game last month with slight injuries. However, through the long summer both players saw some time off as a result are primed for the stretch drive and playoff run.
• "Preki is managing our minutes pretty well so we're doing all right," he said. "Our goal is still to get top spot in the conference and possibly the Supporters' Shield."
