One important part of Chivas USA's 2007 regular season will come to close on Thursday. The Red-and-White will play a regular-season match away from The Home Depot Center for the last time.
Chivas USA will visit Pizza Hut Park for their final road game of the 2007 calendar. The match against FC Dallas will offer the club one final road tune-up before the first leg of the Western Conference Semifinal Series, which Chivas USA will play on the road.
Players, though, said their approach for the game has been the same for most any other game this season.
"We're going to try and do the same things we've been doing for the last three or four months and have the right mentality and be organized, try to be good with the ball and be hard to play against," Chivas USA midfielder Jesse Marsch said. "That's been a good mix for us. More than anything, we're just trying to keep our intensity level high."
Chivas USA's intensity has helped the club steadily rise to the top of the Western Conference table. The Red-and-White sit atop the conference standings with a 15-6-6 record and can clinch the conference title against the Rapids at home on Sunday provided the club gets a result from Thursday's game.
Although the conference title and the Supporters' Shield are both still attainable, players and coaches said the focus will be kept on what will help the club the most entering the postseason.
"We just think about the next game. We don't really think about anything else," Chivas USA coach Preki said. "Right now, it's just trying to focus on keeping our mentality the right way going into the playoffs and every game is just as important. We're not going to let our guard now and think 'All right, it's easy times.' No. We just keep going and keep the focus and keep it sharp and hopefully we go right into the playoffs."
With a win, Chivas USA's road record would finish at 6-6-3 and would be perhaps the most telling sign in the club's evolution. In their expansion 2005 campaign, Chivas USA's lone road win came late in the season at Columbus. In their breakthrough 2006 season, Chivas USA won just three road games.
Thus, the Red-and-White have more road wins already this year than they did in their first two seasons combined.
The club's mentality on the road has evolved into one where players feel anything short of three points is disappointing.
"Whether it's our last or first or whatever road game it is, I think it's important to win," Chivas USA defender Shavar Thomas said. "All the time we go out there we want to win and that's what we're still aiming for."
Closing out their road schedule with a win would set a good tone for the club entering the playoffs.
"We need to go on the road and play the game we know how to play. At the beginning of the year we didn't do too well on the road," left back Jonathan Bornstein said. "Somehow we turned it around midseason and on the road lately we haven't been losing and if anything just getting a point out of it. If anything it would be good to keep that going heading into the playoffs."
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
