With just two games remaining in the 2006 Major League Soccer season, Chivas USA (10-8-12, 42 pts) heads this week to Missouri to face the Kansas City Wizards (9-13-8, 35 pts) on Saturday, October 7 at 5:30 p.m. PT (7:30 p.m. CT) in the final MLS regular season game to be played at Arrowhead Stadium (TV: FSN WEST; Radio: KTNQ 1020 AM Univision Radio; Web: MLSLIVE.tv). Chivas USA is coming off a 3-0 loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy last Saturday in the fourth and final 'Honda Super Clásico' of 2006, while the Wizards are coming off a 3-3 tie at home against Real Salt Lake.
PLAYOFF PICTURE: Chivas USA enters Saturday's game in sole possession of third place in the Western Conference, with 42 points. The Red-and-White can clinch a playoff spot for the first time with a win over Kansas City on Saturday. Chivas USA can also qualify on Saturday if two of the following three scenarios play out: (a) Real Salt Lake fails to win at home vs. Houston; (b) Los Angeles fails to win at FC Dallas; (c) Colorado loses at home vs. New York. Kansas City, for its part, cannot clinch a playoff berth this Saturday, and instead must get a result against the Red Bulls the following weekend at Giants Stadium.
RESERVES ON SUNDAY: Following Saturday's match, the Chivas USA Reserves (3-4-3, 12 pts) take on the Kansas City Wizards Reserves (7-2-2, 23 pts), Sunday morning at 8:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m. CT. Both teams are looking to make a strong end-of-season push in Major League Soccer's Reserve Division, which opened play just last year. For more information on the MLS Reserve Division, please visit: http://web.mlsnet.com/mls/reserve/.
NEXT UP, REAL SALT LAKE: After playing the Wizards, Chivas USA returns home to face fellow 2005 MLS expansion side Real Salt Lake - currently looking to snatch a playoff berth from the Red-and-White - on Sunday, October 15 at 4:00 p.m. PT, in the MLS regular-season closer at The Home Depot Center. The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a free Chivas USA fleece blanket courtesy of HSBC Credit Center.
INJURY UPDATE: Six Chivas USA players are listed as 'out' for Saturday's game in Kansas City: World Cup veterans Carlos Llamosa (L thigh strain, suffered last Saturday vs. Galaxy) Juan Francisco Palencia (R knee MCL sprain, suffered 9/13 @ FC Dallas), John O'Brien (R patella tendonitis, from June's World Cup in Germany) and Ramón Ramírez (season-ending L knee surgery for an MCL sprain suffered in preseason), as well as developmental players Mike Muñoz (season-ending R ankle surgery) and Estuardo Sánchez (L foot surgery). Forward Ante Razov (R adductor strain) is listed as questionable, while midfielder Juan Pablo García (L adductor strain) is listed as probable. Both players returned to training this week.
CHIVAGIRLS 2007 CALENDAR: The ChivaGirls Calendar, back and hotter than ever in 2007, is now available for purchase online at ChivaGirls.com, for a special price of just $13.50! This seductive 14-month calendar, shot in Rosarito, Baja California, Mexico, by photographer Mike Nowak, features all 14 members of Chivas USA's popular female ambassador squad. The ChivaGirls 2007 Calendar makes for a great Christmas or New Year's gift. Buy yours today at ChivaGirls.com!
CLAUDIO IN ESPN DEPORTES LA REVISTA: Chivas USA defender and three-time World Cup veteran Claudio Suárez appears as the main feature story in the October edition of ESPN Deportes La Revista, the Spanish-language sister publication of ESPN The Magazine. With a circulation of over 50,000, ESPN Deportes La Revista, a full-color monthly magazine, is published by Editorial Televisa and ESPN Deportes and targets the Spanish-language market in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
GUADALAJARA UPDATE: Club Deportivo Guadalajara, Chivas USA's Mexican sister team, claimed a key 2-0 victory over archrival Club América of Mexico City last Saturday at Guadalajara's Estadio Jalisco. Adolfo Bautista and Alberto Medina scored second-half goals within two minutes of each other to give Chivas bragging rights in Mexico's own 'Super Clásico'. Guadalajara (4-3-4, 16 pts) is currently third in six-team Group 1; the top two teams from each group and two 'wild-card' teams qualify for the Mexican playoffs. This Saturday, Guadalajara visits Morelia at 5 p.m. PT (7 p.m. local time) on Matchday 12 of the Mexican Apertura 2006 season.
'SANGRE CHIVA': Be sure to tune in, this and every Thursday from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. PT, to 'Sangre Chiva', Chivas USA's weekly radio show on KTNQ 1020 AM Univision Radio. Hosted by veteran broadcaster Hipólito Gamboa and former Chivas USA and Chivas Guadalajara goalkeeper Martín Zúñiga, the hour-long program features exclusive interviews, match analysis and special ticket offers, plus all the latest Chivas USA news and happenings.
'SOMOS CHIVAS USA': Don't miss, this and every Saturday from 12:30 to 1:00 p.m. PT, 'Somos Chivas USA', Chivas USA's official weekly program on KAZA Azteca 54, official Spanish-language television broadcast partner of Chivas USA. Recorded each week at The Home Depot Center, this exciting 30-minute show gives fans an exclusive insider's look at the world of Chivas USA.
