Chivas USA head coach Chelis retracts comment on Utah after "magnificent surprise" at Rio Tinto

Jose Luis Sanchez Sola (Chelis), Chivas USA - April 20, 2013

CARSON, Calif. – It took nearly two weeks, but Chivas USA manager José Luis “El Chelís” Sánchez Solá admitted Thursday that his team’s trip to Utah was surprisingly pleasant and retracted what he wrote on his Twitter account before the April 20 matchup at Real Salt Lake.


“The Utah comment was taken badly,” Chelís told MLSsoccer.com on Friday. “Afterward, I couldn’t even apologize, but it was a magnificent surprise. What happened in that stadium was great and enjoyable. How they live soccer in that stadium is something beautiful. So when my grandchildren misbehave, I won’t send them to Utah. That would be a prize.”


It's an about-face from Chelís' original take on Utah, which

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"When my grandchildren misbehave, I will tell them that I will send them to Utah."


He later wrote, “it’s rainy, gray, cold, and no one is in the streets."


Chelís did not speak to reporters following that match. He reportedly got into a verbal altercation with RSL playmaker Javier Morales as the player walked off the field during a late-game substitution.


Chivas USA are set to return to Salt Lake City on Oct. 23 for a match at Rio Tinto Stadium. The Rojiblancos host Real Salt Lake on May 19.