On a night where Chivas USA looked certain to clinch a playoff spot, they instead had to settle for a single point after giving up a late goal to the Colorado Rapids in a 1-1 tie Sunday afternoon.
Chivas USA took the lead in the 13th minute on a Sacha Kljestan penalty kick, when Facundo Erpen was also sent off for pushing over Laurent Merlin from behind on the play. But two weather delays -- one at halftime, and one at the 70-minute mark -- allowed the Rapids to find the resources to pull level.
"At halftime there was a [lightning delay], and then there was another at the end of the game and we knew that they had nothing to lose at that point and they were going to throw everyone forward," said Chivas USA captain Jesse Marsch.
"It is kind of tough to deal with, and we could have done a lot of little things better, so we gave up a goal and we were pretty lucky not to give up another one," Marsch continued. "But at the beginning of the day if you would have asked me if I would be happy to get out of here with a point I would have said yes."
After the second break, which lasted some 42 minutes, the Rapids came out with more intensity than they had shown in the previous 70 minutes -- or certainly since the red card. It took just a few minutes before Colin Clark split the Chivas defense to score the equalizer.
"Give Colorado credit," said Chivas USA coach Preki. "They pushed the ball forward and pushed numbers forward and at the end they could have gotten more. And that's the same way we feel, but life goes on and we will take the point."
Preki felt the real turning point of the game came earlier, when Chivas did not push their man advantage further. That gave the Rapids the opportunity to come back in the short time left after the second delay.
"At the end of the game we actually played very disorganized, and that's not the style of our team," said Preki. "I don't know if that was because we were fatigued or if it was because they were pushing people forward, but I wasn't happy with that.
"Obviously after the break they came out with a little more energy than we did but at the same time I felt we gifted them a goal because we had possession in their half. At this level you can't get caught on the break, especially when you are playing 11 against 10."
Preki believes that Chivas USA's recent fixture congestion was also a major contributor to the result.
"This is our fourth game in 11 days," said Preki. "I said from the beginning that we were lacking a little bit of energy. But it is the way it is and we have to cope with it."
Despite missing the opportunity to clinch a playoff spot, no one on Chivas is concerned about that eventuality. Just one more point over their final six games will secure a postseason berth for the club for the second year running.
"We're not worried about that at all," said Marsch. "We're just trying to keep going in the right direction. And to be honest ... we are just pretty beat up right now.
"We just wanted to come out and be smart, and for the most part we did that," he continued. "The last 20 minutes were just a hectic display of desperation. We tried to deal with it the best we could and in the end we gave up a goal so we failed, but on the whole I am happy with what we did today."
Geoffrey Urland is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
