If Chivas USA buck their road trend from this season, they must do so against a club that poses many challenges.
The New York Red Bulls will play host to Chivas USA on Thursday at Giants Stadium in the first meeting between the two sides since May 2006.
Chivas USA players pointed to New York's two designated players as a starting point for their club to deal with.
"They've got some good players in (Juan Pablo) Angel and (Claudio) Reyna has experience," striker Ante Razov said. "They've got good players all over the field so we've got to be prepared to deal with them."
Angel walked away from the MLS All-Star Game with Most Valuable Player honors after scoring a goal in a 2-0 win against Scotland's Celtic FC on July 19. He was suspended for Sunday's match against D.C. but fellow striker John Wolyniec filled the void and scored the only goal in New York's 1-0 win.
Angel is third in the league with nine goals scored but is just one of several scoring threats Chivas USA must deal with. Clint Mathis has five goals while Wolyniec and teenage star Josmer Altidore have three goals apiece.
Chivas USA defender Jonathan Bornstein said his side would need to be tough in order to compete with the Red Bulls.
"They are a very strong team out on the field," Bornstein said. "Angel's coming back from suspension so he's definitely a threat to us. We've got to try and muscle down to him as much as we can. They've got speed on the outside like (Dane) Richards who is going to be coming down my side... We've just got to be tough all around."
Another factor for Chivas USA to deal with is Giants Stadium's artificial surface, which players do not hold in high regard.
"It's probably the worst field to play on, along with Salt Lake," said Razov, who played with the MetroStars for the bulk of the 2005 campaign. "The surface is quite poor but both teams have to deal with it, obviously."
No matter the surface or the opponent, Chivas USA have struggled away from The Home Depot Center. The club has just a 1-0 win in Chicago to show for eight away games.
Claudio Suarez said he pinpointed the problem.
"More than anything, our problem is ourselves," Chivas USA's captain said. "Of course, the rival counts too because there are some very good teams in this league but we just forget to do the simple things sometimes. Each one has to be responsible for their own job. There are moments where we make too many mistakes and that adds up during games. We start to get frustrated and the rival has taken advantage."
Chivas USA will play their next four games on the road. After Thursday's game in New York, the club will play at Kansas City on Sunday before a three-week break, followed by games at Toronto FC on Aug. 18 and "at" the Los Angeles Galaxy on Aug. 23.
But Bornstein said the result in New York will not necessarily mean Sunday will hold the same fate.
"If we do well on Thursday it will boost our confidence and will carry over to Sunday's game," Bornstein said. "But if we seem to struggle or something it's always a new game and a new whistle so you can kind of take each game by game so if you don't do well in one doesn't mean you're not going to do well in the other."
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
