CHIVAS USA FACES CHICAGO TUESDAY AHEAD OF SATURDAY'S HOME MATCH VS. SAN LUIS IN SUPERLIGA:
After dropping a tight 2-1 game to Tigres UANL of Mexico, Chivas USA travels to face the Chicago Fire in SuperLiga 2009 this Tuesday night at 5:00 p.m. PT (7:00 p.m. CT), in a match broadcast live on TeleFutura and ESPN Deportes Radio. Chicago is currently tied with Tigres atop Group A in the tournament, and Tuesday's match will be the second of the season between Chivas USA and the Fire, after Chicago earned a 3-2 win over the Red-and-White on May 28. After Tuesday night's game, Chivas USA will close the group stage of SuperLiga 2009 with a home match against San Luis on Saturday, June 27, at 7:00 p.m. PT at The Home Depot Center. Tickets for the San Luis match, as well as special 2- and 3-Game Packs that include the SuperLiga game and the July 11 Honda Super Clásico vs. the LA Galaxy, are available by calling 1-877-CHIVAS-1 or via cdchivasusa.com.
SAN LUIS TO ARRIVE IN LOS ANGELES ON WEDNESDAY AND TRAIN THURSDAY AND FRIDAY: Chivas USA's opponent for the final group stage match of SuperLiga 2009, San Luis of the Mexican First Division, will arrive in Los Angeles on Wednesday night. San Luis, featuring Braulio Luna and Michael Orozco, will arrive at LAX at 5:28 p.m. on American Airlines flight #455. San Luis will then train on Thursday morning at 10:00 a.m. at The Home Depot Center (field to be announced), and will also train at The Home Depot Center on Friday, with full information to come later this week. Media interested in attending San Luis' airport arrival or training sessions should contact Chivas USA Communications (contact information above).
CHIVAS USA'S SUPERLIGA HISTORY: SuperLiga 2009 is the third edition of the annual tournament, and the second time that Chivas USA has participated. In 2007, Pachuca of the Mexican First Division topped the LA Galaxy 4-3 on penalty kicks to win the inaugural SuperLiga. Last year, Chivas USA played in the tournament for the first time, and in the team's first game of the tournament, fell to Pachuca 2-1 on July 13, 2008. The Red-and-White then won its next game 1-0 over the reigning Mexican champions, Santos, on July 16, before earning a 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution on July 20. Forward Ante Razov scored all three of Chivas USA's goals in the tournament, as the Red-and-White fell short of advancing to the tournament's semifinals on goal differential, while the Revolution went on to win the tournament. For a full schedule of the tournament, or to purchase tickets, visit cdchivasusa.com or call 1-877-CHIVAS-1.
TIGRES UANL SCORES EARLY AND LATE TO TAKE 2-1 WIN OVER CHIVAS USA: In the first match of SuperLiga 2009 for Chivas USA and Tigres UANL, the Mexican First Division club earned a 2-1 win in Carson, Calif. Tigres started the scoring in the 11th minute when Armando Pulido hit a perfectly placed bicycle kick that floated over goalkeeper Zach Thornton in the Chivas USA net. The Red-and-White struck back after halftime, when Michael Lahoud finished a Bojan Stepanovic ball at the far post for his first goal as a professional. However, after Eduardo Lillingston received his second yellow card in the 67th minute, Tigres took advantage of its extra man to score in the 82nd minute, with Jesus Dueñas finishing a rebound to give the visitors the win. Tigres now faces San Luis, while Chivas USA next faces the Chicago Fire, with both games being played on Tuesday night.
BORNSTEIN AND KLJESTAN PLAYING FOR U.S. IN CONFEDERATIONS CUP: Chivas USA's Jonathan Bornstein has now played all three of the United States' matches at the Confederations Cup in South Africa, starting against Italy (3-1 loss), Brazil (3-0 loss), and Egypt (3-0 win). On Sunday, the U.S. overcame long odds to qualify for the semifinals of the tournament, as it needed a three goal win over Egypt, and it needed Brazil to top Italy by the same margin. Both results occurred, and now Bornstein, as well as Chivas USA teammate Sacha Kljestan (who played in the matches against Brazil and Italy) will face the top-ranked team in the world, Spain, on Wednesday at 11:30 p.m. PT. The match is available in high definition on ESPN2, and fans can also follow the game live on ussoccer.com's MatchTracker.) Bornstein has made a total of 18 appearances for the U.S., and Kljestan has 19.
RED-AND-WHITE AT THE HALFWAY POINT OF 2009 MLS SEASON: With 15 of 30 MLS matches played, Chivas USA has started strong, owning an 8-4-3 (W-L-T) record, good for 27 points and a tie for the league lead with the Houston Dynamo. This is the team's best record at the halfway point of a season. Last season, the Red-and-White were 6-6-3 (21 points) at the midpoint, while the team was at 7-5-3 (24 points) in 2007 and 6-5-4 (22 points) in 2006. In 2005, the team's first season, the team was just 1-12-3 (6 points) at the midpoint of the 32-game season. In all but 2006, the team has earned more points in the second half of the season than in the first.
GOALKEEPER ZACH THORNTON SETS TEAM AND PERSONAL RECORDS: Chivas USA goalkeeper Zach Thornton earned seven shutouts in the first 15 matches of the season, which gave the goalkeeper 65 shutouts in his career, tied with San Jose's Joe Cannon for second on the MLS all-time charts. In addition to the clean sheets, Thornton also set a new club record for consecutive minutes without conceding a goal earlier this year, going 401 minutes between April 22 and May 16, beating the Red-and-White's previous record of 334 minutes, set by Brad Guzan in 2006.
INJURY UPDATE: Below is the team's injury update; the most recent version is available at www.mlsnet.com.
CHIVAS USA INJURY REPORT (As of Friday; 6/19):
Bobby Burling |
Sports hernia surgery |
Out |
|---|---|---|
Dan Kennedy |
Right knee sprain |
Out |
Ante Razov |
Right ankle surgery |
Out |
Lawson Vaughn |
Left ankle surgery |
Out |
Cesar Zamora |
Left hamstring strain |
Out |
Justin Braun |
Concussion |
Questionable |
CHIVAS USA'S 'STIMULUS PLAN' GETS FANS INTO THE TOP MATCHES OF 2009 STARTING AT JUST $50: Chivas USA is offering fans the chance to watch the top matches of the year with the club's 'Stimulus Plan', a limited-time offer that gets fans into the top five Chivas USA home games of the 2009 season, plus a 'bonus' ticket to the July 11 Honda Super Clásico against the LA Galaxy, all starting at the bargain price of just $50. The plan includes Toronto FC (Aug. 22), New England (Sept. 13), Juan Pablo Angel's New York Red Bulls (Sept. 26), the California Clásico vs. San Jose (Oct. 17) and Fan Appreciation Night on the last day of the regular season against the Houston Dynamo (Oct. 25). The bonus 'Stimulus Game' is the highly anticipated Game 2 of the Honda Super Clásico series against intra-city rivals LA Galaxy on July 11. For more information, please visit cdchivasusa.com or call 1-877-CHIVAS-1.
TUNE IN THIS THURSDAY TO 'PASIÓN CHIVAS USA' ON W RADIO 690 AM: Fans can tune in to 'Pasión Chivas USA', airing this Thursday night from 5-6 p.m. PT on W Radio 690 AM. Hosts Hipólito Gamboa and Rigoberto Cervantez, who also serve as play-by-play and color commentator for every Chivas USA match of the 2009 MLS season, will preview Chivas USA's final group stage match of SuperLiga 2009 against San Luis, discuss the team's performance in the match at Chicago on Tuesday night. The official weekly radio program of the Red-and-White, 'Pasión Chivas USA' covers everything on the Major League Soccer club, from match commentary, recent news from the team, interviews, contests to win tickets to Chivas USA matches, as well as phone calls from fans listening to the show.
DON'T MISS 'SOMOS CHIVAS USA' THIS SATURDAY AT 1:30 P.M. PT ON KAZA AZTECA 54: Fans, don't miss Chivas USA's official weekly TV show, "Somos Chivas USA'. Featuring renowned co-hosts Mara Almada and Antonio Rosique, with reporting by renowned Chiva-expert Ramón Diaz, 'Somos Chivas USA' gives viewers an inside look at the Red-and-White, including player features, match analysis, highlights, and much more. This week's 'Somos Chivas USA' is scheduled to air on KAZA Azteca 54 in Los Angeles at 1:30 p.m. PT on Saturday, June 20, complete with special features and commentaries on Chivas USA. Tune in this Saturday for your 'Somos Chivas USA!'
GUADALAJARA UPDATE: BACK FROM VACATION: Chivas de Guadalajara has returned from a brief offseason break and is now holding preseason training at Verde Valle for the upcoming Apertura 2009 preseason. More information on Chivas de Guadalajara can be found at the club's official website, www.chivascampeon.com.
CDCHIVASUSA.COM: THE TOP SOURCE FOR EVERYTHING ABOUT THE RED-AND-WHITE: With new features, videos, and articles every day, cdchivasusa.com is the top source for everything on the Major League Soccer's top team, Chivas USA. New videos are constantly added, ranging from the popular 'Chatting with Chivas USA' and 'Chatting with the ChivaGirls' series, to match previews and recaps, to other features on the team. Fans can also find articles on happenings within Chivas USA nearly every day, as well as Adrian Paul's offbeat column "Red-and-White Monday" every week. Visit cdchivasusa.com today to for all the latest news and information on the Red-and-White!
JOIN CHIVAS USA'S NEW SOCIAL NETWORKING SITE AT MYCHIVASUSA.COM: Chivas USA has launched MyChivasUSA.com, a social networking site designed for fans of the Red-and-White. The social network was created using the Ning platform, and allows fans to customize a profile, set up blogs, add photos and videos, send messages and chat, track matches they've attended, and much more. Several Chivas USA players, including Jonathan Bornstein and Alecko Eskandarian, as well as members of the ChivaGirls, have already set up profiles on the page. For more information, or to make your own account, please visit MyChivasUSA.com and click on the 'Sign Up' link.
VISIT 'DENTRO DEL REBAÑO', CHIVAS USA'S OFFICIAL BLOG: Chivas USA's official blog, 'Dentro del Rebaño' (or 'Inside the Flock') will contain updated content on the team throughout the season. Check out chivas-usa.blogspot.com today for the latest information on Chivas USA!
CHIVAS USA SCHEDULE: JUNE 23-30*
Tuesday, June 23: Chivas USA @ Chicago Fire (SuperLiga) 5:00 p.m. PT (7:00 p.m. CT), Toyota Park, Bridgeview, Ill.
(TV: TeleFutura; Radio: ESPN Deportes Radio; Web: SuperLiga2009.com)
• Chivas USA travels to face Chicago in a SuperLiga 2009 match, taking on Cuauhtémoc Blanco and the Fire for the second time this year
Wednesday, June 24: Travel to Los Angeles; San Luis arrives at LAX at 5:28 p.m., American Airlines #455
Thursday, June 25: Chivas USA Training, 10:00 a.m., Field 6; San Luis Training, 5:00 p.m., Field TBA
Friday, June 26: Chivas USA Training, 10:00 a.m., Field 6; San Luis Training, Time and Field TBA
Saturday, June 27: Chivas USA vs. San Luis (Mexico) 7:00 p.m. PT, The Home Depot Center, Carson, Calif.
(TV: TeleFutura; Radio: ESPN Deportes Radio; Web: SuperLiga2009.com)
• Chivas USA finishes the group stage of SuperLiga 2009, taking on Mexico's San Luis
Sunday, June 28: Travel to Charleston, S.C.
Monday, June 29: Practice in Charleston, TBD
Tuesday, June 30: Chivas USA @ Charleston Battery (U.S. Open Cup) 4:30 p.m. PT (7:30 p.m. ET), Blackbaud Stadium, Charleston, S.C.
(Web: USOpenCup.com)
• Chivas USA plays its third round Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup match at the USL First Division's Charleston Battery, in the first-ever meeting between the two clubs
