OUT: DF Eric Ebert (R knee lateral meniscus surgery); FW Maykel Galindo (sports hernia surgery); DF Lawson Vaughn (L ankle surgery); MF Sasha Victorine (L knee sprain); MF Raphael Wicky (R ankle surgery); QUESTIONABLE: GK Zach Thornton (L hamstring tear); PROBABLE: MF Jorge Flores (concussion); MF Francisco Mendoza (R foot contusion); MF Paulo Nagamura (R knee sprain); Claudio Suárez (L knee contusion) ... HOUSTON DYNAMO - NONE REPORTED
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: HOU: Kei Kamara (through Oct. 26)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD (league game): CHV: Atiba Harris, Sacha Kljestan, Jesse Marsch, Daniel Paladini, Shavar Thomas
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: CHV: Jonathan Bornstein, Bobby Burling, Maykel Galindo, Ante Razov, Sasha Victorine ... HOU: Wade Barrett, Geoff Cameron, Dwayne De Rosario, Stuart Holden, Richard Mulrooney
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (9 meetings): Dynamo 4 wins, 15 goals ... Chivas USA 1 win, 5 goals ... Ties 4
AT THE HOME DEPOT CENTER (3 meetings): Chivas USA 1 win, 4 goal ... Dynamo 0 wins, 3 goals ... Ties 2
• This is the third and final league meeting between the clubs this season, the only one set for The Home Depot Center. After a scoreless draw in the first meeting in Houston, the Dynamo recorded a resounding triumph in the second.
• A year ago, Chivas USA failed to score in three meetings between the teams, the Dynamo winning both games before they played to a scoreless draw in Carson in the season finale.
• Chivas last scored in a league game against Houston on Aug. 26, 2006, having now gone 573 minutes without a goal against the Orange. In that time was also the Western Conference Semifinal Series between the clubs in 2006, won 3-2 on aggregate by Houston.
• The last time Chivas USA scored in a league match against Houston also came in their only victory against the Dynamo in nine all-time league meetings.
• Coaches record: Dominic Kinnear vs. CHV: P13 W6 L1 D6 ... Preki v HOU: P5 W0 L3 D2
THIS SEASON (MLS):
5/3: HOU 0, CHV 0
8/20: HOU 4, CHV 0 (Holden 11; Kamara 22, 35; Jaqua 28)
• The teams played to their second consecutive draw in league competition against each other, May 3 at Robertson Stadium, in their first meeting this season.
• Goalkeeper Brad Guzan made five saves for his first clean sheet on the season, including a point-blank save on Corey Ashe late in the match.
• The Dynamo played the final eight minutes a man up after Claudio Suarez was sent off for pulling down Brian Mullan from behind when he looked to go clean through on goal. Referee Jozef Batko issued eight yellow cards in addition to the ejection in the physical match.
• In the second meeting, the Dynamo defeated Chivas USA 4-0 for the second consecutive season at home, this time Aug. 20 at Robertson Stadium.
• It took the Dynamo just 11 minutes to open their account. Stuart Holden was set free on the left, and raced into the area unmolested before chipping a shot past Chivas USA goalkeeper Zach Thornton.
• The Dynamo then doubled their lead 11 minutes later. With his back to goal at the top of the area and a defender on his back, Kei Kamara took a pass and made a quick spin around his marker, cutting into the area before slotting home inside the left-hand post for his first league goal after joining Houston.
• The score was 3-0 six minutes later. A corner kick was put in from the right, and Ricardo Clark saw his shot crash off the bar. But the ball eventually fell to Nate Jaqua, who pushed it over the line.
• Kamara hit for his double in the 35th minute, rising up completely unmarked in the heart of the box to head home a Jaqua cross from the left flank.
• The loss matched the heaviest defeat in Chivas club history - also a 4-0 loss inflicted by the Dynamo at Robertson Stadium, on June 21 of last season.
• Chivas has not scored in the last six league games against Houston - a scoreless span now of 573 minutes - and they have been shut out by the Dynamo in seven of their last eight meetings in all competitions.
• Here's Kinnear's team (4-3-1-2): Tony Caig - Richard Mulrooney, Bobby Boswell, Eddie Robinson, Wade Barrett - Brian Mullan (Geoff Cameron 74), Ricardo Clark, Brad Davis (Corey Ashe 71) - Stuart Holden - Kei Kamara, Nate Jaqua (Chris Wondolowski 78). Substitutes Not Used: Kyle Brown, Patrick Ianni, Craig Waibel, Corbin Waller
• Here's Preki's team (4-4-2): Zach Thornton - Carey Talley (Keith Savage 13), Claudio Suarez (Eric Ebert 46), Shavar Thomas, Bobby Burling - Daniel Paladini, Paulo Nagamura (Kraig Chiles 46), Jonathan Bornstein, Francisco Mendoza - Roberto Nurse, Atiba Harris. Substitutes Not Used: Jim Curtin, Anthony Hamilton, Dan Kennedy, Ante Razov
CHIVAS USA
Chivas USA saw their four-game winning streak come to an end, the Colorado Rapids remaining in playoff contention with a dramatic 2-1 win at The Home Depot Center on Sunday afternoon. Chivas will finish in second place in the Western Conference, now with 42 points from 29 games, three ahead of Real Salt Lake, against whom they hold the tiebreakers.
LAST MATCH
• Knowing RSL's win the night before, the Rapids were aware they had to stop a two-game losing streak with a victory. Chivas USA had secured their spot in the postseason the week before with a sixth win in seven games, and were assured of finishing in second place in the West after Houston's win on Saturday.
• A scoreless match burst into life in the 57th minute, when Colorado got the opening it was looking for. Alex Zotinca knocked down Jordan Harvey in the area and referee Baldomero Toledo pointed to the spot. But Dan Kennedy dove to his left to stop Tom McManus' penalty attempt.
• Still, 10 minutes later, the Rapids went ahead. Omar Cummings cut back on the right flank and found Colin Clark completely unmarked at the far post, and Clark coolly headed home back inside the right post for his fifth goal on the season.
• Yet just five minutes later Chivas USA restored level terms. Substitute Dejair tried to center a pass inside the box and it was partially cleared, but Jonathan Bornstein swept in to drive the loose ball high into the goal for his second of the season.
• Yet Toledo once again took center stage five minutes from the end, awarding Colorado a second penalty kick when Shavar Thomas tripped up Omar Cummings as he tried to cut toward goal. This time Conor Casey took the spot kick -- and he rattled it off the inside right post, just past Kennedy's dive, for his 10th goal of the season and the game-winner.
• Chivas USA head coach Preki made two changes to the team that defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0 the week before. Claudio Suarez and Francisco Mendoza were given the day off, with Shavar Thomas and Ante Razov coming back into the team.
• Here's Preki's team (4-4-2): Dan Kennedy - Alex Zotinca, Bobby Burling, Shavar Thomas, Jonathan Bornstein - Atiba Harris, Jesse Marsch, Sasha Victorine (Sacha Kljestan 25), Justin Braun (Carey Talley 65) - Alecko Eskandarian, Ante Razov (Dejair 61). Substitutes Not Used: Jim Curtin, Francisco Mendoza, Roberto Nurse, Lance Parker
• "I kind of had a feeling that it's going to be tough for us just because already we're in the playoffs. We've secured the second spot, so it's tough to get the group of guys motivated," Preki said. "From the first moment I didn't think we were sharp, we were losing the ball too easily. Colorado was a little harder than us, they wanted it a little more than us, but even saying all that I don't think they created a whole bunch of things to beat us."
TEAM NEWS
• The loss snapped the Chivas club-record winning streak at four games. The Clark goal in the second half was the first the Red-and-White had allowed in 267 minutes.
• "I don't think we played the style of soccer that we played the last stretch of games. We came out, we couldn't connect passes, we were not sharp at all, and in the end the game didn't go our way. We thought we might get out with a 0-0 tie, or get a goal and get a 1-0 victory. Then they scored and when we tied it up I thought one point might be good in this game," Bornstein said. "But two PKs - what are you going to do about referee's decisions. Hopefully we learn from our mistakes this game."
• If Chivas USA had held on for the draw, they would have eliminated the Rapids from playoff contention - and known they would have been facing Real Salt Lake in the Western Conference Semifinal Series. Now they must wait until Saturday night to know their first-round opponent.
• "I'm just disappointed with the way we came out. What they're going to do, it's out of our hands, and they will decide who will be in the playoffs next week. Just have to wait and see who we're going to play," Preki said. "Every team is tough. Every team is tough to play, every team is hard to play, especially when it comes in the playoffs, very tough. I don't expect anything easy."
• This is the second consecutive season the teams have met in the season finale, though there is less on the line this year than last. When the teams played at The Home Depot Center on Oct. 20, 2007, a Dynamo win would have given them the Western Conference regular-season title. But the teams played to a scoreless draw, giving Chivas USA the top seed.
• Since the 4-0 loss to Houston in the last meeting between the teams, Chivas USA have lost just twice in the nine games since, conceding just nine goals (with four shutouts).
• "It's important, because we have to prepare ourselves in the right way. I think with one game left you want to end the season on a good note and then go into the playoffs with high hopes and a good buzz around the locker room," said Bornstein.
HOUSTON DYNAMO
The Houston Dynamo clinched the Western Conference regular season title for the first time in club history, getting three early goals for a 3-0 win against the LA Galaxy on Saturday evening at Robertson Stadium. The Dynamo have 50 points from 29 games, now holding home-field advantage throughout the MLS Cup Playoffs.
LAST MATCH
• The Dynamo had extended their league unbeaten streak to seven games after two goals from Stuart Holden, the second in stoppage time, gave them a 2-1 win against San Jose at midweek. The Galaxy were coming off a second win since mid-June, which followed back-to-back losses.
• The game was put away with a three-goal blitz in a 10-minute span very early on. In the 14th minute, Nate Jaqua's cross from the right flank was aimed for Brian Ching, but deflected off LA's Bryan Jordan into his own goal.
• Then in the 20th minute, Jaqua again latched onto a ball on the right and sent into the box. It caromed between a trio of Galaxy defenders before Dwayne De Rosario charged through the group and poked home, his sixth goal on the season and the 50th of his MLS league career.
• And three minutes later, the Dynamo rounded off the match. A long ball from Bobby Boswell was flicked on by Nate Jaqua and Ching raced onto it behind the Galaxy defense, slotting home under the left hand of goalkeeper Josh Saunders for his 13th goal.
• Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear made five changes to the team that defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 2-1 at midweek. Craig Waibel, Brian Mullan, Brad Davis, Dwayne De Rosario and Nate Jaqua all came back into the team, in place of Richard Mulrooney, Corey Ashe, Stuart Holden and the suspended Kei Kamara and Eddie Robinson.
• Here's Kinnear's team (4-3-1-2): Pat Onstad - Craig Waibel, Bobby Boswell, Geoff Cameron, Wade Barrett - Brian Mullan, Ricardo Clark (Richard Mulrooney 46), Brad Davis (Corey Ashe 84) - Dwayne De Rosario (Stuart Holden 78) - Brian Ching, Nate Jaqua. Substitutes Not Used: Chris Wondolowski, Tony Caig, Mike Chabala, Patrick Ianni
TEAM NEWS
• With the victory, the Dynamo accomplished something they had not done before - winning the Western Conference regular-season title. However, in each of the last two years, the regular-season conference champion has not made it out of the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The last time a team won the Western Conference regular season title and won MLS Cup was San Jose Earthquakes in 2003.
• "It's been an excellent second half for this season so far, and I do say so far because we still have some work to do and we are still cluttered with games, but I'm really happy and I'm happy for them for all of the hard work they have put in," Kinnear said. "To get this reward of being the champions of the Western Conference is a great achievement and I can't say enough good things about them. I think they have played fantastic."
• The win extended the Dynamo's unbeaten streak to eight league games, one shy of the MLS season-long, equaling Columbus (Aug. 16-Oct. 12) and San Jose (July 12-Sept. 13).
• "This is the time of the year this team looks for. We come out and try to work hard every single game, that's a team right there that has to win this game to have any chance to advance whatsoever," Brad Davis said. "In the first half we came out, they didn't have the chance to do that. We did everything we wanted to do, we finished our chances. We played hard and I couldn't be more proud of this team."
• It was a fourth consecutive two-game week for the Dynamo - which will extend to six weeks with two games with a pair of CONCACAF Champions League games before their playoff opener. The Dynamo have played 42 games in all competitions this season, second only to D.C. United's 44.
• "This is very gratifying right now with the road that we have had this year," Davis said. "The amount of games we have played this year. (Head coach Dominic Kinnear) told us a stat the other day that some of these other teams that aren't in any tournaments have played 29 games, and I think we have played like 42. The character of this team to keep plugging along is unbelievable."
• The Dynamo have lost just one MLS match since a 2-0 reversal to New England on June 12. They now have just one loss in their last 19 games in all competitions, the 3-0 loss to New York on Aug. 24. Since mid-July, the Orange are 9-1-3 in league play, when 2-0-1 in their final three SuperLiga games, and are 1-0-2 in CONCACAF Champions League play.
• "We accomplished great goals this season, it's been great. The past couple of games we score early often and just kind of hold on. We got a lot of games coming up here and we have been through a lot of games, and I give a lot of credit to all of the guys and Dom for managing us well. The team is playing well and looking forward for playoffs," said Dwayne De Rosario.
• The teams met in a fierce Western Conference Semifinal Series in 2006, Chivas USA's first-ever playoff series. After a 2-1 Chivas USA win in Carson, the Dynamo recorded a 2-0 win in Houston to win the series on aggregate.
• On Wednesday, the Dynamo lost for the first time in any competition in two months, falling 3-1 to Pumas UNAM in the CONCACAF Champions League. Juan Carlos Cacho converted a penalty kick in the 19th minute and Fernando Espinoza finished off a counterattack in the 30th minute to put Pumas up 2-0, but the Dynamo pulled a goal back in the 39th minute when a Geoff Cameron cross deflected off of Pumas defender Marco Antonio Palacios for the lone Dynamo goal. But Pumas put the game away in the 69th minute when Palacios atoned for his own goal with a sensational backheel volley directly from a corner kick.
• Houston now has five points (1-1-2) in Champions League play with two games remaining, trailing Pumas (9) and Luis Angel Firpo (7) in the standings with two games remaining for Houston and Firpo and one for Pumas and San Francisco FC. Both of the Dynamo's remaining games are against Firpo, the first next Tuesday in El Salvador.
• Here's Kinnear's team: Pat Onstad, Craig Waibel, Patrick Ianni (Brad Davis 70), Eddie Robinson, Wade Barrett, Geoff Cameron, Ricardo Clark (Richard Mulrooney 46), Stuart Holden (Dwayne De Rosario 62), Corey Ashe, Nate Jaqua, Kei Kamara.
