Chivas USA out of SuperLiga, Dynamo through

That’s because the first SuperLiga game today ended Houston Dynamo 1 Puebla 0.

The result renders the Chivas USA-Pachuca game that kicks off at 7:30 p.m. in Carson meaningless. Puebla had already qualified for the next round before a ball was kicked today.

So I’m skipping the HDC game (at least in person).

Here is the starting XI for Chivas USA: Kennedy, Trujillo (capt.), Delgado, Borja, Jazic; Espinoza, Lahoud, Gavin, Romero, Maldonado, Padilla.

Pachuca starts Herculez Gomez up top, but there’s no Jose Torres in midfield.

The game is live on Galavision.

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Chivas USA signs playmaker Espinoza

As expected.

Rodolfo Espinoza, a 29-year-old Mexican midfielder, had most recently been playing for Peru’s Universitario. He began training with Chivas USA last Friday.

“Rodolfo is a dynamic player who gives us another look in the midfield,” said Chivas USA Coach Martn Vsquez. “He’s a proven midfielder and can help us continue to strengthen our attack. We’re excited for him to get started.”

This is likely the final signing for Chivas USA for now, club officials said earlier this week.

From the Chivas USA press release:

Espinoza, a native of Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, began his professional career at Necaxa of the Mexican First Division, where he played from 2002-2008, appearing in a total of 78 matches and scoring eight goals. He has spent time with other Mexican First Division clubs, including parts of 2006-2007 on loan at Atlante, and 2008-2009 with Chiapas, where he played 35 matches. Since 2009, Espinoza has played for Universitario in Peru, where he scored five goals in 36 games. Espinoza also played in the Copa Libertadores with Universitario in 2009 and 2010, and has made appearances with the U-20 and U-23 Mexican National Teams.

He, along with re-signed holding midfielder Paulo Nagamura and Venezuelan striker Giancarlo Maldonado, are eligible to make their Chivas USA debuts Thursday against Puebla in the SuperLiga opener at Home Depot Center.

Incidentally, tickets start at just $8 for the game.

Also

*UCLA striker Sydney Leroux got a 70th minute equalizer for the U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team, which drew 1-1 with Ghana today in the Group D opener at the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

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Waiting for the Weekend

A busy weekend of soccer with all three pro teams playing at home and the U.S. in the final of a FIFA competition for the first time:

10 a.m. Saturday – The runaway WPS-leading Sol plays its last weekend game of the season at the early hour at Home Depot Center against the Chicago Red Stars. There’s a ticket special: two for $30 plus a Marta bobblehead and a $50 ESPN Zone game card. Call 1-877-4-SOL-TIX.

7 p.m. Saturday – Chicago must defeat Tigres Saturday and then Chivas USA must beat San Luis by at least two clear goals to advance in SuperLiga. Tickets start at $15. Call 1-877-CHIVAS-1 for tickets.

11 a.m. Sunday – Coverage begins on ESPN and Univision for the U.S. showdown with Brazil in the Confederations Cup final. BTW, the National Soccer Hall of Fame tweeted that the organization “is requesting a game ball from Sunday’s championship match for display What else should we ask for?” What about a U.S. win?

7 p.m. Sunday – $1 beer, $1 dogs as the 2-3-9 Galaxy play the Western Conference leading Houston Dynamo in Carson. Call 1-877-3GALAXY for tickets.

In related news, the Galaxy’s Landon Donovan has again been nominated for an ESPY.

So has the Sol’s Marta. The current and three-time FIFA World Player of the Year is up against Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, Mexican golfer Lorena Ochoa, Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice and Russian tennis player Dinara Safina in the category of Best Female International Athlete. I’m told only ESPN’s international viewers can vote in this one.

ESPN hands out the awards in July at the Nokia Theater at LA Live.

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Chivas USA Signs Mexican Forward & SuperLiga Update

Not wanting to repeat last year’s lack of depth at forward that cost Chivas USA a half-decent playoff run, Preki has signed 24-year-old Mexican forward Roberto Nurse, who has played three (on and off) years in the Mexican first division.

And of course, Chivas USA has been a Mexican-oriented team with few Mexicans lately.

Chivas USA has the likes strikers Maykel Galindo and Alecko Eskandarian out injured.

From the (edited) Chivas USA press release:

“Roberto is a strong, powerful center forward who we’ve been taking a close look at for the past few weeks,” Preki said. “He’s good in the air, good with his feet, and will add another dimension to our attack.”

Nurse made his top-flight debut with Cuernavaca in 2003 at age of 19. He also played for Zacatepec and Quertaro for two years and returned to the first division in 2005 playing 13 games with Atlante. Then it was back to just-promoted Quertaro the next year where he scored 17 goals between the Apertura 2007 and Clausura 2008 seasons.

Chivas USA play their second SuperLiga game against Mexican champion Santos Laguna Wednesday.

An Internet special has tickets on sale starting at just $10, with the highest-priced tickets (usually $45) $10 off. More info here.

SuperLiga scores tonight: Atlante 3 D.C. United 1

While it was Chivas 1 Houston Dynamo 0

But United isn’t necessarily out.

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Chivas Notes

Chivas coach Preki said goalkeeper Brad Guzan is engaged in talks with European teams but he does not know if Guzan will sign with another club.
He also said he threw his hand in the air toward the linesman during Thursday night’s game against the Galaxy, which resulted in his sending off.
“I never said a word,” Preki said.
Regarding the lack of depth entering SuperLiga play, Preki said, “That’s a concern. We only have a small squad. We’re pretty concerned how we manage the game, who gets how many minutes and the formations we play.
“At the end of the day, we don’t want it to be an excuse.”

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SuperLiga 2008 Schedule Unveiled

The second annual version of SuperLiga, the eight-team competition featuring MLS and Mexican teams, has just unveiled its schedule at a Home Depot Center press conference.

Last year, the Galaxy lost in a thrilling final and this version will feature Western Conference champions Chivas USA.

The relevant dates for games in Carson (except where noted):

Sunday July 13 – Chivas USA vs. defending champions Pachuca CF.
Wednesday July 16 – Chivas USA vs. Santos.
Sunday July 20 Chivas USA vs. New England Revolution. (Venue TBD).

Full competition details here.

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MLS Schedule Released, EPL in the U.S. & More

MLS released its full 2008 fixture list this morning.

The Galaxy will have no excuses for a slow start: four of their first five games are at home.

Highlights:
A total of 113 games (out of 210) will be shown nationally on ESPN2 and ABC, Fox Soccer Channel/Fox Sports en Espaol, HDNet and TeleFutura.
The 14 clubs will play 30 regular season games over 31 weeks, playing each other twice (home and away), for 26 games. The remaining four games will be played against different intra-conference teams (two home and two away), with consideration given to rivalries.
ESPN2 airs 27 MLS Primetime Thursday regular season contests, beginning with a doubleheader on April 3 and the All-Star game.
ABC is scheduled to broadcast a unique soccer doubleheader June 29: the Galaxy at D.C. United at 9 a.m. followed by the Euro 2008 final.
The four teams with the best regular season records in 2007 will represent MLS in the second edition of SuperLiga: D.C. United, Chivas USA, Houston Dynamo and New England Revolution.

Here’s the complete Galaxy schedule:
Saturday March 29 at Colorado 6:30 p.m. FSC/HDNet

Thursday April 3 vs. San Jose 7:30 p.m. ESPN2
Sunday April 13 vs. Toronto FC 12:00 p.m. TeleFutura
Saturday April 19 vs. Houston 7:30 p.m.
Saturday April 26 vs. Chivas USA 7:30 p.m. FSC

Saturday May 3 at Real Salt Lake 6:00 p.m.
Saturday May 10 vs. New York 7:30 p.m. HDNet
Sunday May 18 at FC Dallas 12:00 p.m. TeleFutura
Saturday May 24 vs. Kansas City 7:30 p.m. HDNet
Saturday May 31 at Toronto FC 12:30 p.m.

Saturday June 7 vs. Colorado 7:30 p.m.
Saturday June 14 at San Jose 7:00 p.m. FSC
Saturday June 21 vs. Columbus 7:30 p.m.
Sunday June 29 at D.C. United 9:00 a.m. ABC

Friday July 4 vs. New England 7:30 p.m.
Thursday July 10 vs. Chivas USA 8:00 p.m. ESPN2
Saturday July 19 at New York 3:30 p.m. FSC
Sunday July 27 at FC Dallas 4:00 p.m.

Sunday August 3 at San Jose 12:00 p.m. TeleFutura
Thursday August 14 at Chivas USA 7:30 p.m. ESPN2
Thursday August 21 vs. Chicago 7:30 p.m. ESPN2
Saturday August 30 at New England 4:30 p.m. HDNet

Saturday September 6 vs. Real Salt Lake 7:30 p.m.
Saturday September 13 at Kansas City 5:00 p.m. HDNet
Saturday September 20 vs. D.C. United 8:00 p.m. FSC
Thursday September 25 at Chicago 6:00 p.m. ESPN2

Saturday October 4 at Columbus 4:30 p.m. HDNet
Sunday October 12 vs. Colorado 5:00 p.m.
Sunday October 19 at Houston 4:00 p.m.
Sunday October 26 vs. FC Dallas 12:00 p.m. TeleFutura

Here’s the Chivas USA schedule:
Sunday March 30 @ FC Dallas Noon

Saturday April 5 Real Salt Lake 6:00 p.m.
Saturday April 12 @ Columbus Crew 4:30 p.m.
Sunday April 20 FC Dallas 5:00 p.m.
Saturday April 26 @ Los Angeles Galaxy 7:30 p.m.

Saturday May 3 @ Houston Dynamo 5:30 p.m.
Sunday May 11 New England Revolution Noon
Saturday May 17 D.C. United 7:30 p.m.
Saturday May 24 @ Colorado Rapids 6:30 p.m.
Saturday May 31 Columbus Crew 7:30 p.m.

Thursday June 5 @ New York Red Bulls 4:30 p.m.
Saturday June 14 Real Salt Lake 7:30 p.m.
Thursday June 19 Chicago Fire 7:30 p.m.
Saturday June 28 New York Red Bulls 7:30 p.m.

Saturday July 5 San Jose Earthquakes 7:30 p.m.
Thursday July 10 @ Los Angeles Galaxy 8:00 p.m.

Saturday Aug. 2 @ Chicago Fire 5:30 p.m.
Saturday Aug. 9 @ Kansas City Wizards 5:00 p.m.
Thursday Aug. 14 Los Angeles Galaxy 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday Aug. 20 @ Houston Dynamo 6:00 p.m.
Saturday Aug. 23 San Jose Earthquakes 7:30 p.m.
Saturday Aug. 30 Toronto FC 7:30 p.m.

Saturday Sept. 6 Toronto FC 1:00 p.m.
Thursday Sept. 11 @ New England Revolution 4:30 p.m.
Saturday Sept. 20 @ Real Salt Lake 6:00 p.m.
Saturday Sept. 27 Kansas City Wizards 7:30 p.m.

Saturday Oct. 4 @ D.C. United 4:30 p.m.
Saturday Oct. 11 @ San Jose Earthquakes 7:00 p.m.
Sunday Oct. 19 Colorado Rapids Noon
Saturday Oct. 25 Houston Dynamo 7:30 p.m.

Following the lead of the NFL, it looks like the EPL will hold regular season games overseas.

LA is specifically mentioned in this story.

How about a Manchester United-Liverpool, Galaxy-Chivas USA doubleheader broadcast live worldwide from the Coliseum?

Finally, in the least surprsing news of the day so far, Aston Villa have confirmed they are not giving up the chase for Chivas USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

Note the new name for the Goats.

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Beckham Says He’s Out 4-6 Weeks

David Beckham said after Wednesday’s magnificent loss to Pachuca he expects to miss most of the remainder of the MLS season after spraining a right knee ligament.

He is already, of course, struggling with a long-term left ankle injury he keeps aggravating over and over by trying to play.

“Maybe it’s a sign for me to get it right and not come back until it’s really right,” he said. “If it’s 4-6 weeks (I’m out) I wouldn’t have thought I will fly to England” for Euro 2008 qualifiers.

Beck’s will receive a scan in the morning and we’ll know more then.

“At the moment, it doesn’t feel great,” he said.

Beckham removed his runners-up (losers?) medal immediately after it was placed around his neck.

“I wasn’t being disrespectful,” he said. “I hate losing.”

It was a tough loss reflected by Coach Frank Yallop’s evident frustration in the post-game press conference when he dropped a number of F-bombs.

“We’re absolutely spent,” he said when he stopped swearing

On top of it all, Real Salt Lake beat the Wizards 3-1 Wednesday meaning that the Galaxy are now at the bottom of MLS; they play RSL Saturday in what is now the biggest game of the season. Without Beckham.

“We’re not as good when Beckham is not on the field,” said Chris Klein. “He’s one of the best players in the world.

“The guy’s are 100 percent in Frank’s corner, we know what goes on behind the scenes,” he added, responding to press speculation the Galaxy may turn to former Germany Coach (and OC resident) Jurgen Klinsmann to replace Yallop. “The guy’s want to see him stay — this is Frank’s team.”

Landon Donovan was trying not to let his anger at himself show for missing the fifth penalty that would have clinched the title for the Galaxy.

“I was proud to be a part of it,” he said. “I’m not angry, but I’d like to be happy.”

Still, the result aside, the first SuperLiga seemed to capture the imagination of the Latino fans MLS is trying to attract.

“If I’m a fan how do you not want to come back next year?,” Donovan said.

The Galaxy though, won’t be based on their MLS record.

Want more?

Here are all the game details.

Here’s the story in pictures.

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