Chivas USA: April 2008 Archives

Alan Gordon scored two goals and an assist within eight minutes, after coming on as a sub.

Landon Donovan scored the first Galaxy hat trick in four years.

And Wayne Gretzky, Tom Cruise, a rumored Luis Figo and Gawd knows who else put in appearances on a memorable night where the action matched the hype (what hype?).

This was a glorious night for the sport that seemed to catch just about everyone by surprise.

"Gordo did an excellent job when he came in," Gullit said. "He changed the game."

Or as Sigi Schmid was fond of saying: goals change games.

Gullit was effusive, too, about the play of rookie defender Sean Franklin in the center of defense.

"He's made huge progress and that makes me happy," he said, adding that he needed speed at the position to counter the Chivas USA forward line. Gullit made no mention of Franklin partner Abel Xavier, by the way.

Landon Donovan, one of the few players to stick around and answer questions (as usual), said his pre-game preparations have been key to his on-field performance.

"I'm raising every aspect of my game preparations very, very seriously," he said. "I feel like I'm being more assertive and more aggressive and I'm reaping the benefits of that."

And he had encouraging words for Gordon, too.

"He adds a different dimension so we can play more direct at times," Donovan said. "I'm just happy for Gordo because he works so hard."

Not surprisingly, Chivas USA players didn't hang around for the post-game inquest.

No matter.

There are games that are turning points in a season and games that are exclamation points. This was the latter. There were no complaints tonight (at least from the Galaxy).

Check out the game in pictures.

Next for the Galaxy: May 3 at Real Salt Lake.

Next for Chivas USA: May 3 at Houston.

Notable local: John Thorrington (Chadwick School) of the Fire who scored two goals Saturday to lead Chicago to a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Rapids.

The Galaxy overwhelmed Chivas USA with four second half goals en route to a resounding 5-2 triumph.

In truth, the Galaxy put this game out of Chivas USA's reach in a two-minute second half span, Alan Gordon capitalizing on a Brad Guzan error to snatch the go ahead goal five minutes after coming on as a sub and then setting up Donovan's third of the night a minute later.

Donovan's hat trick was the first by a Galaxy player since Alejandro Moreno scored three on May 19, 2004.

Chivas USA had started the second half promisingly, Panchito Mendoza sending a stinging drive off the Galaxy's far post after just three minutes.

But Donovan put the Galaxy 2-1 up 10 minutes later, stripping the ball away from Chivas USA defender Claudio Suarez after Mike Randolph had pulled the ball back.

A wide open Ante Razov clinically finished to pull Chivas USA level after 62 minutes before the Galaxy onslaught gave their opponents no way back into the game.

Gordon added the fifth six minutes from time, stabbing home a Beckham pass.

More after the press conference.

A packed house saw Landon Donovan continue his torrid scoring streak, grabbing his sixth goal in five games.

It was a fortuitous goal: Brandon McDonald clearly handled the ball in poking it through to Donovan, who connected nicely with a 20-yard left-footed half-volley.

Chivas USA has never won an MLS game after conceding the first goal, but apparently Sacha Kljestan didn't get the memo. He victimized Galaxy defender Abel Xavier for the equalizer, unleashing a lovely 17-yard shot into the top corner as the former Portuguese international backed up and gave the Chivas USA midfielder way too much space.

Lovely evening to watch, if not play soccer at the HDC, with the temperature at kickoff hovering around 86 degrees.

The Galaxy and Chivas USA come into the game tied at four points and know that only once in the history of the series has the team that scores first gone on to lose the game.

Galaxy Coach Ruud Gullit has made two changes from the starting 11 that drew with Houston last weekend, with Josh Tudela sitting out and Abel Xavier coming in for his second start of the year in the center of defense. Joey Franchino replaces Alan Gordon in midfield, while Mike Randolph moves to midfield from the back four.

Steve Cronin is in goal as usual, with Chris Klein, Sean Franklin, Xavier and Greg Vanney in front of him.

David Beckham, tied for the MLS lead in assists with three, is in midfield alongside Franchino, Brandon McDonald and Randolph. Edson Buddle and Landon Donovan, who needs one more goal to become the 12th player in the league to score 70 goals in a career, are up front.

Chivas USA Coach Preki has made two changes to the team that lost 2-0 to Dallas last weekend, Panchito Mendoza and Sacha Kljestan both returning from suspension in midfield.

That prompts Lawson Vaughn to drop to the back four with Claudio Suarez, Shavar Thomas and Jonathan Bornstein and Brad Guzan between the posts.

Jesse Marsch and Paulo Nagamura line up in midfield with Kljestan and Mendoza, while Maykel Galindo and Justin Braun are up front. Ante Razov, still struggling with an injury, is on the bench.

Forgot to mention: Stevie "2 Pounds" Forbes (33-5, Nine KO's), prepping to fight Oscar de la Hoya May 3
at the HDC, will make the ceremonial coin toss at the start of the game.

Hostilities resume today between intra-stadium rivals Chivas USA and the Galaxy, although that term may be a tad extreme in a city that barely notices the rivalry.

Galaxy Coach Ruud Gullit, who during his career as a player, coach and match commentator with the likes of Newcastle, Sunderland, Chelsea, Arsenal, AC Milan, Spurs, et al has really experienced some intense derbies, tried to be diplomatic this morning about the still-budding contest.

"The big difference (compared to) other places like Milan, is the city is not as involved," said Gullit, the Galaxy's coach. "You don't know about it so much, like in Milan or any other city. It's a little bit odd, I must say. You don't have that same feeling. For us, of course, it's important."

A game preview is here.

Just to set the stage further: Chivas USA trails in the 12-game series overall with a 3-7-2 record, although the club won the last two games by 3-0 margins including a Sept. 13 contest that (among other things) cruelly exposed the shortcomings of aging Galaxy defender Abel Xavier.

Highlights (lowlights?) of that encounter below.

The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. on Fox Soccer Channel. A sellout is expected, although tickets were still available this morning.

In related news, defender Dan Gargan, who played in last week's Chivas USA reserve game, has signed with the club. From the Chivas USA press release:

A three-year veteran of Major League Soccer and native of Philadelphia, Pa., Gargan, 25, made 49 appearances for the Colorado Rapids from 2005-2007 (31 starts), mainly as right-sided defender, following a standout four-year career at Georgetown University. Gargan joins Chivas USA as a disabled list replacement for defender Alex Zotinca, who was placed on Chivas USA’s disabled list prior to the season after undergoing ACL reconstruction on his right knee.

“Dan is both young and has good experience in the league, and will bring depth to our squad, particularly on the right side,” said Chivas USA Head Coach Preki. “He’s got a good mind for the game and we’re happy to bring him into the team.”

Originally selected in the third round of the 2005 MLS Supplemental Draft, Dan Gargan recorded three assists in his 49 games with the Rapids, and also appeared in a number of Reserve Team matches for the two-time defending Reserve Division champions. Prior to joining MLS, Gargan played at Georgetown , where he was a starter all four years for the Hoyas and served as the team’s captain in his senior year. Though primarily used as a defender or defensive midfielder, Gargan scored a total of 11 goals and added 18 assists in his collegiate career.

In addition to his experience in MLS, Gargan spent two weeks training with Pachuca of the Mexican First Division in January of 2007. He was awarded the ‘Rapids Most Improved Player’ award after a breakout season in 2006 in which he started 18 of the team’s final 20 matches of the season.

Also, Chivas USA defender-midfielder Jorge Flores has been called into the U.S. Under-20 National Team for three friendlies against the Bolton Wanderers, Manchester United and Liverpool reserve teams.

Finally, Chivas USA will hold a "Practice in the Community" at 10 a.m. Sunday at Rio de Los Angeles State Park.

The squad will sign autographs until about noon afterward.

Rio de Los Angeles State Park is at 1900 San Fernando Road, Los Angeles, just off the Golden State (I-5) and Glendale (SR-2) Freeways.

I'll blog from the game as usual.

Virtually no local reporters bothered to show up for Thursday's presser advancing Saturday's Chivas USA-Galaxy derby, so we leave it to this scribe to do the job for us.

Meanwhile, the legacy of David Beckham's visit to Hawaii continues with this pathetic little tale.

On a happier note, former Galaxy coach and longtime South bay resident Sigi Schmid, currently in exile in Ohio, is nearing a milestone.

This is likely the final MLS season for Chivas USA defender Claudio Suarez, one of the true gentlemen in the league.

Suarez graciously sat down for an in-depth interview Monday, spending about an hour reminiscing about his career.

Left out for space reasons were the following nuggets:
*Best moment of his career - lifting the Confederation's Cup in 1999 as Mexico's captain.
*Worst moment - being accused of doping in 1997 during the same tournament. Suarez was eventually exonerated completely by FIFA.
*Toughest opponent in MLS: New York Red Bull striker Juan Pablo Angel.
*Toughest opponent he's ever faced: Argentina's Gabriel Batistuta.

Incidentally, while I was chatting with Suarez, the Chivas USA reserves were beating their FC Dallas counterparts 3-0 Monday, with Ante Razov getting two goals.

The Galaxy reserves, by the way, lost 2-1 to Houston Sunday, despite a Bryan Jordan goal. The Galaxy reserves fell to 0-2-1 with the loss.

Not surprisingly, Chivas USA officials and coaches had little to say after that dour performance.

But Preki rejected the idea this was a game to forget.

"I'm going to look at the video, see what's going on," he said.

Always quotable veteran Jesse Marsch had the strongest words.

"As a team we couldn't get a goal and we couldn't find a rhythm," he said. I'll take responsibility for the way we played tonight. I'm embarrassed for us."

In contrast, Dallas Coach Steve Morrow said it was his team's best performance of the season.

"It was a real team effort tonight," he said, pointing out it was the team's second consecutive shutout. "We want to build on good, strong defensive displays."

Game story here.

Dallas assumed sole possession of the Western Conference lead after scoring the game's second goal 10 minutes from time on a breakaway from Abe Thompson who outran two defenders to put this one of the reach of Chivas USA, which fell to 1-2-1.

Dallas kept Chivas USA in check pretty much the entire game, controlling without dominating the flow and tempo of the game and performing well enough to deserve the win.

Chivas USA attempted to rustle up the firepower to break down the Dallas defense, sending on strikers Ante Razov and Atiba Harris around the hour mark, but it wasn't enough.

In a move that summed up the evening for Chivas USA, Razov almost collected a consolation goal in the 90th minute, connecting with a zipping little left-footed half volley from just seven yards out, but the shot rattled off the post.

There were 10,237 on hand to watch this one, incidentally. The two teams' reserve units play at 10 a.m. Monday at the Home Depot Center's Track & Field Stadium. Admission is free.

I'll be back with more from the respective locker rooms.

Dallas took a one-goal lead after five minutes to provide one of the few noteworthy moments in an otherwise undistinguished first half largely played in the middle third of the field.

Dax McCarty crossed and Ricardinho headed the ball down into the path of Kenny Cooper who swept it into the net from close range for his fourth goal in four games, good for second on the MLS goal scoring chart behind Landon Donovan.

And that, frankly, was largely it until Kraig Chiles tested Dario Sala with a stiff shot a minute before the end of regulation in the first half.

Lovely late spring afternoon in Carson for soccer.

Unfortunately for (1-1-1) Chivas USA there are negligible lines, no parking hassles and few fans.

Nice and mellow for the rest of us.

To the lineups: Chivas USA Coach Preki makes five changes to the eleven that lost 4-3 to the Columbus Crew last weekend.

Brad Guzan starts in goal as usual, while Claudio Suarez returns in the center of defense for his first MLS start of the campaign. Chris Pozniak, Shavar Thomas and Jonathan Bornstein also feature in the back.

Lawson Vaughn returns to start in midfield, alongside Jesse Marsch and Paulo Nagamura, while Kraig Chiles makes his MLS debut.

Justin Braun starts up front in place of Atiba Harris, relegated to the bench, and Maykel Galindo returns.

Jim Curtin and Keith Savage lose their places and drop to the bench.

Both Panchito Mendoza and Sacha Kljestan are suspended.

Dallas (1-0-2), the lone undefeated team in MLS after Chicago's loss to the Wizards earlier today, makes two changes to the team that beat Red Bull New York 2-0 last weekend. Juan Toja and Pablo Richetti are both out through injury and Marcelo Saragosa and Ricardinho get the starts in their stead.

Otherwise, its Dario Sala in goal, Drew Moor, Dulio Davino, Adrian Serioux and Blake Wagner in the back, Dax McCarty, Andre Rocha, Arturo Alvarez and the aforementioned Saragosa in midfield. Kenny Cooper partners Ricardinho up front.

Let's start with the draw for the men's and women's Olympic soccer tournament made this morning in Switzerland.

Here's the reaction from U.S. players to the men's team drawing Holland, Nigeria and Japan.

Women's Coach Pia Sundhage had this to say about the women's draw:

“I’m very excited about the challenge of the draw overall. Group F is certainly the strongest of the three groups, but our group will be very good as well. We will play three very different teams with very different styles of play, which will test our ability to adapt in a world championship tournament with just a few days rest between games.”

Also noted: the U.S. roster for upcoming friendlies against Australia and Canada.

Meanwhile, Chivas USA will test the depth of their squad this afternoon (5 p.m. Fox Sports) at Home Depot Center against FC Dallas, who have similar issues.

Dallas is out for revenge, while Chivas USA seems likely to welcome veteran Mexican defender Claudio Suarez back for his first game of the season.

Finally, condolences to notable local Kei Kamara of Lawndale, who scored in San Jose's 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids Saturday to help the expansion team to their first MLS win, but lost an older brother a few days ago who died in Africa - after getting some teeth pulled.

Puts a mere game in perspective, doesn't it?

I'll blog from the HDC this afternoon as usual. See you then.

There's a full slate of soccer this weekend in Southern California, with both the Galaxy and Chivas USA playing home games at Home Depot Center in Carson.

The Galaxy are up first, kicking off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday against defending MLS champions, the Houston Dynamo. With the Beckham buzz apparently wearing off, tickets are discounted 35 percent, a free Galaxy hat is on offer and pop-punk band The Burning Tree Project play a pre-game concert.

Check out the band below.

Want to see the Galaxy free? The reserve team plays at 1 p.m. Sunday against their Houston counterparts at the HDC.

Injury-riddled Chivas USA, meanwhile plays FC Dallas at 5 p.m. Sunday.

Want to see Chivas USA for free? The club's Under-16 and Under-18 teams play a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday against Real So Cal at Agoura High School in Agoura Hills.

Incidentally, the Galaxy, which has been slow to get its youth programs going as required by MLS, launches two teams in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy program this fall.

Also progressing at a glacial pace has been the Galaxy's entry into the new Women's Professional Soccer league that aims to start play next year. Rumors a month ago that Galaxy parent company Anschutz Entertainment Group was looking to sell the unnamed team before it even starts play are apparently false. The team is accepting $25 deposits for season tickets.

In other women's soccer news, Loyola Marymount University Thursday announced the signing of two more players: Midfielder Jaide Timm-Garcia (Desert Christian High, Lancaster) and goalkeeper Katie Graul (Santiago Canyon College).

Finally, MLS Commissioner Don Garber belatedly joins the blogging party, penning "The Commissioner Speaks" every other Friday beginning at noon today. But will he actually say anything?

And, if you only watch one game this weekend, check out Manchester United against Brad Friedel's Blackburn Rovers at 9 a.m. Saturday on Fox Soccer Channel.

I'll be blogging from the HDC at both MLS games this weekend, as usual, by the way.

Two goals by Rolling Hills Estates' Robbie Rogers led the Columbus Crew past Chivas USA 4-3 Saturday, while the U.S. women beat Canada on penalties in Olympic qualifying.

Columbus Coach Sigi Schmid summed up the game when he talked to the Columbus Dispatch: "I don't know if my heart can take all of them like this," he said. "Everybody should be made to watch this on TV and then say soccer is not exciting."

Too bad it was played before the smallest crowd (6,733) ever to see a Crew game in frigid temperatures.

Chivas USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan, to blame for the winning goal, had better hope scouts from Aston Villa etc., weren't watching.

More game details here.

A weakened Chivas USA takes on former Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid and the Columbus Crew on the road live at 4:30 p.m. on Prime today in chilly Ohio.

Game previews are here and here. Who knew Rolling Hills Estates' Robbie Rogers, the Crew midfielder, was leading MLS in shots at this early stage of the season?

Meanwhile, former Chivas USA CEO Javier Leon has temporarily turned up in Chicago with the Fire.

Finally, the Galaxy play Sunday in Carson against Toronto, but David Beckham and Ruud Gullit are rivals in one respect.

Chivas USA finally severed ties with expensive flop Amado Guevara today, dumping him on Toronto for unspecified draft picks in 2009 and 2010

“This trade was made in the best interests of our club,” said Preki. “We feel good about our group right now, and since the player in question did not fit into our plans, we made the best available deal for his rights. We hope that these additional SuperDraft picks will help Chivas USA as we continue to build our team moving forward."

The 31-year-old Honduran played all of four games for Chivas before being loaned back home to Motagua.

Naturally, Toronto employed a different spin in their press (edited) release:

Toronto GM Mo Johnston is reunited with Guevara whom he coached while with the New York Red Bulls in 2006. The midfielder signed with the then- Metrostars in 2003 (from Motagua) and was named MVP after scoring eight goals and adding five assists. He was the 2004 MLS MVP and played 103 times for New York.

By the way, Guevara could make his MLS debut against the Galaxy Sunday at Home Depot Center. Tickets are being discounted up to 35 percent for the game. I don't think there's a connection.

Chivas USA also acquired goalkeeper Dan Kennedy - three years after the team drafted him - from second division Chilean club Municipal Iquique.

Kennedy, 25, figures to be Brad Guzan's backup - and maybe the starter if Guzan ends up in England in the summer - is from Yorba Linda and played for UC Santa Barbara. He led the Chilean second division in goals against average last year and played with the USL Puerto Rico Islanders for two years before that.

“We are happy to acquire a goalkeeper of Dan Kennedy’s quality and international experience, as we continue to deepen our squad ahead of a busy summer,” said Coach Preki.

That schedule includes SuperLiga games July 13 against Pachuca and July 16 against Santos at the HDC and New England July 20 (at a LA-area stadium to be determined), sandwiched in between a July 10 derby against the Galaxy and the July 24 All-Star game. There's a $1 million prize for the winner.

Lastly, word of today's Guevara deal after weeks of rumors gives extra resonance to today's Toronto Sun story on the subject, which I reprint here only because I couldn't find it on their Web site:

Honduran international Amado Guevara said yesterday that he has a long-term contract to play for Toronto FC, and that he could join the team tomorrow.

But the one-time league rookie of the year may be bringing more to the table than just his ability to score from the right side.

Guevara is serving a 30-day suspension from Motagua of the Central American Football League after an altercation with Mario Moncada, the league's top referee.

And it's not the first time the 31-year-old right side midfielder has been in trouble with soccer authorities.

During his first stint in MLS -- after being traded from New York Red Bulls to Chivas USA in 2005 -- Guevara was also punished for pushing an assistant referee there.

It was shortly after that he told Chivas coach Predrag Radosavljevic (Preki) that he was done with the team and was moving back to Honduras.

"I have a vision of where the club is going and [I'm] not part of it," he told Preki.

At that point Guevara became something of a pariah in the MLS with several attempts by Chivas to trade him falling through.

Now, however, TFC director of soccer Mo Johnston seems convinced he can get Guevara back to the form that made him MVP material in the 2003 season with New York.

While TFC offficials would not talk about the his status yesterday, Guevara had no such reticience when he told the Honduran newspaper La Tribuna he has a four-year deal with Toronto.

"I don't know if in four years when my contract with Toronto expires if I will still want to play," Guevara told the paper.

Guevara's recent play with Motagua -- other than his referee bashing -- has been stellar, according to sources in the league.

He led Motagua to the Central American club championship last season, when Montagua beat Costa Rican giant Saprissa 2-1 on aggregate.

It's his temper, however, that keeps getting him in trouble on the pitch.

In the most recent incident, Guevara lashed out at his homeland's soccer bosses, alleging he was being "persecuted" and that's the reason he signed with TFC.

"I am going because I fear that I do not want to continue (shortening) my career by playing here," he said. "What happened (suspension) was unbearable.''

For all his faults, however, Guevara still has many fans who marvel at his skills when he is on top of his game.

ESPN soccer columnist Ives Galarcep is one, and he said that Guevara could help TFC with its goal scoring production.

"I will readily admit to being one of Guevara's harshest critics when he had his lapses, but there has never been any doubt about his ability to be an impact player when he is on his game," he said. "Considering Toronto won't give up anything to acquire Guevara and will likely land him for a salary in the $250K to $300K range, it is a gamble worth taking considering the team's need for a playmaker."

It would also give TFC a balanced attack with its recent acquisition of Laurent Robert on the other side of the pitch and last season's rookie of the year Maurice Edu in the centre.

Rookie of the Year?

Crunch Time in Mexico

The U.S. plays Costa Rica, a nation that has never beaten the Americans in four tries, at 6 p.m. while Mexico faces Canada in the nightcap.

Costa Rica features Torrance's Vanessa Rojas on its squad, while the U.S. has Torrance's Shannon Boxx.

“We haven’t played them since 2004, but it looks like they have improved," said U.S. defender Kate Markgraf. "They have really technical players and they look more athletic then they have in the past. We will have to see how much they try to attack or if they sit back, but we can adapt and play our style according to the flow of the game.”

The Americans handily beat Costa Rica 4-0 the last time the nations met.

There's no TV coverage.

Chivas USA Youngsters with USA

Flores played in all five U-20 games in January, including three as captain; Mayen, who signed with Chivas USA on March 27, will be with the U.S. U-20 squad for the first time.

Milestone for Matt

Reis, who has has started 72 consecutive regular season games for the Revolution, the longest current active streak in MLS, has played the last 6,480 minutes for the club, just shy of Pat Onstad's record 6,648 minute stretch set from 2005-2007.

Hamilton Honored

Hamilton, a former Torrance resident, was Galaxy GM when he died in March 2006 from heart complications at the age of 43. He is also the brother of Chivas USA Vice President of Soccer Operations Stephen Hamilton. Proceeds from the game benefit Hamilton's son Aedan.

For Tuesday's column I took a look at the locals in MLS.

Read it here.

One correction to the column: Mike Caso was waived by the Galaxy, not Chivas USA.

Here's a list of the other Californians in MLS who weren't listed in the column for space reasons with their hometown and college affiliation:

Chicago Fire - C.J. Brown, Hayward, UCLA; Calen Carr, Berkeley, Cal; Peter Lowry, Fair Oaks, Santa Clara.

Chivas USA - Anthony Hamilton, Grand Terrace, UC Irvine; Sacha Kljestan, Huntington Beach, Seton Hall; Kraig Chiles, San Diego, San Diego State; Eric Ebert, Irvine, Cal.

Columbus Crew - Steven Lenhart, Yorba Linda, Azusa Pacific.

Colorado Rapids - Jordan Harvey, Mission Viejo, UCLA; Jovan Kirovski, Escondido.

FC Dallas - Eric Avila, San Diego, UC Santa Barbara.

Houston Dynamo - Johnny Alcavez, Santa Barbara, UC Santa Barbara & Westmont College; Patrick Ianni, Lodi, UCLA; Chris Wondolowski, Danville, Chico State; Nick Hatzke, San Jose, Cal; Stephen Wondolowski, Danville, UC Santa Cruz.

Kansas City Wizards - Eric Kronberg, Santa Rosa, Cal; Tyson Wahl, Newport Beach, Cal; Matt Marquess, Palo Alto, UC Santa Cruz & UC Santa Barbara.

Galaxy - Troy Roberts, Fremont, Cal.

New England Revolution - Amaechi Igwe, Belmont, Santa Clara; Matt Reis, Mission Viejo, UCLA.

New York Red Bulls - Kevin Goldthwaite, Sacramento, Notre Dame; Luke Sassano, Orinda, Cal.

Real Salt Lake - Chris Seitz, San Luis Obispo, Maryland; Brennan Tennelle, San Diego, UC Santa Barbara; Ian Joy, San Diego, Nick Rimando, Montclair, UCLA.

San Jose Earthquakes - Ramiro Corrales, Salinas; Eric Denton, Manteca, Santa Clara; Matt Hatzke, San Jose, Santa Clara; Jamil Roberts, Fremont, Santa Clara.

Toronto - Marvell Wynne, Poway, UCLA.

Who did I miss?

Spent much of today researching Tuesday's column, but noted these items in passing:
*David Beckham was named MLS Player of the Week today by the North American Soccer Reporters for his goal and assist in the Galaxy’s 2-0 win Thursday over the Earthquakes. It's his first Player of the Week honor and the first for a Galaxy player since Landon Donovan was recognized four weeks into the season last year.

*In reserve games, Chivas USA drew 1-1 with Real Salt Lake Sunday in the track and field stadium at Home Depot Center, with midfielder Kraig Chiles scoring in the 14th minute. Real Salt lake equalized in second half stoppage time. The Galaxy and Earthquakes traded first half penalties Friday, but San Jose won 2-1 on a 72nd minute Adam Smarte goal. Edson Buddle scored for the Galaxy.

*The Galaxy acquired a fourth round pick in next year's supplemental draft for the rights to midfielder Matt Hatzke last week, who was selected in this year’s draft, but not offered a contract by the club. The former Santa Clara player signed with the Earthquakes last week and played against the Galaxy in Friday’s reserve game.

*The Galaxy's Brazilian midfielder Alvaro Pires will see a foot specialist this week and is listed as doubtful for Sunday's game against Toronto.

*Missed this article about new Chivas USA signing Justin Braun.

Finally, as a former resident of Seattle I should note (with much relief) that the suits finally gave into reality and today named the 2009 MLS expansion team the Seattle Sounders, the name it should have been all along. They've tacked a FC on the end, but that's irrelevant given that football teams the world over employ that acronym and it's widely ignored. Good riddance Seattle Alliance and Seattle Republic.

An exacting move was clinically concluded by Atiba Harris for his first Chivas USA goal after 55 minutes, giving the home team the go ahead goal en route to an eventual 3-1 victory Saturday night in Carson and sole possession of the Western Conference lead after all of two games. Panchito Mendoza had sent a ball wide to Sacha Klejsten to begin the move, whose cross was met perfectly by Harris for the goal.

Chivas USA received a scare after Real Salt Lake pulled one back seconds later via their Scottish striker dubbed "Dr. Goals" - Kenny Deuchar - a real life physician, but it wasn't enough.

Alecko Eskandarian sealed the victory in second half stoppage time with an individual effort on a breakaway as RSL pushed unsuccessfully forward in search of a late equalizer.

It was a justly deserved victory in a game Chivas USA largely controlled, if not dominated.

Updated:

Almost to a man, Chivas USA players repeated the mantra that they should have played better, but would happily take the three points at this stage of the season.

A sampling:
*"I don't think we played our best," said Coach Preki. "I think we can play a lot better."

*"It wasn't pretty, it wasn't our best game by any means, but we had chances and put them away," said goalkeeper Brad Guzan.

*"We're happy with the three points, but we're not happy with the way we controlled the game," said midfielder Sacha Kljesten.

You get the idea.

Next for Chivas USA: Sigi Schmid and the Columbus Crew next Saturday on the road.

Game details here.

It's Chivas USA 1 Real Salt Lake 0 in the opening 45 minutes.

After neutralizing each other for the first half hour, the two sides discovered the difference between them: Chivas USA can finish, RSL apparently can't.

Chivas USA struck in the 32nd minute, when Panchito Mendoza unleashed a galloping Maykel Galindo who evaded a tackle and pushed a through ball into the path of Sacha Kljsten, who beat goalkeeper Nick Rimando to slide the ball into the net.

RSL countered with a similar break three minutes later, but Kenny Deuchar somehow contrived to miss Robbie Findley's pin-point cross at the far post when it was surely harder to avoid the net than score.

In truth, Chivas USA should probably have led after Mendoza failed to latch on to a Galindo cross at the far post with about 15 minutes gone, sending a ball across the face of the goal that skimmed out of the reach of four Real Salt Lake defenders as well as Panchito

Chivas USA appeared to cope well with the absence of veteran Mexican defender Claudio Suarez for the second consecutive game, who was watching from the stands with his family after returning Friday from Mexico in the wake of his father's death.

Chivas USA is playing four in defense rather than three though, with Chris Pozniak essentially playing at right back.

Chivas USA meets fellow 2005 expansion team Real Salt Lake on a slightly chilly night at Home Depot Center.

Chivas USA are unbeaten in their last seven games over RSL, although both teams are coming off identical 1-1 ties in their respective season openers.

Chivas will switch to a 3-5-2 formation with Jim Curtin, Shavar Thomas and Jonathan Bornstein retaining their places in defense and leaving Lawson Vaughn the odd man out.

New signing Chris Pozniak makes his Chivas USA debut in midfield with Sacha Kljestan, Jesse Marsch, Paulo Nagamura and Panchito Mendoza all returning for the second consecutive game in the middle of the park.

Last year's top scorer Maykel Galindo makes his first start, but with Ante Razov out injured former RSL forward Atiba Harris moves into his slot.

Alecko Eskandarian is on the bench.

Real Salt Lake sees Nick Rimando in goal with Chris Wingert, Nat Borchers, Argentine Matias Mantilla and Ian Joy starting in the same back four formation as in the opening game.

Kyle Beckerman, playmaker Javier Morales, Carey Talley and 10-year MLS veteran Dema Kovalenko comprise the midfield.

Up front it's former Galaxy striker Robbie Findley partnered with Kenny Deuchar, formerly with Scotland's Gretna.

Another fairly sparse crowd for Chivas USA, illustrating how much work they have ahead of them.

Two days after the Galaxy started their MLS season in Carson, Chivas USA plays their home opener at 7:30 tonight against perennial MLS bottom dwellers Real Salt Lake at Home Depot Center live on Prime.

Plenty of tickets are available including a $50 package to five Chivas USA home games that includes tonight's match, the June 19 visit of Cuauhtemoc Blanco and the Chicago Fire and the Aug. 14 derby against the Galaxy.

Tonight also marks the start of Chivas USA's "The shirts off their backs" campaign when the 11 players that finish the game will throw their jerseys into the crowd after the final whistle. Temperatures will be in the high 50s by the look of it. Brrr.

A game preview is here, while the two Salt Lake City newspapers give a historical perspective about Real Salt Lake's lack of success at the HDC here and here.

Chivas USA striker Ante Razov is listed as probable for today's game after suffering a calf strain in the match against FC Dallas, by the way.

As it has for the past several years, the MLS Players Union has revealed its members' annual salaries, in part to show the pittance many earn.

Sports Illustrated has an overview here with links to the complete list for the last two years.

Below are the guaranteed salaries for Galaxy and Chivas USA players with their 2007 pay packet in parentheses where applicable.

So who's overpaid? Underpaid?

The numbers:

Chivas USA
Jonathan Bornstein $77,500 ($57,500)
Justin Braun $12,900
Bobby Burling $17,700 ($12,900)
Kraig Chiles $12,900
Jim Curtin $104,004 ($120,750)
Eric Ebert $12,900
Alecko Eskandarian $131,041 ($175,500)
Jorge Flores $17,700.00
Maykel Galindo $79,750
Brad Guzan $103,974.38
Anthony Hamilton $17,700.00
Atiba Harris $60,000.00
Sacha Kljestan $128,000 ($103,000)
Jesse Marsch $159,375 ($109,375)
Francisco Mendoza $105,000 ($93,750)
Paulo Nagamura $93,712.50 ($89,250)
Daniel Paladini $12,900
Lance Parker $12,900
Chris Pozniak $101,000
Ante Razov $258,750 ($248,750)
Keith Savage $12,900
Shavar Thomas $98,750
Lawson Vaughn $33,000 ($30,000)
Raphael Wicky $210,000
Alex Zotinca $72,125.00

Galaxy
Charles Alamo $12,900
Ely Allen Ely $44,750
David Beckham $6.5 million ($6.5 million)
Edson Buddle $157,000
Steve Cronin $75,000 ($42,228.75)
Landon Donovan $900,000 ($900,000)
Sean Franklin $48,500
Michael Gavin $33,000
Alan Gordon $72,504 ($30,870)
Ante Jazic $120,250.00 ($114,250)
Chris Klein $190,000 ($187,250)
Brandon McDonald $12,900
Michael Randolph $33,000.00
Troy Roberts $33,000 ($30,000)
Carlos Ruiz $460,000 ($435,000)
Izzy Sesay $57,083.33
Pete Vagenas $138,437.50 ($131,875)
Greg Vanney $91,800.00
Abel Xavier $156,000

The Daily Breeze today named Banning's Guillermo Beltran as its Boys Player of the Year and Banning Coach Frank Sandoval as its Boys Coach of the Year.

Mira Costa's Julia Barrow was named Girls Player of the Year on Tuesday along with Girls Coach of the Year, South Torrance's Brad Gomez.

In other high school related soccer news, Chivas USA has launched an internship program at Carson High dubbed "Imagine More. Be More!"

More details here.

Just in case any reminder was needed regarding the peripheral role MLS plays in the sports mainstream in this country, a trip to Las Vegas on the opening weekend of the season provided it.

Avoiding news about MLS (so I could watch TiVo'd Galaxy and Chivas USA games Monday night and this morning respectively) was disconcertingly easy.

No mention of MLS on the ESPN bottom of the screen crawl during March madness on the ubiquitous televisions in casinos (and this is the league's alleged broadcast partner?).

Most sports books don't take bets on MLS games (the Station Casino chain is an exception).

And Fox Soccer Channel and others that carry the game simply aren't one of the options at the gazillions of television choices at sports books.

So it wasn't until Monday night I learned the Galaxy's new look team looked a lot like their old ones in a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of the Colorado Rapids. That was L.A.'s worst loss since the waning days of the Steve Sampson era (May 6, 2006 to be precise). Exactly a month later, Sampson was fired.

Are you listening Ruud Gullit?

Perhaps even more drastic action needs to be taken in the case of increasingly embarrassing cart horse defender Abel Xavier, who is slowing down almost visibly with every game and was to blame on several of the goals. And I wasn't thinking he needs to be put out to pasture.

Let's see David Beckham laugh that one off at 11:35 p.m. this evening with Leno on "The Tonight Show."

Meanwhile, the Galaxy announced today they will host a U.S. Open Cup qualifying game Tuesday May 27 against those same Rapids. Let's hope Colorado doesn't play another (ahem) "weakened" line-up. Tickets are on sale now for the 7:30 p.m. game.

Good thing Maykel Galindo and Chivas USA are likely to be a lot more diverting than the Galaxy again this year, the Cuban saving the point against Dallas Sunday with a late equalizer.

Condolences to classy Mexican veteran defender Claudio Suarez, a resident of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, who missed the game due to the death of his father.

Congrats to Downey High junior Briant Reyes, 16, named the winner of the Los Angeles portion of "Sueño MLS 2008: The Dream Continues." The Salvadorian-American joins the Under-16 Chivas USA team.

And farewell to reserve Chivas USA forward John Cunliffe who got shipped off to San Jose for Canadian defensive midfielder Chris Pozniak.

Lastly, Shannon Boxx of Torrance, USC's Amy Rodriguez and UCLA's Lauren Cheney were all named Monday to the U.S. Olympic qualifying squad.