[This is the final installment of a three-part series analyzing the
Union's roster ahead of Saturday night's season opener. On Wednesday we looked at the team's
defense, and yesterday we analyzed the midfield.]
Last season, the Philadelphia Union managed a measly 35 goals, good for 5th-to-last in the
league.
Photo: Nicolae Stoian
Game time: Saturday, 8 p.m.
TV: 6abc
Philadelphia Union will aim to end a miserable week with a win against a Chivas USA squad that
limps into Chester with one win in its last six matches.
Chivas (4-6-5), which plays in Los Angeles (for those unaware), dropped a tough 2-1 loss last
week against Dallas, thanks to two killer assists by former Union midfielder Andrew Jacobson,
including one in the 85th minute.
LA Lads: Former local Fox Sports commentator Max Bretos, former Galaxy GM Alexi Lalas and
Chivas USA's Alejandro Moreno are the in-studio team for the 7 p.m. Seattle Sounders-Real Salt Lake
match as the MLS Playoffs resume on ESPN tonight.
It appears fans are responding to the MLS playoffs this year, games that have traditionally
struggled to draw decent crowds on relatively short notice.
Photo: Paul Rudderow
Union
Alejandro Moreno discusses his departure from the Union. Clearly hurt at being let go, he is
nevertheless one class act and ever the gentleman. Which you knew already after listening to the
interview KYW and the PSP did with him on the Philly Soccer Show.
Photo: Paul Rudderow
Union
Alejandro Moreno discusses his departure from the Union. Clearly hurt at being let go, he is
nevertheless one class act and ever the gentleman. Which you knew already after listening to the
interview KYW and the PSP did with him on the Philly Soccer Show.
San Jose 1 – Chivas USA 2 Chivas USA came back on he road for their first win of the season and
extend their unbeaten streak to four games. Chris Wondolowski opened the scoring for San Jose in
the 16th minute in front of 10,525 at Buck Shaw Stadium. Alejandro Moreno equalized just before
halftime, with Mariano Trujillo scoring the winning goal in the 85th minute.
By MIKE NASTRI
New York Red Bulls coach Hans Backe said during the week that Sunday's match vs. Chivas USA
could be a trap game for the Eastern Conference leaders. And that's exactly what it was.
Justin Braun's hat trick was just enough for Chivas USA to slip by New York, 3-2, at Red Bull
Arena on Sunday.
Union
Sounding a bit like a new age mystic or feng shui adviser, Peter Nowak says the reason the Union
have only scored six goals in nine games isn't poor finishing or a still incomplete midfield.
Rather, it begins with "ineffective energy:"
"We spend a lot of time defending, and I think we need to change our perspective on doing
certain things.
We exchange three questions with Scott Kessler of Brotherly Game in order to get some insider
perspective on the Philadelphia Union as the Chicago Fire head to PPL Park Stadium on Saturday
night. Scott's answer to my first question is below and the other five questions in the exchange
are after the break.
*The Galaxy will meet new USL pro franchise the LA Blues in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup
next week after the team disposed Tuesday of lower level opponent the Ventura County Fusion. The
Fusion weren't helped by the fact their captain Andy Rose is on trial with the Chicago Fire and
missed the game.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Revolution's first homegrown player, 16-year-old Diego
Fagundez, drew a penalty and scored a goal in his MLS debut against Chivas USA Saturday night, but
it wasn't enough to lift his side past the Goats, who got two goals from Alejandro Moreno en route
to a 3-2 win.
Photo by Brad Smith/ISIphotos.com
For the second week in a row, Dwayne De Rosario reminded MLS fans and opposition that he's still
got what it takes, despite being traded twice in the opening months of the season.
With his team playing a man down, De Rosario netted a hat trick against his former club to carry
D.
I'm not sure I entirely believe in the concept of a "trap game," but if one ever fit the bill,
this is it. The Seattle Sounders are coming off a very tough stretch that saw them playing
emotionally and physically draining games once or twice a week for about a month. They face a
similar stretch coming up.
Photo: Courtesy of FIFA
Philadelphia Union
A new article from Kerith Gabriel on Friday morning about a Gabriel Gomez to the Philadelphia
Union deal is headlined "Panama's Gomez signs with Union" but the copy says "According to sources,
the contract has been approved by Major League Soccer and awaits Gomez' signature before the Union
can schedule an announcement, which can come as early as next week.
The Union announced tonight that they have waived goalkeeper Brad Knighton, who did not practice
with the team when they opened training camp yesterday. Knighton started eight games last year,
stealing the starting role from Chris Seitz for the last two months of the season. He posted a 1.10
GAA and was on the field for the Union's first clean sheet ever.
Far from home: Chivas USA train in stunning Central California (Photo courtesy Chivas
USA).
Chivas USA is training this week in the bucolic surroundings of the Central Coast community of
Templeton.
In their honor I cracked an excellent Zinfandel from Castoro Cellers this evening paired with a
skinless chicken breast and mushroom risotto.
Chivas USA won 2-0 on goals from Alan Gordon and draft pick Victor Estupiñan over PDL team
Fresno Fuego today in a game played just outside Paso Robles.
Gordon scored in the 31st minute from a header off a cross supplied by his former Galaxy
teammate Tristan Bowen. Estupiñan's second similarly resulted from a header off a cross from
defender Carlos Borja in the 80th minute.
BY ADAM SERRANO
It's a new era at Chivas USA and its fans hope that it will lead to a new mindset and greater
success.
New Head Coach Robin Fraser has taken over for the Rojiblancos replacing Martin Vasquez, who was
removed after a disappointing season that saw Chivas USA finish dead last in the Western
Conference.
Chivas USA Coach Robin Fraser is taking a look at his former Galaxy teammate Simon Elliott, last
seen playing (briefly) in his native New Zealand after being released in preseason last year by the
San Jose Earthquakes.
He practiced with the team Sunday. Elliott, 36, the Galaxy MVP in 2000 (Fraser's last season
with the club) made more than 120 appearances with the Galaxy.
By AVI CREDITOR
The training wheels have been taken off, and the Philadelphia Union is ready to ride with the
big boys.
After an inaugural season that ended well short of a postseason berth, the Union has made a
number of personnel moves to shore up what was a shaky defense in 2010 while providing support for
its budding attackers as well.
The Goalkeeper's Jonathan Tannenwald is reporting that Guatemalan newspaper Prensa Libre is
reporting that the Union are moving to sign Carlos Ruiz.
Ruiz has allegedly ended his contract with Greek club Aris through mutual consent to sign with
Philadelphia.
Rumors linking Ruiz to the Union surfaced last year as well, but no deal was ever worked
out.
This year's model: Chivas USA players Alejandro Moreno, Justin Braun, Sergio Arias, Jimmy
Conrad and Francisco Mendoza unveil the club's new shirt sponsor at the Standard Hotel rooftop bar
downtown (Photo courtesy Chivas USA).
Chivas USA haven't exactly had shirt sponsors in the past that connect with their fan base.
Seattle set a high bar for expansion teams in 2009. And it was clear early on that the Union
would struggle to reach similar heights during their inaugural campaign.
Still, 31 points from 30 games did not do justice to a team that seemed to undo quality
performances with sudden and unexpected errors.
While Sporting KC was struggling to find a center back, Jamaican center back, Shavar Thomas was
working to get to El Salvador for Jamaica's second friendly. Flight trouble pushed back the game in
San Salvador to Tuesday. The delay could certainly affect next weekend's game against Vancouver for
Thomas.
Seems like everyone is pining for an upgrade in offensive competence to go with that shiny new
defense of ours. But did the Union let the keystone of our attack slip away? Here's why Alejandro
Moreno was the Charlie to our Paddy's Pub.
BY ADAM SERRANO
All around Toronto, people are discussing the departure of Dwayne De Rosario, lucky for Toronto
FC, that will no longer be the sole focus.
A shocking miss by Maicon Santos marred the 1-1 draw between Toronto FC and Chivas USA, in what
was a high energy match between the two clubs.
Five out of the six games on Saturday ended even, with only the Los Angeles Galaxy getting three
points. Elsewhere, Vancouver put on a shock comeback against Kansas City in a six goal game.
Toronto 1 – Chivas USA 1 Chivas USA was up two minutes in at BMO Field when Alejandro Moreno took
advantage of Toronto's defense.
This review was written by Saurabh of Hoffenheim Offside. Thanks to him for his help
and make sure to check out his blog!
It may have been important to start playing immediately after losing Dwayne De Rosario in a
trade to New York. We got to see new boy Tony Tchani in action right away and he showed glimpses of
the vision and creativity that is sometimes lacking in THE MLS.
Mais um jogo amistoso, foi realizado no dia 25/03/2011, mais um amistoso entre seleções, agora na
cidade de Montego Bay-JAM, no Montego Bay Sports Complex, onde jogaram as seleções da Jamaica
(48º no ranking da FIFA) e a seleção da Venezuela (63º no ranking da FIFA).
Antes desse jogo, as 2 seleções jogaram:
2004Kingston 28/04/2004 JAM2:1 (2:1)VEN 2003Caracas 02/04/2003 VEN2:0 (2:0)JAM 1997Kingston
12/02/1997 JAM0:0VEN
O árbitro desse jogo, foi: Enrico Winjgaarde-SUR
O primeiro gol foi de Nicolas Fedor, aos 21 minutos do segundo tempo, ele que é jogador do
Getafe-ESP, que marcou seu 7º gol pela seleção nacional.
By JONATHAN VERA
CARSON, Calif. -- Chivas USA won its second straight match after goals from Nick LaBrocca,
Marcos Mandaini, and Alejandro Moreno helped the 'Rojiblancos' post an emphatic 3-0 victory against
New England at Home Depot Center on Saturday night.
Photo by ISIPhotos.com
The Seattle Sounders lost Steve Zakuani for the season and O'Brian White for an extended period
of time, meaning they needed some players to step up if they were going to continue their recent
unbeaten streak.
Brad Evans answered the call for Seattle, scoring two goals and adding an assist in the
Sounders' 3-0 win against Toronto FC on Saturday.
CARSON, Calif. Coming off a pair of encouraging 3-2 victories, the Revolution were quickly
humbled Saturday night at the Home Depot Center, where they suffered a 3-0 thumping to Chivas
USA.
Nick LaBrocca (22′), Marcos Mondaini (45′) and Alejandro Moreno (57′) scored while Dan
Kennedy kept the Revs off the board to give New England its worst defeat of the season.
During training on Saturday, May 14th New York Red Bulls head coach Hans Backe knew that he was
going to face a tough and scrappy Chivas-USA side. What we saw on Sunday night was a coming out
party for Justin Braun as he along with Chivas-USA flew across the country and found a way to gain
three points on the road and the first west coast side to win in the eastern end.
This evening the Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA meet at the Home Depot Center for the first
2011 installment of the so-called "SuperClasico". For most of its history the clash has been less
than Super with the Galaxy dominating the outcomes. The only time parity has even been a
conversation piece was during the Alexi Lalas as GM years when the team imploded,
especially 2007 and 2008.
SuperClassico weather here in Carson, so let's hope for a game to match.
Fans are filtering into the grass berm; perhaps a larger crowd is in store than the fewer than
20,000 that took in the corresponding fixture last season.
Goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts returns from illness for the Galaxy this evening, while Juan Pablo
Angel replaces Miguel Lopez (who is on the bench) up front in the only two changes for Coach Bruce
Arena from the team that destroyed Sporting Kansas City 4-1 last weekend.
Chivas USA (4-7-6), seventh place in the Western Conference with one win in their last five
games, plays the San Jose Earthquakes (5-5-6), who sit three points and one place above them in the
conference and have one loss in their last five games, clash at 7:30 tonight at Home Depot Center
(live Fox Sports West).
*Chivas USA wilted in the Texas heat today and lost to FC Dallas for their first loss in their
last five games. Dallas play the Galaxy next weekend in Carson.
Quotable:
"It was possibly the hottest game I have been a part of in MLS, so it was difficult for
both teams," Chivas USA Coach Robin Fraser said.
I hate to admit it, but I was at a conference on Saturday and was left to follow the Seattle
Sounders-Chivas USA match via Twitter. I've now watched the highlights (and promise to watch the
full game) and can safely say that the frustration I felt while not watching the game would have
probably been even worse if I had watched.
The interview previews are back! I know I've kinda slacked off when it comes to these in recent
weeks. To be honest, I'm just not sure if they're worth it yet. Not through any lack of effort on
the part of the kind bloggers who take time to answer my questions, but rather because I'm not sure
if I'm ever asking the right questions.
