On Matchday 2 of SuperLiga 2008 Group B action, Chivas USA kept its semifinal hopes alive with a 1-0 win Wednesday night over Mexican champion Santos Laguna at The Home Depot Center.Once again, Ante Razov was the hero for Chivas USA, scoring a 73rd-minute header off a Sacha Kljestan cross as a second-half sub to give Chivas the win. With the goal, the 34-year-old Los Angeles native (and MLS Original) now has five straight goals in five straight games for Chivas USA, between MLS (3) and SuperLiga (2).
The win sets up a decisive match against the New England Revolution this Sunday, July 20 at 5:00 p.m. PT at Cal State Fullerton’s Titan Stadium, Chivas’ first official match in Orange County.
A million-dollar winner’s prize is on the line as the Red-and-White look to advance from Group B and potentially set up a second-round contest against parent club Chivas de Guadalajara.
Chivas USA consiguió su primera victoria en el ámbito internacional y fue nada más y nada menos contra el campeón de la Primera División de México, Santos Laguna. El Rebaño doblegó al monarca azteca por la mínima diferencia con un tanto al minuto 73 del atacante Ante Razov a pase del mediocampista Sacha Kljestan. La victoria en El Home Depot Center ante 16,843 aficionados fue la primera ocasión que Chivas USA vence a un rival en un torneo internacional. El tanto de Razov fue el quinto que anota en forma consecutiva.
Chivas USA Head Coach Preki, on Wednesday’s match: “I didn’t feel like we got a grip of the game in the first 10-15 minutes. I thought they were the better team, I thought they were moving the ball a bit better than us, I thought we were nervous, but I was expecting that given the fact that we’ve changed quite a few players from the other night to tonight. I thought it was going to take us a little time until we settled. Then we settled and we had some moments but obviously the most important moment came when they missed a great opportunity. … Going into halftime we changed a thing or two, we adjusted a little bit, put a couple guys on the field and I thought we were way better in the second half. We were moving the ball better, everybody got involved, everybody’s confidence got a little higher and we were pushing the tempo.” (For a full quote sheet, please visit http://www.cdchivasusa.com/.) Midfielder Paulo Nagamura, who suffered a mild concussion during the match, will be suspended for Sunday’s game based on yellow-card accumulation (2), as well as defender Jonathan Bornstein (2). For tickets or more information on SuperLiga 2008 and Chivas USA, please call 1-877-CHIVAS-1, visit http://www.cdchivasusa.com/ or http://www.superliga2008.com/, or contact Chivas USA Communications. La victoria coloca a Chivas USA con 3 unidades, empatados con Pachuca con la misma cantidad de puntos. Nueva Inglaterra, que derrotó también el miércoles por la mínima diferencia a Pachuca, está en primer lugar del grupo con 6 puntos. Santos está en el último lugar del Grupo B con cero unidades.
Chivas USA ahora enfrentará en la última jornada del Grupo B a Nueva Inglaterra el domingo a las 5:00 p.m. Hora del Pacífico en el Titan Stadium de Cal State Fullerton.
"Teníamos que ganar, la victoria era muy importante ahora hay que ganar el domingo para clasificar a la siguiente ronda", dijo el mediocampista Jorge Flores tras la victoria del miércoles.
