Chivas USA wins 3-1 over Toronto FC

With a goal and two assists from forward Ante Razov, Chivas USA beat Toronto FC by a 3-1 score on Saturday afternoon at BMO Field in Toronto, Ont. The win was Chivas USA’s second consecutive league win, after last Saturday’s victory over Toronto at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. It was also the Red-and-White’s first-ever come-from-behind victory on the road.
The win improves the team’s record to 8-9-6 (W-L-T) and is currently in third place in the Western Conference, one point behind Real Salt Lake. The top three teams in the Western Conference will automatically earn a playoff spot.
Toronto FC’s Tyler Rosenlund opened the scoring in the 30th minute, when Rohan Ricketts, receiving a long pass from Chad Barrett, played the ball back across the face of the goal, where Rosenlund finished into an empty net.
The Red-and-White struck back in the 41st minute, when Ante Razov earned the first of his two assists, playing a ball to rookie midfielder Daniel Paladini at the top of the box. Paladini drilled a hard shot to the right of Toronto goalkeeper Brian Edwards, who could not come up with a save. It was Paladini’s first MLS goal, and tied the game at one.
Immediately before halftime, an incident near the center of the field changed the complexion of the game. After a physical battle for a header, both Toronto’s Marco Velez and Chivas USA’s Alecko Eskandarian were red-carded for violent conduct, and each team played the remainder of the match with 10 men.
Chivas took the lead in the 58th minute, when Razov played a perfectly weighted through ball to Jonathan Bornstein, who was one-on-one with Edwards and tucked the ball to the far post. Bornstein had started the game at left back but moved up to assist in the attack in the second half, and after scoring his first goal since July 29, 2007, Bornstein moved back to defense.
Razov completed an impressive day with a stoppage time goal, receiving a pass from Francisco Mendoza after a turnover by the Toronto defense. It was the 114th regular-season goal of the forward’s career, second place on the all-time MLS scoring chart.
Goalkeeper Zach Thornton was forced to leave the game with a left thigh injury in the 73rd minute, and Dan Kennedy went the final 17 minutes in his place, making two saves and helping preserve the win.
Chivas USA Head Coach Preki, on the match: “[The result] is incredibly important. I think right now we put ourselves in a really good spot to push in last seven games for a playoff spot.” (For a full quote sheet, please visit www.cdchivasusa.com.)
Chivas USA’s next match will take place on Thursday, Sept. 11, at the New England Revolution. The game will start at 7:00 p.m. ET (4:00 p.m. PT) and will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes. It will be the third meeting between the teams this season; the Revolution captured a 2-1 win on May 11 at The Home Depot Center in a league game, and the two teams met again on July 20 in SuperLiga, tying 1-1 in Fullerton, Calif.