Chivas USA vs. Real Salt Lake | MLS Match Preview

CHIVAS USA vs REAL SALT LAKE
STUBHUB CENTER - Carson, Calif.
Oct. 5, 2014 (WEEK 30, MLS Game #293)
7 p.m. ET (KDOC/TWCD; KUCW-30; MLS LIVE)

The expansion class of 2005 meet for the second time this season when Chivas USA return home to StubHub Center to take on Real Salt Lake on Sunday afternoon. Chivas USA saw their playoff dreams put to an end last weekend, now winless in their last 12 games following a 4-2 defeat at Seattle Sounders FC. Real are on the verge of clinching their berth in the MLS Cup Playoffs, despite falling 2-1 to Vancouver Whitecaps FC last weekend at BC Place.

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REFEREE: David Gantar. SAR (bench): Frank Anderson; JAR (opposite): Eduardo Mariscal; 4th: Daniel Radford
Gantar's MLS Career: 34 games; FC/gm: 25.7; Y/gm: 2.7; R: 11; pens: 6

SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: CHV -- Nathan Sturgis, Erick Torres ... RSL -- Javier Morales
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: CHV -- Bobby Burling, Marky Delgado, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Agustin Pelletieri, Donny Toia, Leandro Barrera, Nigel Reo-Coker, Oswaldo Minda ... RSL -- Olmes Garcia, Nat Borchers, Alvaro Saborio, Luke Mulholland, Kyle Beckerman, Tony Beltran, Chris Schuler, Chris Wingert
DISABLED LIST: CHV -- Thomas McNamara
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none

HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (27 meetings): Chivas USA 11 wins, 33 goals ... Real 12 wins, 36 goals ... Ties 4
AT CHIVAS USA (15 meetings): Chivas USA 8 wins, 22 goals ... Real 6 wins, 18 goals ... Ties 1

FUTURE MATCH: 10/22: Real Salt Lake vs. Chivas USA, 7:30 p.m. MT

2014 (MLS)
6/28: CHV 1, RSL 0 (Torres 35)

• The teams are meeting for the second time this season. Erick Torres scored the game's lone goal in a Chivas USA victory June 28 at StubHub Center.
• The victory in the first meeting snapped a five-match winning streak for Real Salt Lake against Chivas USA. It also ended a five-game winning streak at StubHub Center for RSL vs. Chivas; the rojiblancos had last defeated their expansion brothers at home in 2009.
• Coaches record: Wilmer Cabrera vs. RSL: P1 W1 L0 D0 ... Jeff Cassar vs. CHV: P1 W0 L1 D0

LAST MEETING (MLS)

• Real went a man down just nine minutes into the match when Luke Mulholland was sent off with a straight red card for a studs-up tackle on Martin Rivero in front of referee Kevin Stott.
• The game's lone goal came in the 35th minute, and it was beauty. Tony Lochhead served in a long cross from deep on the left flank and Erick Torres hammered a first-time right-footed volley from just inside the penalty area that thundered under the bar and to the back of the net.
• Chivas USA goalkeeper Dan Kennedy was called upon to make two saves in recording his first shutout of the year.
• CHIVAS USA (4-4-2): Dan Kennedy - Donny Toia, Bobby Burling, Carlos Bocanegra, Tony Lochhead - Mauro Rosales (Carlos Alvarez 81), Martin Rivero, Agustin Pelletieri, Eric Avila (Marky Delgado 73) - Erick Torres, Leandro Barrera (Ryan Finley 84).
• REAL SALT LAKE (4-3-1-2): Jeff Attinella - Chris Wingert, Chris Schuler, Nat Borchers, Abdoulie Mansally (Olmes Garcia 73) - Luis Gil, Cole Grossman (John Stertzer 63), Luke Mulholland (ejected 9) - Javier Morales - Robbie Findley (Sebastian Velasquez 63), Joao Plata.

CHIVAS USA
Chivas USA saw their winless run stretched to 12 matches, falling 4-2 to Seattle Sounders FC on Saturday afternoon at CenturyLink Field. Chivas USA sit in ninth place in the Western Conference with 24 points from 30 games.

LAST MATCH

• Chivas USA took a shock lead after just 12 minutes. Following a deflection off Sounders FC goalkeeper Stefan Frei, Erick Torres was all alone after the ball popped free directly in front of the Seattle goal and slotted home an easy conversion.
• But Sounders FC equalized almost immediately. Obafemi Martins launched a long-distance rocket from well outside the penalty area in the 14th minute, and it zipped past Chivas goalkeeper Dan Kennedy.
• Yet Chivas USA took the lead once again just four minutes after following an own goal from defender Jalil Anibaba, putting the ball past Frei as he tackled away from Felix Borja from close range.
• Seattle pulled the game back to level terms once again in the 37th minute. A pass from Martins bounced directly to Lamar Neagle despite being deflected by Chivas defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, and Neagle finished all alone in front of goal.
• Sounders FC then took the lead for good in first-half stoppage time, as Clint Dempsey combined with Martins to finish past Kennedy on a nifty sequence of combination play from the strike pair in the penalty area.
• The clincher came just before the hour mark, as Martins collected the ball on the edge of the area and somehow managed to clip the ball through a crowd and past Kennedy for the Seattle fourth.
• Chivas USA head coach Wilmer Cabrera made five changes to the team that fell 3-0 to Toronto FC at BMO Field. Akira Kaji and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado came into the back four for Tony Lochhead and Eriq Zavaleta, Matthew Dunn and Leandro Barrera started in the midfield in place of Eric Avila and the suspended Nigel Reo-Coker, and Erick Torres came into the attack for Marvin Chavez.
• CHIVAS USA (4-4-2): Dan Kennedy - Akira Kaji, Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Bobby Burling, Donny Toia - Nathan Sturgis (Marvin Chavez 72), Oswaldo Minda (Agustin Pelletieri 87), Matthew Dunn, Leandro Barrera (Luis Bolanos 77) - Felix Borja, Erick Torres

TEAM NEWS

• Chivas USA saw their winless streak reach 12 games as their overall losing skid hit seven games -- the second-longest in MLS this season (New England, 8 games, May 31-July 26). The 12-game winless slide is the longest in the league this season and the third-longest in club history.
• "It is important that players understand that the only way for us to get out of this slump is by getting on the field with intensity," Chivas USA head coach Wilmer Cabrera said. "We can't just give up right away because we received one goal. We've been talking and they're committed. Right now, what we need to think is if we can play the next four games with this intensity, we're going to win some points."
• With the defeat, Chivas USA were officially eliminated from any playoff contention. They have now failed to reach the MLS Cup Playoffs for five consecutive seasons.
• "Sadly, we're going to lose now [Erick] 'Cubo' [Torres] again for one game and we're going to lose Marvin [Chavez], but I think that the seed was there," said Cabrera. "We came with intensity, we played the top team in this league even, we scored goals but we have to improve the lack of concentration when we have to tackle the ball. We have to win those tackles. We have to win those battles right there, because they were good in the finishing."
• Erick Torres scored his first goal since July 20, his 15th goal of the season, setting the Chivas USA single-season club record. Torres was making his first league appearance since Aug. 31, missing two games for international duty and two games to suspension.
• "He's been important for us. Every time we have him, you know, that's why he is the top scorer for us. When we don't have him, it's difficult," Cabrera said. "He helps us to score goals, and he helped Felix [Borja] to move and feel more comfortable. It's always important to have Cubo because it's been great for us. Now, we have to continue thinking that now we have three games at home and we have the possibility to get out of this losing streak."
• Said Torres: "I'm very happy for the work of the entire team and I've been working very hard every week to remain constant and creating dangerous opportunities in the attack. ... It's a little bit complicated but I'm looking to keep my fingerprint in Major League Soccer. I know that I have a very bright future ahead of me with the national team and whatever my future may bring. And obviously knowing that I'm an international player and I have a lot of people behind me supporting me and having my back."
• The Torres goal also snapped a 312-minute goalless drought for Chivas USA, the eighth-longest streak in MLS this season. Chivas USA holds the longest stretch without a goal, going 597 minutes without scoring from July 20-Sept. 3.
• Matthew Dunn made his first MLS and Chivas USA start and played the full match in central midfield. He had made three substitute appearances totaling 47 minutes before the Seattle match.
• "He showed personality. He was tackling the top players in this league and he was playing even, so that's what you expect from him and that why Matt Dunn was today in the starting lineup, because he has earned that right to be on the field," Cabrera said. "It's a young player, but it's a player that is going to be important for this franchise."
• "Some of the positives were my long balls were good and so was my defense at times I made some good tackles. I think the team played well today. I think we played with good intensity and we executed our game plan we just didn't get the result," Dunn said. ... "It was a dream come true for me. I never knew if I would ever make it and to come in and play my first game and I walked out and did the ceremony-it was just incredible, words can hardly describe it."

REAL SALT LAKE
Real Salt Lake saw their road winless streak extended, falling 2-1 to Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday afternoon at BC Place. RSL are in third place in the Western Conference with 49 points from 30 matches.

LAST MATCH

• Whitecaps FC had a glorious chance to open the scoring in first half stoppage time, when referee Allen Chapman pointed to the spot after adjudging RSL's Alvaro Saborio to have fouled Vancouver's Kendall Waston on a corner. But Pedro Morales saw his penalty attempt stopped by RSL goalkeeper Jeff Attinella, who dove to his right to keep the effort out.
• The visitors took the lead in the 57th minute. After Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted was forced to make an acrobatic save to keep out a Javier Morales volley, Nat Borchers headed home the resulting corner for the opener.
• But Whitecaps FC were back on level terms within five minutes. A wild, high tackle by Carlos Salcedo on Erik Hurtado in the box brought Vancouver their second penalty of the match and this time Morales drilled the ball low into the bottom left corner past Attinella.
• The game-winner came in the 78th minute. Steven Beitashour came running onto a rolling ball to strike from just outside the area and Morales turned it inside the post from the edge of the six-yard box for a vital three points.
• RSL head coach Jeff Cassar made five changes to the team that rolled to a 5-1 win against the Colorado Rapids at Rio Tinto Stadium. Nat Borchers and Abdoulie Mansally came into the back four in place of Tony Beltran and Chris Schuler, Luis Gil started in midfield for Ned Grabavoy, Alvaro Saborio replaced Sebastian Jaime up top, and Jeff Attinella came in between the posts in place of Nick Rimando.
• REAL SALT LAKE (4-3-1-2): Jeff Attinella - Chris Wingert, Nat Borchers, Carlos Salcedo, Abdoulie Mansally - Luke Mulholland (Sebastian Velasquez 82), Kyle Beckerman, Luis Gil (Ned Grabavoy 69) - Javier Morales - Joao Plata, Alvaro Saborio (Sebastian Jaime 69).

TEAM NEWS

• Real Salt Lake has their road winless streak extended to four games, with a second consecutive away defeat.
• "The quality that Real has been typically known for just wasn't there. The fight was there, the intensity was there, but we just didn't play good enough soccer ... We were aggressive too, just not good enough," said RSL head coach Jeff Cassar.
• Real also saw their bid to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs denied. They will qualify this week with a win, a Vancouver loss, or a Portland loss or draw.
• RSL goalkeeper Jeff Attinella saved the second penalty kick of his MLS career (in seven attempts). Attinella was deputizing for Nick Rimando -- who has saved 17 of 64 penalties heís faced in his MLS career (and seen five others missed).
• "Two PKs against is pretty tough," Attinella said. "And then a shot that's going wide that happens to land right at somebody's foot. The ball didn't bounce our way. It was good to get the save [on the first PK], but in the end it didn't matter too much."
• Attinella was making his first start since June 28, when Nick Rimando was with the U.S. national team for the FIFA World Cup. Attinella has seen Real win in just one of his 10 starts this season.
• "I thought he did a great job. Obviously he made a huge save on the PK, but really commanded his box well, looked very comfortable and really did a great job," said Cassar.
• Nat Borchers scored his first goal of the season, his first in more than a year, since scoring last Aug. 21 against Portland. Borchers has scored at least one goal in each of the last six league seasons.
• Alvaro Saborio made his first MLS start since May 10, partnering Joao Plata in attack. Saborio had made just two substitute appearances in league play, totaling 36 minutes.
• "Any players that I put out there, I think are first-teamers and starters. There were four or five changes to our lineup from our last lineup [against Colorado]," Cassar said.
• RSL took on newly-minted USL PRO champions Sacramento Republic FC in a friendly Tuesday at Rio Tinto Stadium, claiming a 2-0 victory. Robbie Findley and Sebastian Fernandez scored second-half goals for the Real victory.
• Here's the RSL team: Lalo Fernandez; Abdoulie Mansally, Aaron Maund, Carlos Salcedo, Rich Balchan; Cole Grossman, Sebastian Velasquez, Justen Glad (Luis Gil, 89'); Robbie Findley (Benji Lopez, 80'), Devon Sandoval, Sebastian Jaime (Olmes Garcia, 67')