Galaxy came in loose and firing on all cylinders in the first half. Goats USA looked shell shocked by the energy and pace that Team Beckham was willing to imposing. After going 1-0 into the second half, LA’s no. 1 pub team withered and faltered, thus they lost the lead. All looked pretty good for the goats going into stoppage time, but then it happened. The clock struck 12 o’ clock: Jim Curtin (all 6’4” of him) failed to mark Goatkiller Gordon on a set piece and BANG! It was all over.

Honestly, it’s almost impossible to ignore the potential of what could have been a great season for Chivas USA. At this point, one point is one point, but against the Galaxy, it might as well be no points. There are no moral victories for Chivas USA fans, this team is hurt and many fans (not including myself) are starting to lose hope. There are no reinforcements on the way, there are signs of a new stadium on the horizon, and there is no word on Jorge Flores missing persons file. Fan favorites are not always the best players on the team, but with M*A*S*H* unit for a roster, Chivas USA needs all the help it can get. Like I said, I’m not losing hope, but…………..time is running out.

GAME NOTES: Zack Thorton has decent skills for 350lb. man. It was nice to see Preki on the sidelines again, but why was he talking to himself on the way to the locker room at halftime? Roberto Nurse has nice looking braids, that’e the most positive thing I can say about him. Roberto Pires should fight Jesse Marsch in the UFC octogan. My money is on the Marsch. Who can forget the dropkick on Beckham last year? I miss Alex Zotinca, that butt head. Atiba Harris made a guest appearance in the game and made defenders looked foolish. Does Carey Talley have a mullet? Carlos Ruiz as trade bait? Good luck with that. The Union Ultras (the Official Chivas USA supporters) unveiled their new banner with players and Preki on it. Well done. It did have Jorge Flores’ image on it, so he was there at least in spirit. Carlos Ruiz as trade bait? Good luck with that. Maybe Thorton should try professional wrestling.

John Sandate

Tonight, Chivas USA won its fourth game in its last six contests. An awesome display of offensive attack and top level goalkeeping from Brad Guzan must have surely made MLS bigwigs gush with joy. Especially, since Chivas’ 2-0 drubbing of the once-might Chicago Fire was on ESPN2 before a national audience. This was Chivas USA soccer. Check that, futbol. The players may have changed slightly from past line-ups (again) but the voracious pursuit to put the ball in the back of the net was something not to common in the MLS. Don’t believe me? Even with one man down, Chicago still could not find the net in the seond half. Chivas USA is not an offensive juggernaut as of yet, make no mistake about it. However, you have wonder if Preki’s sadistically-intense practices and Denis Te Klose’s Ajax influence are starting to morph into a league version of “Total Football”. Don’t laugh. This team never stopped pushing forward and always had players shifting around to defend the ball and keep the attack flowing. Intense defense and sublime passing. The Fire look flustered.

The crowd was significantly larger than recent Chivas USA games and you can thank Chuatemoc Blanco for that. His Club America fans came out in droves. This was good for the league and most importantly, for Chivas USA finances. Unfortunately, this game also brought out the bad seeds, too. Club America’s infamous supporters, La Monumental, also came out to get their “Blanco” fix and brought their shanks to the game to celebrate. You may have spotted them during the telecast; they took off their shirts to show off their beer guts and Mexi-mullets and proceeded to spend the entire night trying to taunt Chivas fans in section 104. Thankfully, trouble was averted due in large part to the Department of Home Depot Security and a few dozen or so Las Angeles County sheriff’s deputies WITH GUNS. Oh well, it really is a double edged sword when Chicago fire comes to LA to play Chivas USA: good for business, bad for living free. Kudos to the Chivas USA front office for taking extreme security measures again to protect all the fans.

Here’s what I learned from this game about Chivas USA and not in any particular order. Raphael Wicky is still world class-quality, when healthy. Sascha Kljestan obviously is close to becoming the next Clint Dempsey or better. Pancho Mendoza is a better left back than left wing. Justin Braun plays better when knows he’s 6’3” 215lbs. Ante Razov can still play, no goals but 2 assists. Claudio Suarez is old, real old. Can he still defend? Damn skippy. Last, a copy of this game should be sent to every European football team that is in need of a goalkeeper who plays smart and fearless. I don’t think even MLS-hater Steven Cohen can’t argue that Guzan is world class now. Tonight’s game was really a global tryout for Brad Guzan. If Chivas USA doesn’t get at least 6 million in a transfer fee for this man, than something is wrong.

As for tonight, everything went right.

John Sandate