A mixing bowl of storylines

GOAT MEAT

I was going to post this morning on how Dynamo not just beat Chivas June 10 (And who can forget that classic goal at the end of first half injury time from Goalden Holden), they completely ruined the Amerigoats' season. But Kyle McCarthy at Goal.com did it for me (minus the Dynamo ruining them angle). Check out that link here.

McCarthy points out that las chivitas is currently sitting on an eight-game winless streak in all competitions (0-7-1, with the draw coming after Chivas USA had lost its first two SuperLiga games), but what he fails to mention is that Game 1 of that streak was right here at Robertson Stadium. I get no great satisfaction in saying "I Told You So" (well, maybe I do, but it depends to whom I'm saying it), but I pointed out throughout that team's early run that it was completely and totally based on the goal-scoring prowess of Nagamura and Lillingston and the goalkeeping of Zach Thornton. Who in their right mind would think that could last all season?

Now Idiot Lalas (not Greg) was spreading a rumor during the Dynamo/TFC game that perhaps the Atiba Harris to FC Dallas deal is a harbinger of an incoming major signing for las chivitas. They need it because that team is thinner than Beckham's temper.

Here's what McCarthy has about that weirdo deal:

In a rather surprising move last week, Chivas USA sent Atiba Harris (14 games, 13 starts for the Goats on the campaign) to FC Dallas in exchange for Marcelo Saragosa. When asked about the deal, Preki said he liked Saragosa's toughness – not a quality the rugged Harris lacks in any way, shape or form – and noted he saw the Brazilian as a midfielder.

“He can press the ball, he's pretty mobile, he's pretty hard and he's got a good mentality,” Preki said.

While those qualities are typical in a Chivas USA player, those qualities also betray the fact that Saragosa is best deployed a holding midfielder, though he occasionally featured somewhat fitfully at right back for FCD. That particular fact makes the deal particularly puzzling considering Saragosa's arrival adds yet another deep-lying central player to a stable that already includes current starters Nagamura and Jesse Marsch as well as the recently acquired Kevin Harmse.

So why then did Chivas USA feel the need to acquire yet another player to fill a role that already appears suitably covered?

“We'll see what he has,” Preki said as he skipped around the question. “From what I've seen from the outside, I like his qualities. How is he going to help the team out? Well, he will help us.”

That explains that, then.


GO WESTWARD

As far as the HDC's other residents, this is my whole comment on the Becks affair:

This is abso-you-know-what-ing-lutely brilliant. I was wondering at what point Becks would start phoning it in again this season just like last year and here we are with him playing exactly one MLS game (and that on the right coast) and it looks like it is indeed upon us.

So the past two years, the Beckham circus has sunk woeful LAG teams. This year, it looks like for his next trick La Dave will sink a (formerly) rapidly improving LAG squad.

What were those security guys thinking anyways? David and Lieweke said they wanted to promote soccer viewership in the US. Letting that guy "shake hands" with Becks (Too bad we live in the era of "Hike the Appalachian Trail" or that would easily make for my favorite euphemism of 2009 list) would have been the most played MLS clip ever.

My hat is off to the Riot Squad. Though I wonder, the release from Il Bruce yesterday said that LARS had banned the guy for life. Who's lifetime was he talking about? LARS' response: "Who, us?"

Truly awesome.

FAKE TURF = A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY

Really, whoever introduced turf to sports should be waiting judgment in The Hague.

(What's that you say, it started here in my beloved Astrodome?

Oh.)

Never-THE-less, that was almost 50 years ago. Did you catch Dom Kinnear on Glenn Davis' program last night putting the blame for Richard Mulrooney's knee problem squarely on Seattle's artificial turf. Now, this isn;t anything about Seattle's turf in particular, but turf in general is an abomination and it must go.

If and when Dynamo Park gets built, we as fans have to make sure our voices are heard on this. No turf.

If you play on grass in the frigid climes of northern Europe (and they do all the time), then we can play on it here. Besides, Houston's growing zone is so lush that anything grows here.

DOWN THE SOUND

Y'know, I wasn't going to post much on the US Open Cup Game tonight, but then I read this piece from the Seattle Times and the comments. Personally, I hope we destroy those guys now. Read more!

Lone skater of the apocalypse

Well, not having seen Dynamo's 0-0 tie with las chivitas last Saturday due to being out of town with the fam, and seeing as how MLSnet.com's deal with the HDNet Beelzebub means no highlights are available, I am left to rely on Mister3d's excellent review of the game (Oh, how I wish I could have seen Mulrooney kick the ball into Galindo's gut. Too bad it wasn't master whiner Preki.), as well as a few other game stories and photos.

When I saw the score I felt like the lone skater in the image above. Still no wins, still OK play, still nothing to see and nowhere to go.

Oh well, at least I have this to look forward to: Dynamo's first win in both 2006 and 2007 came against the Colorado Rapids. Both seasons ended in Cup championships. Guess who's coming to town this Saturday?

(And hey, don't deny me my grasps at the thin, thin shards of whatever hope I can find. Right now, I'll take what I can get.) Read more!

Dynamo-Chivas Prematch Interview with Alex of Offside Chivas

Periodically, we are fortunate enough to exchange questions and answers with fan blogs of our weekly opponents. This week, we feature questions answered by Alex who writes about Chivas USA for theoffside.com.









Wishfully, the Goat's Tree Formation?









With little time to get this out and without further adieu, here is the interview:










NUTMEGGED: What's the deal with Guzan? Does the rumored hangover from his denied English work permt truly linger? Did someone put butter on his gloves? Or was last week's derby match simply a bad game?







OFFSIDE CHIVAS: Brad is a spectacular goalie. I don't think that Brad is the sole issue at back. The team is not playing as a defensive unit. The communication is lacking in the back 5 due to inconsistent line ups. Individually, no one defender has been to blame for the issues, but as a whole (Brad included), the unit has not done it's job. The only thing that will help is time on the pitch. This defense is about 6 weeks behind the rest is terms of consistency. It will come.







NUTMEGGED: Not only has Chivas struggled against the Dynamo the last few year, Robertson Stadium has been an impregnable Mordor for the Goats. This year, both teams appear to be in a bit of a funk, with the usual standouts not standing out. The Orange will come out like angry wasps bringing Guzan quickly under assault. What must Chivas do they haven't done in previous away matches at Robertson?







OFFSIDE CHIVAS: This year Chivas USA, when healthy, have the strongest strike force in the league, especially taking into account new addition Alecko Eskandarian. Chivas USA have had trouble scoring at Robertson. I think the pieces are in place this year to score some goals.

One other issue Chivas USA have struggled with is adapting to the style of play. Chivas USA play a possession game, and as a unit. When Chivas USA hold the ball, they are the most dangerous. Houston does not give Chivas USA any room, not allowing the team to control the tempo or possession.







NUTMEGGED: How do you feel about the decision to let Amado Guevara go without compensation or the decision to acquire him in the forst place? Given Guevara's start in the Great White North where he's taken off like a true hoser (Canuck), do you feel this was a mistake?







OFFSIDE CHIVAS: It was unfortunate that the relationship between Guevara and Preki did not work out. He has some of the qualities the team is looking for. I understand why Bradley gave up so much for a player of his quality. That said, I'm glad he left and supported Preki with his decision. No one person is above the team, and that mentality is a cancer in the locker room. I personally think the team did better without him, creating a core of great players, not just one star.







NUTMEGGED: Preki pretty much was gifted with a very good team built by Bob Bradley. How do you think Preki has fared strengthening or improving what Bob brought (ie, your DP shines in Toronto while Chivas sits uncompensated)? Are his decisions beginning to become worrisome? If you had your druthers, who would you chose to manage the team- Bradley or Preki?








OFFSIDE CHIVAS: Bradley is a great coach, and there is a reason that he is now the coach of the National Team. Bradley put a decent team together, one with potential. I think in 2006, the team placed seventh in the overall table. The talent he acquired was raw, and predominately came from the MLS draft. Preki acquired a few key players that allowed the team to take the 2007 western conference. Key acquisitions were important, including Paulo Nagamura and Shavar Thomas. Those players may not get a lot of credit, but added the bit of experience and skill the team was missing.

The additions in 2008 made by Preki are outstanding. I say this only because of the practices I've seen and the conversations I have had with players. Wicky and Esky are two players that will perform for Chivas USA. Wicky is unknown here, but will show Beckham-like qualities when he gets healthy and playing time. Alecko is one of the best strikers in the league. He was quiet in RSL, mainly do to poor service and an injury he had for most of the season, but when these two players are healthy, they will be competing for a starting position.

As far as his move with Guevara, it needed to be done. Incase we forgot, his last game playing for Chivas USA, he was substituted and on his way off the field, he shoved an official. When Preki tried to trade Guevara to a taker (TFC), he refused to go (against MLS rules). I am glad he is not Chivas USA.







NUTMEGGED: In the Galaxy game, when Razov scored, We thought, "Oh my. This is not the last goal in this game. This is going to get ugly." And at that point if someone had told us the game would end 5-2, I would have predicted Chivas had won. But the defense just seemed to completely fall apart, not just Guzan, but Suarez and Lawson Vaughn. What do you think Chivas must do differently against Dynamo to solve these problems?









OFFSIDE CHIVAS: My opinion on the Galaxy game is the following. The team didn’t really fall apart. Donovan was unstoppable as he has been most of this year. You should agree that the only reason the Galaxy tied the Dynamo a couple weeks ago was because of Donovan. He is single handedly keeping that team in the hunt (by scoring goals). He is on a rampage and IF he can keep it up, then they will qualify for a playoff spot.

I attribute the 5-2 score line to Preki. He chased the game, and I applaud that. He pulled off a defender and inserted a striker to go after a win. Was it the right decision? Zero points are zero points, so might as well go after them.









NUTMEGGED: What makes you most concerned about what you'll see from Dynamo?









OFFSIDE CHIVAS: Hard play. The Dynamo play hard (on the borderline of dirty). No offense intended, it is always a hard match. If we can’t control the game, we find difficulty scoring.









NUTMEGGED: And last,your final score prediction:









OFFSIDE CHIVAS: No prediction …… Last few I predicted W’s for the Red and White and we see what happened. I will predict this. These two teams, regardless of current form, are the best teams in the Western Conference. The match up will be intense.









Due to me not giving enough info to Alex @ Offside Chivas, reciprocal question and answers will not be on the Offsides Chivas site this week. Thank you, Alex, for your excellent answers and hopefully we can correspond in the future. Read more!