Chivas USA new Angle Scores Big

PRO SOCCER NEWS:  Chivas USA NEWS Tie Philadelphia Union

MLS Chivas USA update for October 3rd, 2011 - Chivas USA played Pliadelpia Union at The Home Depot center and the match ends in a draw with the help of Juan Pablo Angel seventh goal since joining the team.

With a sense of late-season urgency, the Chivas USA Rojiblancos faced a second-year Philadelphia team well-equipped with ten victories and thirteen ties.

Late in the match, Philadelphia took the lead through Justin Mapp at the 59^th minute. Chivas USA found the equalizer in the 90^th minute through Juan Pablo Angel’s seventh goal since joining the squad. Angel’s header sent the 16,134 in attendance into a frenzy and keeping the team’s hopes of reaching the playoffs alive. The tie gives the Red and White 36 points with two matches remaining in the regular season. With the result the Goats remain in the seventh position in the Western Conference.

• The scoreboard opened up in the 59th minute of play when Union Justin Mapp knocked in an unassisted goal. The midfielder broke into the final third and struck from 23 yards out to beat Chivas USA’s goalkeeper Dan Kennedy who dived to his left side but couldn’t deflect the ball, which found the back of his net. The goal gives Mapp three on the season. 

• Super Dan Kennedy again continued to make his case for being perhaps the team’s most valuable player, as he held the Union to just one goal. Kennedy’s solid play between the posts kept his team within striking distance of the eventual tie.

• Despite being down 1-0, the Rojiblancos continued to press the action in search of a goal of their own. Fraser’s squad had multiple near misses in the second half, as they out shot Philadelphia 8-4 in the second half (14-9 for the overall match). None came any closer than Alejandro Moreno’s tap-shot that hit the left post in the 65^th minute. 

• However, it was Angel who was not to be denied, as his equalizing goal gives him seven since joining the Goats in August. Down by the minimal difference in the 90th minute of regulation, Head Coach Robin Fraser’s squad found the equalizing goal on yet another timely header by forward Juan Pablo Angel. With the Red and White consistently knocking on the door throughout the second half, sub and defender, Michael Lahoud, served a precise assist from the right side towards the back post to the awaiting Angel.

Many positives came from the match this evening, the most of which was defending home field by securing the last-minute tie and coming away with one point, which keeps the Rojiblancos’ postseason hopes alive. Since the acquisition of Angel, and the solid play of Justin Braun since being moved the last few games to midfielder, the team has shown flashes of being indeed a potential offensive force.  

LA’s soccer cross hall rivalry is back for its last installment of the regular season; El Superclasico will have Chivas USA as the visiting team this time around at The Home Depot Center. This is the second-to-last regular season match for the Goats as they take on the Los Angeles Galaxy, Sunday October 16 at 6:00 pm PT, which will be broadcasted on ESPN and ESPN Deportes as well as W Radio 690 AM.  

THE WORD FROM THE TEAMS:

• CHIVAS USA – Head Coach Robin Fraser

On game: We didn’t start with the right amount of urgency and not until we gave up the goal that we saw the right amount of urgency, then you’re fighting an up-hill battle. We didn’t put our best foot forward; we didn’t put a good enough foot forward until it was very late. As we’ve seen many times throughout the year, if we wait until we’re down a goal and we play with a ton of urgency then, sometimes we don’t get it done.

On goal and playoff contention: Obviously a life line is better than none at all, it was a great service and a great finish. It was a critically important goal for us, but our chances are extremely slim. In sports, you certainly like to control your own destiny and that was many games ago for us and now, not only do we have to sit in wait, but we have to take care of ourselves. But it’s better to have a lifeline and some chance than none at all but we could have and should have put ourselves in a better position.

At the end of the day, professional sports are about results, and we’re very aware of that, and it’s a process. We do realize things along the way and it’s important to figure out exactly what you need and what you don’t have. Among the many things we’ve learned along the line this year is what we need to look at and how we need to improve looking forward. 

I’ve been involved in the game too long and played in too many games and been a part of too many games to say that if we had some luck, we’d be in a much better position. I think to get in and compete for a championship you have to do certain things for yourself. I think that we’ve seen positive steps throughout the season but we’ve also seen negative things throughout the season. To get to where you need to go, you need to have more of those positive moments and less of those negative moments.

We look at next week and as long as we have hope, as slim as it may be, that’s our focus and we’re doing everything we have to get ready for that game and get a positive result in that game. If something happens that changes our faith, our approach is still the same, it’s a game that we want to win and we’re professionals and we’re committed to putting our best effort forward.

• On Juan Pablo Angel: You’ve seen Juan play and we’ve seen him score goals, and those are huge for us, but there is a side of him that has elevated the professionalism in the locker room and in trainings and I think that’s immeasurable. If you can come in and be a leader and demand of yourself and demand of others and actually go out and produce on the field, what an ideal situation for a team.

CHIVAS USA – Goalkeeper Dan Kennedy

• On the game: It’s extremely disappointing. I would say that, unfortunately, its results like these, at home, that cost us a chance at the playoffs.

• On the first goal: Unfortunately, I think that got us going. It shouldn’t take a goal against us to do this. We should know what’s at stake with this game, at home. We should be at the front foot attacking, putting balls in. We didn’t do that until we got scored on.

CHIVAS USA – Forward Justin Braun

• On the game:  “Obviously disappointing, I don’t know what our chances are now with the playoffs but I think we had to win out here.  Definitely disappointing, I thought we were pushing for it in the end and unfortunately we didn’t get enough to get it.”
• On the team’s reaction throughout the game: “I think we came out too slow and we went behind, and once you fall behind you have to fight back and we didn’t have enough tonight.”

PHILADELPHIA UNION – Head Coach Peter Nowak:

• Overall thoughts: “That was the last chance for Chivas to get a taste of the playoffs or be in the group that still have a chance, so they threw a lot of numbers forward, and you could see it was the last chance for them to come back in the game.  We played a very difficult and tough game on Thursday and had to fly across the country, so at some point I knew that we were going to break down.  We held up pretty good to the pressure from Chivas, and I think in the last 6 games we’ve been very good and we’ve managed to be in the position where we control our own destiny with three games to go.”
• On getting a road point: “It was a difficult environment.  The same as in Kansas City where we managed to tie the game too.  Every point is valuable at this stage; everything is wide open.  There’s not too many games left.”
• On the remaining regular season games: “We’ve seen in this league when teams think they’re already in the playoffs, the switch goes off, and all of the sudden they cannot come back.  This group has put a lot of work in the past six weeks, and we’re going to continue to do that.  It was a tough, difficult, physical game.  Sometimes we need to do a better job, but after the Thursday game and getting a point today, I think we’re very happy where we are.”

PHILADELPHIA UNION - Midfielder Justin Mapp

• On his goal: “The ball turned over in their half of the field, and I had a lot of space and a couple options. I think there was somebody to the right and one to the left, but no [defenders] really stepped so I just hit a low shot, and it found it’s way in I guess.”
• On the importance of winning the conference: “Obviously we want first place in the East, and the things it brings, whether it’s home field, or a bye and not having to deal with the wildcard.  It will be a battle these last few games and there is still a lot of soccer to play, but it would be huge.”

PHILADELPHIA UNION - Midfielder Freddy Adu

• On making an impact as a substitute: “It’s a tough game to come into.  Whenever you enter a game at halftime, and it’s 0-0 and the team is team battling for points, it’s tough.  You have to work both ways.  You have to try your best to help out your team out going forward and also defending.  Guys like Danny Califf and Sebastien Le Toux are always in your ear, letting you know you always have to be tuned in. 
• On his role in the goal and the result: “One of the things the coaching staff has been talking about is pressuring the ball, and I was able to step in and do that.  Justin [Mapp] got a great goal off that, a very important goal.  So for me personally, I guess I am satisfied with that, but also I’m disappointed at the same time.  We really wanted to have the three points, and we had a good chance of winning.  Team always comes first and we would have liked to get the three points tonight.”
• On winning the Eastern conference: “It’s very important, because if you do, you get a bye and all that.  We’ve worked so hard.  I joined the team midseason, but the coaching staff and all the players have been helping me integrate myself into the team.  It’s been great for me personally, and I love being a part of the group.  I think we all have one goal on our mind, which is to come first in the East.  We’ve worked so hard and we think we deserve that, but we have to step out on the field and make it happen.”

Chivas USA (8-12-12) vs. Philadelphia Union FC (10-7-14)

October 2, 2011- The Home Depot Center

Scoring Summary:
PHI -- Justin Mapp 3 (unassisted) 59
CHV -- Juan Pablo Angel 10 (Michael Lahoud 3, Blair Gavin 3) 90

Philadelphia Union -- Zac MacMath, Sheanon Williams, Danny Califf, Carlos Valdes, Gabriel Farfan, Amobi Okugo (Roger Torres 46), Brian Carroll, Justin Mapp (Kyle Nakazawa 74), Michael Farfan, Veljko Paunovic (Freddy Adu 46), Sebastien Le Toux.
Substitutes Not Used: Jack McInerney, Zach Pfeffer, Joe Tait, Chase Harrison.

Chivas USA -- Dan Kennedy, Michael Umana, Andrew Boyens (Michael Lahoud 74), David Junior Lopes, Ante Jazic, Justin Braun, Nick LaBrocca, Simon Elliott (Blair Gavin 46), Laurent Courtois (Marcos Mondaini 58), Alejandro Moreno, Juan Pablo Angel.
Substitutes Not Used: Victor Estupinan, Jorge Flores, Zarek Valentin, Zach Thornton.

Misconduct Summary:
CHV -- David Junior Lopes (caution; Reckless Tackle) 21
PHI -- Gabriel Farfan (caution; Reckless Foul) 28
PHI -- Zac MacMath (caution; Delaying a Restart) 77

Referee: Michael Kennedy
Referee's Assistants: Kermit Quisenberry; Bill Dittmar
4th Official: Ramon Hernandez

Attendance: 16,134
Time of Game: 1:52
Weather: Clear-and-79-degrees

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