One step at a time.

Chivas USA fared a lot better this time in its second match under manager Jose Luis Real on Saturday night against the New England Revolution. The Goats had a lead to work with for the first time in two months and were in position to win its first match in three months, a 3-1 decision against Vancouver back on March 30.

However, just like that, the three points ended up becoming just one point in the end. Laurent Courtois’ goal in the 18th minute was canceled out by Chad Barrett’s equalizer with just two minutes plus stoppage time to go, and the two teams eventually settled for a 1-1 draw at the Stubhub Center.

“A tie’s a good step forward,” Chivas USA keeper Dan Kennedy said. “It was a real building block.”

The result, while still a little hard to swallow as it let a potential win get away from them, had to be somewhat of a relief for the Goats, as it snapped its seven-match losing streak and got its first point in MLS competition since a 2-2 draw against the San Jose Earthquakes back on April 27.

“All in all, to take into consideration in three, four weeks now we’ve completely remodeled this team in terms of formation and tactics,” Kennedy said. “You can tell that we’re adjusting. We’re improving on our tactics.”

Chivas put themselves in a position it had not found themselves in quite a long time; playing with a lead. The Goats staked that position in the 18th minute. A long range volley by defender Josue Soto was parried away by keeper Bobby Shuttlesworth. Chivas though kept the ball in the Revolution’s half of the field and eventually worked it back towards the penalty area, striker Tristan Bowen left a ball for midfielder Laurent Courtois who launched a volley just outside the box that beat Shuttlesworth into the back net at the near post area.

“For me, I was happy with the first half,” Real said. “We had the game, and we let it go.”

Chivas USA maintained the lead late into the second half, and seemed headed for its first win since March 30, but New England got the equalizer in the 88th minute. The Revolution slowly built up its attack, then midfielder Diego Fagundez crossed a ball into the penalty area towards the left post, striker Chad Barrett, who had come on as a substitute in the 83rd minute managed to sneak in behind Chivas midfielder Marco Delgado and touched a ball that crossed the goal line right before Marco De Luna cleared the ball out of the box. Referee Elias Bazakos and the linesman conferred that the ball did cross the goal line right before De Luna’s clearance.

“The guy was pretty tight to me,” Barrett said. “I just wanted to put it on goal. I really couldn’t tell you what happened. I think it hit me, hit the post, maybe hit me again (or) went through his legs. I have no idea, but hey, I’ll take credit for it.”

Chivas USA will try again for an MLS win on the Fourth of July, as it travels to the Lone Star State to face FC Dallas. New England will have its hands full on July 6, as they face a San Jose Earthquakes squad that will surely be riding a tidal wave of momentum following its 3-2 comeback win against the Los Angeles Galaxy.

The Los Angeles Galaxy’s youth academy has recently started to produce some solid players.

One of those players put his talents to full use on Sunday night against Chivas USA. Striker Gyasi Zardes was a handful for the Goats on Sunday night, scoring the match’s lone goal while getting off numerous chances throughout the match. His effort along with the reunion of its formidable backline earned LA a 1-0 win over Chivas at the Stubhub Center.

“A good effort on the night by Gyasi, and he’s going to get better,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “His feet has got to get a little bit better, he’s got to be a little bit better with his touch in front of the goal, but on the night, certainly a good performance.”

Zardes’ goal came right before halftime. Midfielder Landon Donovan sent a free kick into the penalty area and Zardes leaped and headed a ball that glanced off the inside of the near post and snuck the back net with hardly any resistance from keeper Dan Kennedy.

That goal was just one of many chances Zardes had throughout the match. The striker got his first chance 11 minutes in when Donovan crossed a ball from the right into the six-yard box, but Zardes just missed getting a touch on the cross. Zardes’ best shot at goal came in the 36th minute when following a corner kick, midfielder Juninho sent a ball forward into the penalty area towards Zardes and after a quick touch, volleyed a ball towards goal, but Kennedy got enough of the ball that it ricocheted off the right post. Donovan again looked for Zardes, who was unmarked in the box, via the cross in the 39th minute, but Kennedy just beat him to the cross.

“He’s getting better,” Arena said. “Obviously, he can be a little bit better in front of the goal, he had a few chances tonight, but certainly the goal was a real good one.”

Zardes continued his activity around the Chivas net well into the second half. in the 47th minute, a Juninho cross into the 18-yard box was headed by Center Back Omar Gonzalez into the six-yard box towards Zardes, who quickly flicked a dangerous header towards the near post, but missed by inches. Zardes had another chance in the 74th minute when Right Back Sean Franklin lobbed a short ball over the Chivas backline to Zardes, who quickly launched a volley, but the shot was parried away by Kennedy.

“Little things are starting to happen a little more slowly for him,” Donovan said. “He’s not as hectic and rushed as he had been. His passing has gotten better. Initially, he was, I think, just focused on making some space for himself and getting a shot. Now his passing has gotten better, he’s a little better holding the ball, so we’ve just got to keep moving him on.”

The Galaxy thought it had a goal back in the 34th minute, as Donovan sprinted with the ball from the right, then whipped a low cross that went to the top of the penalty area, midfielder Robbie Rogers swooped in and volleyed a ball that beat Kennedy to the left post. However, the goal was waived off, as striker Robbie Keane not only happened to be in an offside position, but was also right in front of Kennedy when Rogers took his chance. Keane also lifted his leg to allow the ball the ball to get through, and all of that made it a pretty easy call for the officials.

The Galaxy outshot Chivas 16-6 and had a 62 percent possession rate against the Goats on Sunday night. Chivas did have one very good chance in the 20th minute, as Carlos Alvarez sprung Tristan Bowen for a run from the right. Bowen then crossed a ball into the penalty area, Gonzalez head the ball away from goal, but it stayed in the box and Jose Manuel Rivera let loose a laser towards goal, but keeper Carlos Cudicini managed to parry the ball away from goal and Gonzalez eventually cleared the ball out of the box.

“We played well enough to maybe sneak a result out of that game,” Kennedy said. “Optimistically, I’m happy with the way we played. We can’t give up goals in set pieces – that’s rule No. 1. But, other than that, it was very good. We created some chances and did a good job of limiting their chances. The game was there to go either way.”

Chivas USA played Sunday’s match with heavy hearts, as the team members wore black armbands in honor of academy player Julio Chavez, who tragically passed away in a car accident last weekend. Despite being sent to its seventh straight loss, Chivas can take solace in the fact that it took its in-stadium rivals right to the final minute.

“Of course there’s always room for [moral victories], but continuing to lose, we’re not accepting it and it can’t become a habit,” Bowen said. “We’ve just got to keep grinding. The guys are full of fight and we’re not giving up. It’s just not there right now.”

Chivas USA will try once again to turn around its misfortunes on Saturday night when it hosts the New England Revolution. The Galaxy meanwhile will travel up north for the California Clasico against the San Jose Earthquakes at Stanford Stadium, also on Saturday night.

The Los Angeles Galaxy got a new sponsor for its decade-old stadium, but it was a former player that made headlines on Wednesday.

The Galaxy played its first game at the newly named Stubhub Center against a strong Portland Timbers side on Wednesday night. Defensively, LA managed to neutralize the Timbers attack for most of the night, but the Timbers got big performances from its keeper and former Galaxy player, Donovan Ricketts, who made five saves, as well as its Center Back tandem of Pa-Modou Kah and Andrew Jean-Baptiste, who were key in Wednesday’s 0-0 draw.

“I thought we defended well for the most part,” Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena said. “There were some things we could’ve done better, but I’m not sure Portland had a whole lot of chances tonight.”

The result is a positive for both sides, as Portland kept its unbeaten streak alive at 14 matches and keeps them in a tie for second place in the Western Conference with Real Salt Lake. Both teams have 27 points, one behind first-place FC Dallas in the Conference. The Galaxy are also in a tie, though theirs is with the Vancouver Whitecaps for fourth in the conference. Its defensive performance though is an improvement over its last two matches in which it surrendered eight goals in those two matches.

“A step forward [for the defense], keeping a shutout against a very hot team right now,” Galaxy Center Back A.J. DeLaGarza said. “I don’t remember anything that really troubled Carlo the entire game. We were in position to make plays when we needed to that we didn’t make the last two games.”

Kah had the game’s first key defensive play in the 5th minute. LA striker Robbie Keane led a Galaxy break, then sent a ball forward for Landon Donovan. Donovan managed to cut inside into the penalty area, but Kah swooped in at the last minute to clear the ball over the endline. Ricketts also had his moments in the first half, denying chances by left back Todd Dunivant in the third minute and striker Gyasi Zardes in the 37th minute. Portland’s best chance came in the 37th minute, as Ryan Miller led a counterattack from the right side, then left a ball for Will Johnson near the penalty area, but Johnson’s chance went wide left.

The Galaxy upped the chances in the second half. Juninho had a good look three minutes into the half, but his patented long-range volley from about 25 yards out missed wide right. LA’s best chance however came in the 56th minute. Following a corner, Center Back Tommy Meyer sent a ball into the penalty area and Dunivant flicked a header and Right Back Sean Franklin’s touch sent the ball towards goal, but the ball instead glanced off the far post and back into play and Portland eventually ended the threat.

“I thought (Portland’s) Center Backs played well and obviously Ricketts is not easy to beat,” Arena said. “This was going to be a game that we had to jump on any kind of opportunity we got.”

The Galaxy continued to apply the pressure as the match wore on. Zardes beat out Michael Harrington for a loose ball in the 75th minute and sprinted for goal. Keane joined in the attack, going in unchecked into the penalty area and Zardes immediately crossed a ball towards him, but Jean-Baptiste managed to cut off the cross before it could get to Keane. LA’s next chance instead turned into Ricketts biggest save of the night. Colin Clark got behind the Timbers backline in the 77th minute to get to a long ball, Clark cut in between the Portland Center Backs and fired a volley inside the penalty area, but the shot was parried away by Ricketts.

“It was a good result,” Timbers head coach Caleb Porter said. “In the end, I thought we were the ones pushing, had the ball and we were the ones looking to get the result.”

The Timbers are back home on Sunday evening to face the Colorado Rapids while the Galaxy face rival Chivas USA on Sunday night.

A late brace from Olmes Garcia gave Real Salt Lake (8-5-4) a crucial home victory over LA Galaxy (6-5-4)  on Saturday. The other goals came from Khari Stephenson and Landon Donovan, both in the first half.

The hosts came into the game with better form than their opponents, having convincingly beaten San Jose Earthquakes in their previous game. Galaxy, on the other hand, were still recovering from a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of New England Revolutions, a record loss in their club history.

The visitors, however, did have history on their side: having put RSL 2-0 away in their previous meeting in April and winning the last four games in all-time series. RSL were missing Alvaro Saborio and Luis Gil due to international duty, whereas the Galaxy coach Bruce Arena had Robbie Keane and Omar Gonzales unavailable.

Compared to their previous meeting, RSL looked much more impressive in the early minutes, with runs from deep from Joao Plata and Robbie Findley keeping Galaxy defenders on their toes. It wasn’t long before the first chance of the game fell to Joao Plata. The forward’s shot from a tight angle was spilled by Galaxy keeper Brian Rowe. Luckily for the youngster, there was no RSL body at the spot to capitalize.

The first-half was evenly-contested, with chances falling to either side. Khari Stephenson came agonizingly close to breaking the deadlock after Javier Morales was clipped by Michael Stephens in the 25^th minute just outside the box. The visitors soon experienced their own share of bad lack in the 29^th minute, as a long range left-footer from Jose Villarreal hit the woodwork.

Galaxy started to get a better hold of the game as the half progressed, with a ball almost falling for Landon Donovan near RSL goal. The forward was then clipped outside the box in the 35^th minute and the resulting free-kick from Villarreal was saved from top-left by Nick Rimando.

Khari Stephenson broke through for RSL just at the stroke of half-time, as good possession from the home side allowed the Jamaican to take a shot from outside the box. The ball went past the reach of Rowe and the young Galaxy keeper might’ve felt he should’ve done better.

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The home side’s lead was momentary, however, as the goal sent the dying minutes of the half into a frenzy. In first-half injury-time, a cross from the left flank fell kindly for Donovan at the edge of the box. The forward’s well-placed volley beat Nick Rimando and leveled the score for the visitors.

The second half started much the same way as the first, with RSL taking early control. After Javier Morales was clipped in the 48^th minute, the set-piece ball from Chris Wingert from well-outside the Galaxy box almost found its way past Rowe.

The gamed opened up a bit more as the half progressed. Following a Galaxy attack, Javier Morales found Robbie Findley. The forward’s shot from the box came at a comfortable height for Rowe. A brilliant lay-off from substitute Olmes Garcia in the 64^th minute set up Morales from an acute angle. The Argentine lost his footing and his effort went wide.

The electric home crowd were not disappointed, however, as Olmes Garcia gave Real Salt Lake a well-deserved lead in the 84^th minute with an incredible gliding header in the box. The Galaxy box was loaded as the cross came in from Morales from the left flan, but the forward still had work to do to convert the chance. Garcia was posing Galaxy all kind of problems after checking in and the goal proved that the forward has skills to go with his pace and power.

The night got better for Garcia, as in injury time Morales’ through ball found Galaxy with numbers down at the back. The young Columbian capped off his performance with a neat finish past Rowe.

The win puts Real Salt Lake on 27 points and as a legit contender for the Supporters’ Shield. Galaxy will look to regroup as they welcome Portland Timbers at home on June 19.

RSL XI (4-4-2 diamond): Rimando; Beltran, Borchers, Kwame, Wingert, Beckerman, Grabavoy, Stephenson (Velasquez 70), Morales, Plata, Findley (Garcia 61)

LA Galaxy (4-4-2) Rowe; Franklin, Meyer, DeLaGarza, Cochrane; Sarvas, Stephens (Jiminez 84), Juninho; Zardes, Villarreal (Rogers 71), Donovan

Sounders got back to business in Seattle against the Vancouver Whitecaps after all the hoopla of the US Men’s National Team and their win in Jamaica on Brad Evans stoppage time goal. There were several USMNT luminaries in attendance in advance of Tuesday’s match in Seattle versus Panama to see the Cascadia Derby played out in front of 53,679 fans in attendance.

Seattle Sounders found the back of the net early in the match on a perfectly weighted through ball down the middle of the park to Andy Rose in the 9th minute to open the scoring for the home side. It would take the visitors mere seconds to equalize as Camilo Sanvesso got on the end of a cross from Russell Teibert.

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Camilo and Teibert would combine again in the 26th minute as Camilo dove past Lamar Neagle to put his head on the cross for his second goal of the evening and a 2-1 lead. There was a bit of confusion from Sounders defending this set piece, Leo Gonzalez was pointing at some Whitecaps players behind the defensive line, in what seemed to be an offside position but moved goal side before the ball was struck.

Down 2-1 at halftime neither Sounders nor Whitecaps made a change for the half, Lamar Neagle and Obafemi Martins would provide the all the lift that Sounders needed. In the 53rd minute there was a minor moment of controversy over a foul on Martins at the top of the box. A penalty could have been awarded, but referee Hilario Grajeda awarded a free kick from the top of the box instead.

Martins and Neagle had several good combination passes that created shooting opportunities, none better than one on a pass from Mauro Rosales that had exceptional pace. Martins controlled the pass in one fluid motion and kept his speed, beat a defender, but put his shot just wide of the net. The combination of Martins to Neagle did unhinge the Whitecaps defense shortly after they had subbed off Andy O’Brien for Greg Klazura. Klazura would find himself beaten in the box by Neagle, and chopped him down from behind. It was an unecessary foul, Neagle was not a threat to score from that position.

Whitecaps did not have an answer after that. Sounders would add an additional goal from Lamar Neagle to secure their three points and the lead for the 2013 Cascadia Cup.

RSL XI: Rimando; Beltran, Salcedo, Borchers, Wingert; Beckerman, Grabavoy, Gil (Velasquez 71’), Morales; Findley (Saborio 61’), Plata (Alvarez 83’)

Chicago Fire XI: Johnson; Anibaba, Soumare, Berry, Segares; Duka (Amarikwa 74’), Pause, Larentowicz, Lindpere; Rolfe (Alex 63), Nyarko

Real Salt Lake were held to a 1-1 draw at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday. The goals came in the second half through Alvaro Saborio and Quincy Amerikwa.

History suggested the game would a cagey affair: Chicago Fire came into the game in middle of a 277 minute goalless streak and a woeful 0-4-1 record on theroad. Although Real Salt Lake had picked up 6 points from 3 consecutive games including a strong 4-1 win over Chivas, but had not scored in the last three games against Chicago Fire.

The first quarter of the match saw very little action. RSL enjoyed their usual chunk of home possession, but it was the Chicago team who had the first half-chance of the game. A long throw from Jalil Anibaba found its way to Chris Rolfe at the edge of the box, the forward’s volley went wide. The first RSL chances came in pairs and in quick succession in the 21^st and 22^nd minute, both for skipper Kyle Beckerman. The first was a back-heel from Gravaboy to the RSL captain in the box, whose shot was too weak to trouble Chicago keeper. The second was an effort from a relatively long range, but failed to work Johnson.

RSL soon started to take hold of the game and created a few good goal-scoring opportunities. A hole in the Fire defense left Plata with some space in the 28^th minute. The Striker shot just outside the box and forced Johnson to make a save. In the 29^th minute, good play from left flank from Joao Plata found Ned Gravaboy, whose glancing header fell straight into Johnson’s lap. Controlled possession outside the box found Findley just outside the box in the 32^nd minute, with the forward cutting inside beautifully to his left foot and forcing another save from Johnson. Plata, who had been lively again in this game, found himself in threatening positions in the 34^thand 35^th minute , but couldn’t find a telling final ball.

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Chicago started to find their feet late into the first-half, with an effort for Joel Lindpere going over the bar. Their best chance in the half came in the 39^th minute, when a brilliant run from Patrick Nyorko left the RSL defense in his heels. Nat Borchers recovered in time to deny him a shot on goal.

The half ended with another great chance for the home team, as Chris Wingert’s mistimed attempt from edge of the box allowed for a Findley header that went just over.

The second half started with the home team continuing their domination and forward Robbie Findley should’ve put RSL in front in the 50^th minute. A perfectly weighted cross from Plata found the forward unmarked with plenty of time, but he couldn’t slot it home. This was followed by a couple of long-range efforts from Plata and Wingert. Dilly Duka countered for Fire with a great solo run from his own box into the RSL half, but his left-footer  didn’t trouble Rimando. Logan Pause also had an attempt from outside the box, which went way over.

RSL continued with their onslaught and Alvaro Saborio, who was returning from a month-long injury and checked in for Findley, found his feet quickly with a great touch off a lobbed pass and a chipped finish that almost left Johnson embarrassed. Javier Morales could’ve felt unlucky as a brilliant set-piece just outside the box just kept out by a combination of Johnson and goal-bar.

The anticipated goal came in the 77^th minute as Alvaro Saborio capped off his return with a goal. Dribbling from Velasquez at the edge of the Fire box allows time for Gravaboy to get into position and cross from the byline. The Costa-Rican finished off the attack with a brilliant header.

The home team were cruising to a win but their defense switched off and allowed Chicago Fire to level the score. Long throw from Anibaba found the substitute Quincy Amarikwa in the box. An excellent finish in the box leveled the game for Chicago Fire.

The equalizer was against the run of play and completely threw Kreis’ men off guard. In the dying seconds of the second of the half, their defense struggled to cope with the physical presence of Alex and Amarikwa and could have easily been behind if it weren’t for some urgent goalmouth clearance.

However, on the whole, it probably was Jason Kreis who would be the more disappointed of the two coaches, having had the lion’s share of possession and chances. Real Salt Lake move to 21 points going into three more consecutive home games, whereas Chicago Fire continue their sluggish run this season with 8 points.

Real Salt Lake (7-5-3, 24 points) scored a thumping 3-0  win over an under-confident San Jose (3-6-6, 15 points) at Rio Tinto on Saturday, June 1.  The goals came from Javier Morales,  Ned Gravaboy and Robbie Findley, all in the first half of the game.

San Jose were coming into the game in poor road form (0-4-2), with a 1-0 defeat on the road against FC Dallas  and having been knocked out of the US Open Cup by Charleston Battery. Real Salt Lake would have felt they dropped two home points against Chicago Fire, but progressed to the next round of US Open Cup with a hard-fought win over Atlanta Silverbacks.

The home team took their time to get out of the blocks. The first opening came in the 11^th minute when the Earthquakes gave the ball away cheaply in their own half and Robbie Findley charged into the heart of the Quakes defense to earn his side a free-kick. The resulting set-piece from Javier Morales was on target, but was tipped over the bar by San Jose keeper Jon Busch.

The early  home goal came soon however, as RSL midfield won the ball and let Findley free in the 17^th minute. The veteran forward’s low shot was saved by Busch, but the rebound was easily put in by Javier Morales.

The home team looked to ride on the early momentum, allowing little time for the San Jose midfield to settle on the ball. Tony Beltran’s 18^th minute cross was held well by Busch and the Quakes keeper had to parry away another threatening cross from Kyle Beckerman.  Several corners and long-rangers from RSL soon followed.

The Earthquakes were all over the place and were barely posing an attacking threat.  Real Salt Lake soon got their two-goal cushion in the 33^rd minute, as Morales found plenty of space in the right wing and his low cross was dummied by Joao Plata. In-form midfielder Ned Gravaboy was unmarked at the far post and capped off the counter with a neat left-footer.

The Quakes’ misery continued as another break-away from Real Salt Lake in the 38^th minute found Findley at the edge of the box. The forward’s fierce low shot comfortably beat keepers to give the home team a 3-0 lead and leaving San Jose a mountain to climb.

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San Jose Earthquakes coach Frank Yallop was clearly unhappy with the lack of ball retention in his midfield, with rushed substitutions taking both Adam Jahn and Sam Cronin out of the game in the 40^th minute. Steven Lanhart and Rafael Baca took their places.

The second half saw San Jose get slightly more of the ball in the attacking half. Walter Martinez, tucked into a central role after the substitutions, got involved with the play a bit more and stretched the play with his passes, now having three forwards to aim for. Their first real chance of the game in the 59^th minute as second-half substitute Abdoullie Mansally gave the ball away cheaply and a long ranger from Baca was saved by Rimndo. Beitashour was unable to net home from the rebound. The visitors soon followed with another effort from Chris Wondolowski in the 65^th minute after good build-up in the RSL box. His effort was again denied by Nick Rimando.  The RSL keeper was again called into action.

This, however, appeared too little too late and RSL had their own opportunities to further worsen the night for the visitors. RSL won the ball in midfield in the 69^th minute and an assist from Morales allowed Gravaboy to shoot from outside the box. His effort, however, went way over the bar. Morales found himself soon in a goal-scoring position as well, but was unable to control the ball at the vital moment.

The final quarter of the match was relatively uneventful and the home side was happy to close the game with a clean sheet

Their second win over San Jose this season lifts Real Salt Lake to second place in Western Conference as they welcome LA Galaxy at home on June 8.

A week of turbulence for Chivas USA ended the way it has for the club the last four MLS matches; with a loss.

Just three days after it parted ways with coach Jose Luis “El Chelis” Sanchez Sola, Chivas USA took the field on Saturday against the Seattle Sounders under its interim coach, Sacha van der Most. Unfortunately for the Goats, not even new leadership, albeit on a temporary occasion, could turn around the team’s recent misfortune, as two goals, with the second coming from Chivas themselves, sent Chivas to its fifth straight MLS loss 2-0 to the Sounders at the Home Depot Center.

“The team’s performance and effort, the work we all put in and the experience were all good,”  said van der Most. “We need to work like this with a new system. We only had two days to work together, and it wasn’t enough time. I think the team gave everything they had,”

Seattle first struck in the 22nd minute, as Lamar Neagle touched a ball sent from Mario Roberto Martinez to a sprinting Obafemi Martins. The striker raced into the penalty area, then chipped a ball over Chivas USA keeper Dan Kennedy into the back net for his fourth goal of the season. Chivas gifted the Sounders second goal in the 33rd minute when midfielder Mauro Rosales crossed a ball into the six-yard box, Chivas defender Mario De Luna looked to cut off the cross, but instead headed the ball into the back net for an own goal.

“We feel good about what we can do,” Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said. “The team is still very confident in their abilities. We know we laid an egg here last week. Today, they stepped up and showed their character.”

van der Most,  currently the team’s Youth Academy Director, assumed the role of head coach after Chivas cut ties with Chelis on Wednesday, which actually came after the team had advanced in the US Open Cup against the L.A. Blues on Tuesday. van der Most will coach the team in its USOC match against the Carolina RailHawks on Wednesday before giving way to former Chivas Guadalajara manager Jose Luis Real, who was named as Chelis’ replacement as head coach for the remainder of the season.

“We had great support from the players and they reacted very well to what we wanted to do,” van der Most said. “I thought both training sessions went very well. I was lucky to have a great staff, all Youth Development coaches. It’s a positive experience for us working this way [with the first team] because we know that we can work together at this level.”

Chivas USA will have 18 days off before its next match, a road game against the Vancouver Whitecaps on June 19 where it is expected Jose Luis Real could make his debut. Seattle meanwhile will be back home against Cascadia rival Vancouver Whitecaps a week from today.