MLS Major League Soccer

Chivas USA and New York Most Active Before Roster Freeze Deadline

Published on September 15, 2008 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release


Chivas USA and New York Red Bulls Most Active At Roster Freeze Deadline

Among MLS teams making moves on the last day of transactions for the 2008 season, Chivas USA and the New York Red Bulls were the most active. Sasha Victorine, a nine-year veteran who starred in Los Angeles during college and his early days in MLS, heads back to the West Coast after being traded by Kansas City to Chivas USA. Victorine's new club also signed Dejair Ferreira, a 30-year-old Brazilian midfielder who joins the League from ABC FC of Natal, Brazil. The Red Bulls acquired rising USL star Macoumba Kandji, of Senegal, and signed goalkeeper Terry Boss. Below are several key deadline-day moves. More transactions will be announced in the coming days. Check the team web sites for more details:

- Chivas USA added Sasha Victorine (via trade with the Kansas City Wizards) as a Disabled List replacement for Raphael Wicky.

- Chivas USA added Dejair Ferreira to their senior roster as a discovery and international player. He is a season ending injury replacement for Lawson Vaughn.

- D.C. United claimed Ryan Miller off waivers and signed him as a developmental player.

- The New York Red Bulls added Terry Boss to their senior roster as a season ending injury replacement for Oscar Echeverry.

- The Red Bulls added Macoumba Kandji to their senior roster as an international player.

MLS Cup Playoff Race at a Glance

There are six weeks left in the MLS regular season and a few teams are distancing themselves from the pack. If the season ended today the automatic berths in the Eastern Conference would go to the Columbus Crew, New England Revolution and the Chicago Fire. The automatic berths in the Western Conference would go to Houston Dynamo, Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA.

The two wildcard berths would go to the New York Red Bulls and D.C. United. The Red Bulls, with two points more than United, would qualify as the first wildcard and would remain in the Eastern Conference. United would qualify as the second wild card and become the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoffs bracket. For complete playoff qualification guidelines and tiebreakers click here.

The MLS Cup Playoffs begin Oct. 30.

2008 MLS STANDINGS

INCLUDES GAMES OF SUNDAY, September 14, 2008

---------- OVERALL ----------- ---- HOME ---- ---- ROAD ----

Eastern GP W L T PTS GF GA GD W L T GF GA W L T GF GA

Columbus (1) 24 13 6 5 44 41 30 11 8 2 2 25 14 5 4 3 16 16

New England (2) 24 12 7 5 41 35 33 2 6 3 3 21 14 6 4 2 14 19

Chicago (3) 24 11 8 5 38 30 20 10 5 4 2 12 8 6 4 3 18 12

New York (x) 24 9 7 8 35 30 30 0 8 1 3 22 11 1 6 5 8 19

D.C. United (y) 24 10 11 3 33 39 38 1 8 3 2 30 15 2 8 1 9 23

Kansas City 24 7 9 8 29 26 33 -7 6 2 3 15 12 1 7 5 11 21

Toronto FC 24 7 11 6 27 25 33 -8 5 2 6 13 9 2 9 0 12 24

---------- OVERALL ----------- ---- HOME ---- ---- ROAD ----

Western GP W L T PTS GF GA GD W L T GF GA W L T GF GA

Houston (1) 24 10 5 9 39 35 28 7 8 1 3 25 13 2 4 6 10 15

Real Salt Lake (2) 24 8 9 7 31 30 31 -1 7 0 5 20 7 1 9 2 10 24

Chivas USA (3) 24 8 10 6 30 31 37 -6 6 3 3 17 11 2 7 3 14 26

Colorado (*) 24 9 12 3 30 32 32 0 7 4 1 19 9 2 8 2 13 23

San Jose 24 7 9 8 29 24 28 -4 5 3 4 18 15 2 6 4 6 13

FC Dallas 24 6 9 9 27 32 32 0 4 4 4 17 16 2 5 5 15 16

Los Angeles 24 6 10 8 26 44 49 -5 4 4 4 25 21 2 6 4 19 28

x - New York enters as the first wildcard and remains in the Eastern Conference

y - D.C. United enters as the second wildcard and shifts to the Western Conference where they hold the fourth seed

* - Colorado is eliminated based on head-to-head versus Chivas USA

Highlighted teams are out of the playoffs

MLS Week 26: Sept. 18-21, 2008

(All times Eastern)

Thursday, September 19

New York Red Bulls at Columbus Crew, 7:00 p.m. ET (ESPN2, Deportes)

- This could be a preview of an Eastern Conference Semifinal series, as the teams would be matched up if the season ended today. The teams have met just once in the MLS Cup Playoffs, with Columbus advancing in 1998.

- The question of the week will be whether the Crew's star playmaker, Guillermo Barros Schelotto (6 goals, 18 assists) can recover from a hamstring injury that kept him out of his team's 1-1 draw at Toronto on Saturday.

- Of its first seven games this season, Columbus won all but one: A 2-0 loss to New York at Giants Stadium. Dave van den Bergh scored the fastest goal in club history just 47 seconds into the match and Kevin Goldthwaite doubled the lead in the eighth minute.

- The Red Bulls host the teams' third and final meeting of the regular season on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Saturday, September 20

Toronto FC at Kansas City Wizards, 8:00 p.m. (HDNet)

- A huge game for two teams currently on the outside of the MLS Cup Playoffs. A win for either team will keep playoff hopes alive; a tie will do little for their chances.

- Toronto FC have a 1-0-1 record this season against the Wizards, who did not score on the Reds in either trip to BMO Field.

- Kansas City's Davy Arnaud has scored in three consecutive games, including a long-distance blast into the top corner on Saturday.

San Jose Earthquakes at Houston Dynamo, 8:30 p.m. (DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

The city of Houston's recovery from Hurricane Ike will certainly be a theme of this game and could affect the time or venue. The Dynamo will announce any changes in the coming days. Houston's CONCACAF Champions League match against Firpo of El Salvador was postponed. It is rematch of a spirited draw between the teams Saturday. These teams boast, arguably, the two most dynamic midfields in the League; Darren Huckerby, Francisco Lima and Ronnie O'Brien run the show for San Jose while Brad Davis, Dwayne De Rosario, Stuart Holden and Ricardo Clark are the engine for the Dynamo.

Chivas USA at Real Salt Lake, 9:00 p.m. (DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

In what will be team's last game ever in Rice-Eccles Stadium, RSL looks to preserve their unbeaten home record (7-0-5) against a Chivas USA team nipping at their heels in the Western Conference standings. RSL's next home game, on Oct. 9, will be the inaugural game at the team's new soccer stadium in Sandy, Utah. Chivas USA defender Carey Talley began the season as captain of RSL, but was traded on May 9. This is his first game in Salt Lake since. He played 60 games for RSL from 2006-2008.

New England Revolution at Colorado Rapids, 9:00 p.m. (DK, MLSLIVE.tv)

New England has not won in Colorado since June 15, 2002, when they won 2-1. The Rapids have won five of the six games in the Rocky Mountain State since, including a 3-0 win last year in their only meeting at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. When the Rapids won 1-0 at Gillette Stadium on April 12 in the first meeting this season, it marked the first time since July 24, 2002 the visiting team won in the series. The Revolution have been involved in three consecutive 4-0 games. After losing 4-0 to Joe Public FC of Trinidad & Tobago in the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions League preliminary round series, the Revs then lost 4-0 to the Columbus Crew. But they turned around last week with the 4-0 victory against Chivas USA. The Rapids are 9-0-1 when scoring first; The Revolution are 12-2-2 when scoring first.

D.C. United at Los Angeles Galaxy, 11:00 p.m. (FSC, FSE)

This is Bruce Arena's first time facing D.C. United as coach of the Galaxy. Arena, United's first coach, led the club to two MLS Cups, a U.S. Open Cup title and two international titles. As coach of the New York Red Bulls, he went 1-3-1 against United. The two most successful clubs in MLS history square off for the second time this season. In the first meeting, United overwhelmed the Galaxy, 4-1, at RFK Stadium. In that game, United's Designated Player, Marcelo Gallardo, received a yellow card when his arm struck Landon Donovan, causing his nose to bleed. Donovan received a yellow card for arguing the ruling. The Galaxy are desperate for a win to get back in the playoff hunt. They are winless in 12 MLS games; their last victory was on June 14.

Sunday, September 21

FC Dallas at Chicago Fire, 3:00 p.m. (TeleFutura)

Chicago is 0-4-1 in its past five games against FC Dallas, including two at Toyota Park. The Fire's most recent victory over FC Dallas was June 12, 2005 at Soldier Field. FC Dallas won the teams' first meeting this season, 1-0, on a 14th-minute tally from Kenny Cooper, whose 14 goals rank him second in MLS behind Landon Donovan (16). Chicago Fire forward Brian McBride scored seven goals in 16 games against Dallas as a member of the Columbus Crew.

New England Revolution Midfielder Steve Ralston Wins MLS Player of the Week Award

Steve Ralston was voted Major League Soccer's Player of the Week for Week 25 of the 2008 season. Ralston had a goal and two assists as New England defeated Chivas USA 4-0 last Thursday. The victory improved the Revolution's record to 12-7-5 (41 points), helping New England keep pace with the Eastern Conference leading Columbus Crew (44 points). With the victory, the Revolution broke a five-game winless streak in all competitions.

This is Ralston's second Player of the Week award this season and the third of his career. He last won the award in Week 14 of this season after scoring both goals in the Revolution's 2-1 victory over Toronto FC. Ralston leads his team in goals (7) and assists (7). New England (12-7-5) returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 20 when they travel to Dick's Sporting Goods Park to play the Colorado Rapids at 9 p.m. ET. For more on Player of the Week honor click here.

The Major League Soccer Player of the Week is selected each week of the MLS regular season by a panel of journalists from The North American Soccer Reporters (NASR). The group consists of members of print, television, radio and online media. More information and membership information can be found at http://www.soccerreporters.com/.

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Major League Soccer Stories from September 15, 2008


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