Chivas USA Mourns the Loss of Julio Chavez

Published on June 18, 2013 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Club Deportivo Chivas USA News Release


Talented, always smiling and a great teammate. Those were the words that best described defender and captain of Chivas USA's U17/18 squad Julio Chávez, who passed away over the weekend in a car accident in Modesto, Calif. Chavez is survived by his parents Francisco and Isabel Chávez, and four siblings, Francisco, Claudia, Rafael and Cecilia.

Chávez, who had been a part of Chivas USA's Youth Academy for over three years, worked hard to become what he always dreamed of, a professional soccer player. In the 2012/2013 U.S. Soccer Development Academy season, the Modesto, Calif. native played 13 games (eight starts) since an ACL tear cut his season in half.

Despite his injury, Chavez, who lived with a family in Southern California, continued attending his team's training sessions in the City of Bell Gardens and was even able to recover ahead of planned.

"He did a great job in the recovering process and became a strong part of the U18 team in the last six games winning streak. He then started as a center back and became the captain, leading the group into the playoffs," said Chivas USA's U18 Assistant Coach Mike Munoz.

Outside of the field, Chavez was a great student, graduating from Birmingham High School in 2012. His performance in the classrooms and on the field led him to earn a full scholarship to attend the California State University in Los Angeles.

The Chivas USA family offers its deepest condolences to the friends and family of Julio Chávez. Both the U17/18 and U15/16 squads are determined to fight in the USSDA playoffs and earn the national championship to honor the great teammate Julio Chávez was. Chivas USA will honor the player's life and remember him by wearing a black armband with his name and number and hosting a moment of silence before the SuperClásico game vs. LA Galaxy on Sunday, June 23 at the StubHub Center.

Rest In Peace.

Chivas USA look for first win at Vancouver

When Chivas USA square off against Vancouver Whitecaps FC at BC Place this Wednesday, June 19, the clubs will dispute their seventh all-time match in the young series. Since Major League Soccer's expansion into the Pacific Northwest over the last few seasons, the Rojiblancos have established new and exciting Western Conference rivalries with Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders as well as Vancouver.

The Rojiblancos are coming off a two-week bye and enter the match looking to establish positive results under newly-appointed Head Coach José Luis Real, who will be making his League debut. Whitecaps FC have won two out of their last three matches and will look to improve on their 19-point total.

The young series began in Vancouver's inaugural season in 2011 at Empire Field, where the sides played to a scoreless tie. Since then, Vancouver has taken a slight advantage in head-to-head meetings with a record of 2-1-3, including two wins to take last year's season series. Because of Major League Soccer's unbalanced schedule, conference opponents face each other three times each season.

Chivas USA won this year's first meeting at home in March, 2-1, to take the early advantage in the series. The Red-and-White were led by Eric Avila's one-time volley and aided by an own goal to take a two-nil lead in the second half. Vancouver would cut the lead in half with a second-half score of their own but the Goats' defense remained stout and came away with the points at home.

Red-and-White goalkeeper and captain Dan Kennedy came up big repeatedly to help preserve the conference win and improve on his all-time series-leading 13 saves. Kennedy has also recorded a franchise-best two shutouts against the Canadian side. Come Wednesday, Kennedy and the Rojiblancos will look to come away with their first win at Vancouver. The last time the sides met at BC Place last October, the 'Caps turn the contest into a 4-0 rout. One of the few bright spots on the night was the MLS debut of Academy product Marco Delgado, who came on as a sub in the second half and played 17 minutes.

Should Chivas USA come away with their first win at Vancouver, it will mark the first time in the series' history that back-to-back win are recorded for either side.

Delgado's added confidence

At his young age of 18 years old, Chivas USA midfielder Marky Delgado has already experienced what many other players his age simply dream of. Not only was he the youngest player to sign a professional contract in Red-and-White history, but he has already made his debut in Major League Soccer and every time he steps in the field, he stands out.

On Sunday morning, Delgado had the opportunity to expand his résumé and experience as Chivas USA took on brother club Chivas Guadalajara in a friendly match. The Glendora native entered the match for the second half, alongside several players from the Chivas USA starting line-up.

"I felt great. I went out there and just played my game. I was feeling comfortable out there and I didn't feel intimidated at all, and I just played my game," Delgado said. "It's always something special; I was facing Marco Fabian, who is this big, famous player and I had the opportunity to face him."

Throughout the second half of the match, Delgado helped push the team forward in order to find the equalizer for the Angelino Red-and-White. In the 84th minute, after going through three Guadalajara defenders, Delgado shot on goal from the right side of the box, but unfortunately, the ball hit the left post and the ball was left for a goal clearance.

"Usually in those plays, I pass it. For some reason, this time I thought to myself, 'I'm going to take this shot.' When I shot it, it hit the post instead of going in so it was a bit disappointing," commented Delgado on his scoring opportunity.

With the added confidence, Delgado has yet another shot at fighting for a spot in the Chivas USA starting line-up. With new coach José Luis Real taking control, Delgado feels more comfortable and confident that he'll earn more minutes this season with the Red-and-White.

"I feel comfortable with the new coach; I feel that I have more confidence with him. When we're in practice, he stops you and tells you what you're doing wrong and continues correcting you until you get it right and it's nice that he gives you the confidence you need to keep improving," Delgado finalized.

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