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De La Fuente Capitalized on His Second Stint with Chivas USA

November 12, 2013 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Club Deportivo Chivas USA News Release


After nearly two years away from the club and with a cloud of uncertainty hovering over his soccer career, midfielder Bryan de la Fuente made a successful return to Chivas USA. The former academy product made his professional debut with the Rojiblancos in 2010 and tried his luck south of the border with Mexican First Division side Club Tijuana, but the Texas-born attacker was not signed, leaving the 21-year-old without a club.

Fortunately for the attacker, he was able to catch on with the Red-and-White's U-23 team and helped the squad take the state title in its inaugural season. De la Fuente was a key contributor on the squad and impressed Chivas' front office and coaching staff enough to be brought on with the First Team in August.

De la Fuente, who moved to Southern California at the age of 15, not only reintegrated himself with the team that gave him his first opportunity, but he took full advantage of the second one with the Goats. The attacker started his first match immediately after signing and tallied his first career goal in a conference loss at home to FC Dallas.

The accomplishment, however, served as a coming of full circle for De la Fuente, so to speak. De la Fuente once described how in his comeback attempt he was forced to train in public parks alone to maintain game shape and sharpness. Despite the rocky finish to the 2013 campaign for the Red-and-White, De la Fuente's feel-good story of perseverance remains as one of the season's bright spots. The midfielder started in 11-straight matches, setting a career high by far in games played and minutes, which gave him a first-look at just how the competition has grown since his last MLS season.

"This league is getting better and better every year," De la Fuente said. "I think everyone has seen the progress. Right now the league has a good level. This is a league where you're going to play with top players and international players."

De la Fuente secured the left wing position and tallied a pair of scores for the Goats. Yet the former U.S. U-20 National Team member says he is driven to keep improving and continue building on the progress he made during the season and form part of the nucleus of talented young players heading into the 2014 campaign.

"I think the strength, especially in my legs," De la Fuente mentioned in regard to what he wants to improve. "I want to get a little bit faster and in my whole body, so I can compete more against stronger guys in the 50-50 balls.

"[Chivas USA] gave me the opportunity and I took it. I'm getting used to the league again. I was able to get some minutes and the opportunity to play, now I just need to gain more experience and get used to the speed of the game and be strong like every other player."

What was confirmed for De la Fuente was the intense and physical fast-pace play that characterizes the league.

"You have to be prepared mentality that you are going to have to work [very hard], it's not how some people would think that there is no level here - well, there is level. You have to be strong, you have to come prepared and you have to give 100 percent-plus every single time in practice and in games.

"It's a different kind of game. [Opponents] are not going to let you dribble with the ball. They are going to be on you as soon as you get the ball, so you need to be prepared for that."

With 12 career games under his belt now, and nearly half a season to develop and learn under Head Coach Jose Luis Real's system, De la Fuente will look to pick up where he left off and establish a new set of career highs in an effort to contribute to more wins for the Red-and-White.

Now healthy, Franco hopes for the best

In late January, defender Joe Franco was stoked to hear that he had been picked by Chivas USA in the 2013 Major League Soccer Supplemental Draft (21st overall). Unfortunately, the hopes of joining the Red-and-White's First-Team training camp right away were clouded as Franco knew that his injury, an ACL tear in his left knee that he suffered while playing at Cal State Northridge in the final game of the Big West Conference Tournament,would keep him off the field for months.

Around mid-season, Franco was able to begin his journey back to recovery, as he would make the trip to the StubHub Center on a daily basis to work with the Red-and-White's athletic trainers.

"I got in contact with the [Chivas] trainers, and they had some programs to really help me strengthen my knee and kind of get on the field," Franco described his rehabilitation with the Red-and-White. "When I came to Chivas, I actually got onto the field, and started doing exercises on the field with the trainers and I improved from there."

Now healthy, Franco has been slowly getting back into action and his integration into Chivas USA's U23 team in early September has been of much help. Franco has progressed to not only play, but at times go the full 90minutes for the Red-and-White's successful academy squad. In the team's 4-1 victory over Doxa Italia in late October, Franco scored his first goal with the U23s with his left foot, demonstrating that he has fully recovered and is ready for what's next.

"I feel great. I've been playing 90 minutes-plus in every game. My knee feels strong and I haven't had any issues with it; I feel kind of lucky. I'm crossing my fingers, hoping that everything continues going the way it is," he finalized.

Make sure to stay updated on Chivas USA's U23 Team's journey through the Coast Soccer League by following us on Twitter: @ChivasUSAYouth & @cdchivasusa.

Chivas USA continue to sharpen ahead of their campaign finale

With their sights set on their friendly against FC Tucson programmed for this Friday in Arizona to close out the 2013 campaign, Chivas USA completed their third consecutive training session on Tuesday morning. The Red-and-White once again fulfilled their duties at the StubHub Center's Track and Field Stadium and kicked off training at 9:30 a.m. (PT).

The group began their initial warm-ups with a light jog around the pitch before completing agility work toward a corner of the pitch under the instructions of Strength and Conditioning Coach Armando Camacho. The drill implemented variations of movements around positioned cones at short distances for optimum activation and leg work.

Afterwards, players incorporated ball work into their morning in groups of three, which emphasized first-time touches and elements of give-and-go sequences. The team then reunited to compete in a one-on-one finishing challenge in reduced space. Once the ball was rolled out onto the pitch, a defender and offensive player would sprint out to meet the pass. The attacker would then look to create enough space for himself and get off a shot with a goalkeeper in goal, while the defender shadowed him and worked to dispossess the ball or prevent a clean strike. The drill then evolved into a two-on-one challenge, as the attacker would then go up against two defenders.

The session then culminated with a nine-on-nine scrimmage in reduced space under the watch of the Rojiblancos' Head Coach Jose Luis Real and his coaching staff. Afterwards, the Goats concluded practice with a brief cool-down session and final stretches. Chivas USA will return to training on Wednesday for their final official practice of the season ahead of Friday's meeting at Tucson's Kino Sports Complex.

Wednesday's session will be held at the Bell Gardens Sports Complex, home to Chivas USA's youth academy for categories 13 and up, as part of the club's second "Practice in the Community" event. The Rojiblancos will take to the pitch at 6 p.m. (PT) in a session that will mark the final official media availability day before the winter break.

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