Minda with His Eyes on the World Cup

November 4, 2013 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Club Deportivo Chivas USA News Release


Ecuador international Oswaldo Minda arrived to Chivas USA at the end of 2011, just a few days after conquering the National Championship trophy in Ecuador's Serie A with Sociedad Deportivo Quito. Since then, Minda has found his role as one of the most valuable veteran players in the Red-and-White's midfield.

Despite injuries, which had him away from the fields for almost four months this season, Minda knew how to overcome the adversity and slowly was able to find his game back, and a spot in Jose Luis Real's starting lineup. With nine appearances in the Starting XI in the past 10 games with the Goats, his experience and knowledge at the international level were extremely valuable among a group of players where the youth outnumber the elder.

"To create great teams you have to work and improve. That's what we are doing with this team, we have a lot of young guys who mostly had their first season in the First Division this year," explained the midfielder.

Working under the same idea of implementing experience and balance inside the locker room, the veterans agree that the tough times the team encountered this season are only a part of the learning curve. A concept they are trying to pass on to the boys so they can keep on building ahead of next season.

"You build on work, dedication, a strong commitment and confidence in becoming better day after day," described Minda.

With those words not only in his mind, but also in the youngsters' heads, Minda hopes to close out this season in a constructive manner, as they get ready to face FC Tucson in a friendly on Nov. 15 in the Arizona city.

With the conclusion of that game, the Goats will have the rest of the year to rest and prep up individually ahead of next year, which includes a World Cup. That is something that truly motivates players like Minda, who hopes to be a part of his National Team.

"My idea is to get a leading role. To begin the year having a great preseason. Try to have a good start with the team in the tournament and then seek an opportunity ahead of the World Cup."

The Ecuadorian midfielder has been working with the technical group at the National Team for a process longer than four and a half years. That is why Minda knows that continuity with the Red-and-White in Major League Soccer and being already a part of the national group are important factors ahead of his potential participation in the most prestigious tournament across sports.

"[The technical staff with the National Team], they are always looking after me, always talking to me and trying to help me in whatever I need. I hope to have a good season next year and have the chance to be in the World Cup or at least know that I have done all I can to achieve that," concluded Minda.

De Luna highlights the bonds that were made during his first MLS season

As a product of Chivas Guadalajara's renowned youth academy, Mario de Luna had spent nearly half his life with the club that developed him as a youth and later signed him as a professional.

De Luna, a native of the Mexican state of Aguascalientes, ascended the ranks of the Rebaño Sagrado's youth set-up and made his pro debut in 2008. The defender established himself as a starter and was part of Guadalajara's successful run that saw the club win a title in 2006 and go on to reach the prestigious 2010 Copa Libertadores final.

Before the 2013 MLS season, the 25-year-old De Luna, joined Chivas USA, a move that was made easier, he says, with the inclusion of fellow Guadalajara teammates Edgar Mejia, Giovani Casillas and Jose Manuel Rivera who also made the transition. De Luna not only joined the Rebaño Angelino, he secured a spot on the Red-and-White's back line as one of the club's most solid players, while logging the second-most number of games played (30), starts (30) and minutes played (2,637) - second only to captain and goalkeeper Dan Kennedy.

The comfort level was raised even more so when his former coach Jose Luis Real came on board to take over the team. De Luna knew "El G-ero" since his days with the academy and played for the legendary coach on the team that made the historical Libertadores run.

"When we first arrived we didn't know about the competition in the league," said De Luna. "We had played against MLS teams while at Chivas Guadalajara and honestly, arriving with Chivas USA we realized how good of a league it is. It has great players. It is a fast league with quick ball play. All the teams have wingers and fast players. They have center forwards that are physical and know how to handle the ball well.

De Luna displayed not only his professional level from the start, but he displayed versatility by starting at both center back and right back when called upon. Early on, he says he realized that he would have to adjust to the speed of the league and began focusing on not just simply trying to match opponents step for step, but also develop his anticipation on the pitch.

"Here the entire 90 minutes are played at full speed. The games are played all out whether you are winning or losing, the rhythm of play never drops, it stays the same and that helps a lot.

Despite a rough season in which the Rojiblancos missed the playoffs and were hit with some tough results, De Luna points to the relationships and experiences he shared with his new teammates as the highlight of his first season with the Goats. Regardless of the initial language barriers, he noted the closeness of the group and its disposition to work hard and pick itself up quickly.

"I had not been away from Chivas Guadalajara since I was 14 years old," he added. "I had always been with the same players and this was an opportunity to go out and join an excellent group of teammates. We didn't know much about the change in language from English to Spanish, but we certainly got to know one another and adapted."

Bowen & Torres nominated to Goal of the Year

In a challenging season, Chivas USA were able to surpass the amount of goals in favor in comparison to the 2012 numbers. And unlike last season, the Red-and-White are back to be among the nominees for Major League Soccer's Goal of the Year. Interesting enough, both goals nominated were scored against Vancouver Whitecaps at BC Place; Tristan Bowen scored the lone goal for the Red-and-White in Week 17, while Torres notched his ten weeks later in Week 27.

For forward Tristan Bowen, on his first full season with the Red-and-White, this is his first nomination for Goal of the Year. Prior to this season, Bowen was able to take part in eight games with the Goats, making three starts but not being able to get his first goal in a Chivas USA uniform.

"It's pretty cool, as it is to score a goal is awesome, but to be recognized for Goal of the Year means it was actually a really good goal. It's a good feeling," Bowen said about his nomination.

Re-live Tristan Bowen's goal

Bowen clearly remembers the way he scored his second goal with Chivas USA.

"Carlos [Alvarez] played a ball out to me in the wing, and [Jose] Correa made a good run, which opened up some space for me. I couldn't play him the ball, so I took a look at where the keeper was and took a shot and luckily the nine times out of ten probably wouldn't have gone in but it was the perfect shot and I don't think the keeper could've done much about it," the forward recalled.

Meanwhile, Erick "Cubo" Torres finished off the season as Chivas USA's top goal scorer, notching seven goals in 15 games with the Red-and-White. Not only did Torres reach a milestone with the club with less than a year with the Goats, but he also did something that he had never done before in his professional career, score on a bicycle kick.

On Sep. 1, in Chivas USA's third and final match-up against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Torres notched two goals in the 2-2 draw with the Canadian team. His first goal, now nominated for MLS Goal of the Year, caught a lot of attention, not only for what it meant, but because of its class.

"I'm very happy to be among the top goals of the season. I feel very enthusiastic as it was my first bicycle kick goal. I think this goal is among the best ones I've scored in my professional career. I'm very happy to be nominated among the best goals of the season," Torres said.

Click here to cast your vote for Tristan Bowen and Erick "Cubo" Torres for MLS Goal of the Year. While Bowen is nominated under Group L, Torres is listed under Group I. Fans will have only one day to vote as poll closes at 11:59 p.m. (PT) on Monday, November 4.

Recap: U18 Team earns second victory

The following is a recap of this weekend's action.

U.S. Soccer Development Academy

Chivas USA's U18 team earned their second consecutive win on Sunday afternoon, defeating Nomads SC 2-1 at the Bell Gardens Sports Complex. Two goals by Paul Salcedo in the 56th and 79th minute of the match led the Goats to get the win over the San Diego, Calif., based team. The Red-and-White dominated the match, holding a 55% overall ball possession but were unable to have the most attempts at goal. Up next, the U18 team will look to continue their two-game winning streak as they visit Strikers FC next Sunday, Nov. 17 at 10 a.m. (PT) at Orange Coast College.

Unable to count on the same luck as last week, the U16 Team fell 2-0 to Nomads SC on Sunday afternoon, in two defensive lapses by the Red-and-White. The U16s will have a bye week before they face Strikers FC on Sunday, Nov. 17 at 12:30 p.m. (PT) at Orange Coast College.

After two consecutive draws, the Red-and-White's U14 Team earned their third win of the season, getting a strong 4-1 win over Nomads SC on Sunday evening. Chris Hernandez opened the scoreboard in favor of Chivas USA in the 8th minute of the game, scoring his fourth goal of the season. Leonides Cuteno scored the second of the match in the 17th minute, and Josue de la Torre and Matthew Huerta each scored in the second half for the final 4-1 victory. In comparison to the elder USSDA groups, the U14s will not have a bye week next weekend and will visit Albion SC on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 2:30 p.m. (PT) at Clairemont High School.

Coast Soccer League

Chivas USA's U13 Team continues to struggle to get the positive results in the Coast Soccer League. On Saturday morning, the Red-and-White fell 2-0 in their second consecutive loss. Next Saturday, Chivas USA will host FC Deportivo Panteras at 11:30 a.m. at the University of California, Irvine.

In their penultimate game of the season, Chivas USA's U15s fell 1-0 to South Bay Gunners Black. The Red-and-White will conclude their season in the Coast Soccer League hosting CFC Untouchables Black next Saturday, Nov. 9 at 1:15 p.m. (PT) at UCI's Field 1.

Going up against the team they were able to defeat in the State Championship Final, Chivas USA's U23 were unable to match their previous score and fell 2-0 to Corinthians USA at Citrus College. After the loss, the Goats moved down to third place, just below their upcoming rival So-Cal Real FC. This match is scheduled to take place next Sunday, Nov. 10 at 11 a.m. (PT) at Orange Coast College.

For all news on Chivas USA's Youth Development Academy, follow us on Twitter: @ChivasUSAYouth & @cdchivasusa.

Rojiblancos kick off week with full squad

Chivas USA returned to training on Monday after four days off by reporting to the StubHub Center's Field 4 at 9:30 a.m. (PT). The Red-and-White kicked off the session with a team jog before completing a series of stretches at midfield.

The players then continued their warm-up session with a dynamic in a five-yard distance under the instructions of Strength and Conditioning Coach Armando Camacho. The movements included zigzagging, skipping and other variations for optimum activation.

After jogging around the pitch and breaking up into groups of four to complete conditioning work, the Goats then moved on to compete in possession drills in reduced space. Beginning with seven players consistently in the drill, a challenging group of four at a time entered the competition to try and dispossess the ball. Through the course of the challenges, the combination of match-ups varied, as the number of players in the drill increased gradually.

The morning then concluded with a cool-down session and supplementary stretches. Chivas USA will return to Field 4 on Tuesday morning to continue their work week, which will consist of five consecutive trainings through Friday.



Major League Soccer Stories from November 4, 2013


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