Chivas USA's SuperLiga 2009 aspirations took a blow on Saturday night as the Red-and-White fell 2-1 to Tigres UANL at The Home Depot Center in Los Angeles. A 55th-minute goal from rookie Michael Lahoud was not enough to overcome a plucky Tigres side whose young players worked tirelessly all evening to secure a victory for the Mexican club.
The Red-and-White controlled much of the game with solid passing through the midfield but were unable to keep up with the quickness of the Tigres counterattack, especially after going a man down with 23 minutes to play.
The visitors went ahead in the 11th minute thanks to an Armando Pulido bicycle kick that will surely make the highlight reels. Jesus Dueñas then struck for Tigres just nine minutes from full time to earn three points in their SuperLiga opener and condemn Chivas USA to its third loss in 10 days in all competitions.
The game started at a frantic pace, with each team looking to make a strong statement about its SuperLiga intentions in the first few minutes. Chivas USA had the better of it, maintaining good possession in the midfield and working both sides of the field with long passes.
The Red-and-White were almost rewarded in the ninth minute when Claudio Suarez got onto the end of a corner kick at the Tigres 6-yard box. His effort ricocheted off a Tigres defender on the goal line and was cleared away to safety at the last possible moment.
The visitors pushed right back, marching down the field toward Zach Thornton's net with a series of good touches and clever passes. Tigres' Israel Hernandez finally lofted a high ball into the box from the right side that Americo Rodriguez flicked on toward Pulido. Pulido took a quick touch and then leapt into the air, firing a hard bicycle kick shot into the top right corner of the net to take Tigres ahead 1-0.
Chivas USA quickly took up residence in the vistors' end of the field but had difficulty finding a way through a Tigres team that was defending with 10 men in the box. The best chance came in the 22nd minute when Bojan Stepanovic threaded a ball through to Eduardo Lillingston on the left side of the net. Lillingston touched back to Maykel Galindo, who one-touched a hard shot that bounced awkwardly off the chest of Tigres goalkeeper Aaron Fernandez before finally being cleared.
Chivas USA continued to maintain long spells of possession in the final 15 minutes of the half, knocking the ball around in and around the Tigres area. They created a few good chances, but continued to be frustrated by the visitors' swarming defense.
Tigres did get a chance or two themselves, creating a few chances with quick counterattacks that nearly caught Chivas USA napping. But the Red-and-White held firm in the back and entered the locker room at halftime still down just one goal.
The Red-and-White started the second half with two new faces in the lineup in an effort to strengthen their offensive potency. Michael Lahoud and Jorge Flores entered for Jesse Marsch and Sasha Victorine, and slotted into the right and left flanks respectively in a move that added some pace to the Chivas USA attack.
The change had an almost immediate impact. Flores and Lahoud ran riot on the flanks, creating all manner of chances for Red-and-White and reinvigorating the Chivas USA attack in the early minutes of the second half.
The young subs' high work rate paid off in the 55th minute when Flores knocked a clever backheel pass to spring Lillingston on the left side of the Tigres goal area. Lillingston one-touched the ball to Stepanovic at the top of the box, who slipped a low ball through the area for Lahoud. The young rookie drilled a shot toward the right side of the net that slipped past the goalkeeper to even the score at 1-1.
Tigres began to regain footing in the 60th minute, breaking through the Chivas USA defensive stranglehold for a few chances. Their efforts seemed to rattle the Red-and-White, who drew three yellow cards in the span of eight minutes as they struggled to keep up with the plucky Tigres offense. Stepanovic and Paulo Nagamura were booked in the 65th and 73rd minute respectively, while Lillingston earned his second yellow in the 67th to be sent off.
The visitors almost doubled their lead just two minutes after Lillingston's ejection when a free kick was awarded just outside the edge of the area after a hard tackle from Suarez. Dueñas fired a howitzer into the Chivas USA area that Thornton bobbled on the ground. Tigres captain Bernardo Cabrera rushed in to finish the rebound, but the goal was called back for offside to keep the score level.
Dueñas again caused problems for home side in the 81st minute, this time making no mistake with his effort. Armando Pulido stole the ball from Mariano Trujillo at the top right corner of the box and slotted through to midfielder Alan Pulido in the area. Zach Thornton dove low to his left to save Armando Pulido's shot, but was unable to clear the rebound as Dueñas sprinted in to knock the ball into the back of the net for a 2-1 advantage.
Chivas USA pounded the Tigres goal for the final 10 minutes of play as nearly the entire squad pressed forward in an effort to equalize. But the Mexicans held firm at the back and managed to hold onto their lead to secure a 2-1 victory and a solid start to their 2009 SuperLiga campaign.
Jeffrey King is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
