SANDY, Utah – Chivas USA are not headed for the postseason, but the Goats will host what amounts to a playoff match on Sunday – at least in the eyes of the visitors, Real Salt Lake (5 pm MT; CW30).
“I think anytime we go on the road now, we can approach it like we'd approach a playoff game,” RSL midfielder Ned Grabavoy told reporters.
For the second week in a row, the Claret-and-Cobalt can secure their seventh-consecutive playoff berth with a win. That didn't happen last week, when RSL went to Vancouver and dropped a 2-1 decision to the Whitecaps.
A tie won't clinch it either, meaning they're not going into the StubHub Center looking for just a result.
“We have to come out with the mentality that we're coming out for a win,” RSL defender Chris Wingert told reporters. “Sometimes when you're on the road, it ends up with a tie, that's great. But I think [we need] to keep pressing forward as much as we can, keeping possession as much as we can. It doesn't mean that we need to get sloppy and throw the whole kitchen sink at them.”
RSL head coach Jeff Cassar told reporters his team's priorities are “just staying focused, staying hungry, staying competitive and not allowing them to have any joy.”
RSL clearly can't afford to take Chivas lightly, and not just because they need the points not only to secure a spot in the playoffs but to come closer to securing a top-three finish in the Western Conference to avoid the Wild Card round.
“There's no such thing in this league as an easy game or an easy win,” Grabavoy said. “It's a team that can be dangerous and a bit unknown.”
In their one previous meeting this season, back on June 28, Chivas won 1-0 after RSL midfielder Luke Mulholland was red-carded for a studs-up challenge in the ninth minute.
“Keeping 11 guys on the field is always part of it,” Wingert said. “I'm half-kidding about that.”
Despite the last-place Goats' lack of success this season, Cassar insisted they’re no pushover.
“They have good players, very good players on their team,” Cassar said.
Chivas' winning goal in that game came on a strike by forward Erick Torres, and keeping him in check is another priority.
“Torres is a handful, scored a fantastic goal against us,” Cassar said. “We've got to concentrate keeping him off the scoresheet.”
But both the coach and his players said their focus is less on how Chivas play.
“[We need] to focus on ourselves a little bit,” Grabavoy said. “Sometimes teams like this can be dangerous because they can push guys forward. They can go for it and take more risks than maybe some other teams at this point of the season can. … We need to be well-organized, in our shape defensively and not give chances away.”
