Chivas USA unveil full strength
Club practices with full-squad for the first time
For the first time this year, Chivas USA trained with a near-full strength squad. Only Francisco Mendoza (adductor), Alecko Eskandarian (hamstring) and Shavar Thomas (in Jamaica awaiting visa) did not train with the club.
With an overwhelming amount of players on the field, the Red-and-White's training session was crisp and beneficial, players said.
"There was a good rhythm to it and some good play. It's still a little segmented here and there because guys aren't 100 percent," said midfielder Jesse Marsch, who did not train a week ago. "It almost felt like the first day of training camp."
Marsch, who nursed his right ankle a week ago, has trained with the team this preseason but others have not. A week ago, regulars such as Jonathan Bornstein, Lawson Vaughn and Paulo Nagamura stood mostly on the sidelines as teammates went through the drills on the field. Tuesday, the players shed their warm-up attire to run through the drills at full speed.
"It felt good to play. I miss all the tackling, the heading, the organizing -- all the little things. It felt very good to get back," said Vaughn, who had offseason ankle surgery. "I feel comfortable with my new teammates. I got to play next to Jim Curtin today and I liked it a lot."
Players such as Claudio Suarez, Ante Razov and Sacha Kljestan have trained in most of the club's sessions this preseason. To bring in such first-choice players as Bornstein and Vaughn into the mix was an important part of the preseason.
"It's good to see everybody on the field," Chivas USA coach Preki said. "Some of the guys are still far away but it's a good step for us."
Chivas USA will play a pair of scrimmages on Friday against local college teams. The club will depart for Texas on March 3 and will play three friendlies against fellow MLS clubs in a five-day span in the Lone Star State.
The long work to sort out roster spots and a starting lineup and formation kicked into high gear Tuesday. Still, the club is awaiting the arrival of Thomas, who had a standout campaign in central defense a year ago.
Preki said he knew little about Thomas' visa status.
"That's the question for the government. I have no idea what's going on with that one. I'm just waiting for him to get the green light," he said when asked about Thomas' visa. "We are all frustrated at the situation but that's the way it is. We're trying really hard to get his visa."
Still, coaches had enough players to run the team through various drills and short-sided games. Players said they felt energized after having run through Tuesday's session.
"It's just exciting. Everyone has been working hard this past month for sure and so you've got to give credit to a lot of guys for putting a lot into it every day and working hard but ultimately this is going to be about us getting our guys on the field and re-developing our rhythm as a team," Marsch said. "Today is a great start for that and a good step in the right direction. It's just fun to see some guys who have been in the training room a lot actually out on the field."
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
