Sueño MLS Players Shine in Carson
On a cool and sunny California morning at The Home Depot Center's world-class soccer stadium in Carson, the 24 dreamers nervously lined up at the mouth of the tunnel leading to the freshly cut pitch. This was the same tunnel many of their heroes have walked through before - players like Claudio Suarez, Brad Guzan and Ramon Ramirez. As the dreamers marched out in two lines, wearing their new adidas red and blue uniforms, the hundreds of fans that came out to the stadium, mostly friends and family, began to cheer wildly. Soon the dreamers would be face to face with their opponents for the day, the heralded Chivas USA Under-19 team, decked out in their legendary red and white uniforms. Before the games, each finalist was introduced over the stadium's public address system and posed for the tradition team photo.
"I have never been in this type of environment," said Sueño MLS midfielder Diego Soto of King City, California. "Walking though the tunnel, I felt like pro. It was unbelievable."
The Sueño MLS finals featured two 45-minute games between the "Final 24" and the U-19 team, and a final game between the blue and red teams. In the end, a more experienced and organized Chivas USA team outscored the dreamers 2-0 and 3-1, with the lone goal for the dreamers coming on a header from 17 year-old forward Jorge Antonio Flores of Anaheim. The intra-squad game ended 0-0.
"It was a great experience," added Soto. "The Chivas USA Under-19 team has been playing together for a long time and we just had a few days to prepare for an 11 aside game, but in the end I think we played well against them."
As always, Republica Deportiva's cameras captured all the action for the weekly "reality show within a show," which airs each Sunday (11 AM Eastern, Noon Pacific) on Univision.
After the games, the "Final 24" gathered in the locker-room, where Chivas USA president and co-owner Antonio Cue congratulated and thanked each player, and Chivas USA's soccer director Dennis te Kloese talked about the next step.
"You should all be very proud to make it this far," said te Kloese. "You all performed very well and have made our decision very difficult."
"I don't know if I'll be able to sleep, but I'll have to deal with it," said Soto, who like the rest of the "Final 24" will be waiting anxiously for the Wednesday's announcement.
