Trendspotting
Shining a Light: Latest CUSA Overhaul Shows Hope
No longer making deals to cut payroll, Chivas USA's recent transactions have made the Goats a considerably more attractive team to potential coaching candidates.
A stroll through MLS Week 35
Curses reversed, unlikely heroes and we hear from an old friend in one of the most exciting final weekends in MLS.
Chivas USA: The Unlikely Kingmakers
Chivas USA can potentially spoil Real Salt Lake and the Portland Timbers cup ambitions.
CUSA: Striking lightning in 2014?
The Boston Red Sox 2012 disaster paved the way for a powerful playoff run. What lessons can be applied to Chivas USA?
NZ Soccer team's road to WCQ anything but boring
The New Zealand All Whites -- Chivas USA's friendly opponent Saturday -- are living dangerously ahead of next month's World Cup qualifier against the fourth place finisher in the CONCACAF Hexagonal.
Chivas USA Playoff Longshot
If Chivas plan to keep their slimmest of playoff hopes alive, they must deliver the goods.
Another way to lose in MLS: Take on loans
Why do the the three worst teams in Major League Soccer has a disproportionate number of it's players acquired on loan?
Are drugs in soccer a big problem?
Now that we're painfully aware that MLB has been awash in steroids and other Performance Enhancing Drugs, we turn our attention to soccer and in particular MLS. Could it be happening here?
Old Formation Habits Die Hard for Chivas USA
Some thing's don't go great together: peanut butter and capers, fashion and the 1970's, sharks and tornadoes. Add route 1, direct soccer and a 4-2-3-1 to the list.
Real's Discipline Brings Necessary Change to Goats
Cutting out the swagger of his predecessor and promoting substance over style, Jose Luis Real's Chivas USA side is no longer an easy three points.
Real's switch to 4-man defense already working
Jose Luis Real switched to a 4-man defense after taking charge of Chivas USA. So far, it's helped the defense tremendously, as the Goats have improved statistically. We go over the changes and argue the early returns are promising.
Five Games In: Chivas USA's Offensive Evaluation
Today, we turn our attention to another aspect of Chivas USA's season so far: the offense. We compare the numbers so far to 2012, and find some considerable differences.
Looking at March in MLS: DER, PR, and Grades!
We take a look at the defensive performances in MLS last month across three different categories, including our ongoing work in Defensive Efficiency Rating and Perseverance Rating.
Five Games In: Chivas USA's Defensive Evaluation
With Chivas USA on a break, we are evaluating the team's performances five games into the season. Today, we examine the defense, and compare it to the numbers last season.
DER: The Method Behind the Rating
Last week we introduced Defensive Efficiency Rating. In this latest installment in the series, we provide not only the methodology but a chance for you to be involved to make this a better, more reliable statistic.
What we are measuring when we measure 'keepers?
We look at ways to evaluate goalkeeping performances in soccer, and compare and contrast between baseball and hockey.
Introducing the Defensive Efficiency Rating
We introduce Defensive Efficiency Ratings as a means to get a grip on which teams are better at limiting chances and which teams are getting bailed out by Troy Perkins.
Sim City: Simulating the 2013 Chivas USA Season
Chivas USA has a lot of roster turnover this offseason, but we attempt to project a lineup of what remains of the returning players, and project some key offensive stats for the upcoming season.
2013 Preseason: Who will be the Goats' Top Scorer?
Chivas USA is looking for a replacement to lead the team in scoring in 2013. We go over some of the main candidates, and ask our readers for their selections.
MLS Draft: Center Backs and Recent Draft History
Is it a waste of a pick to use a top ten pick on a central defender? We explore the recent history in the MLS SuperDraft.
Flipping the script on 2012
In six games last year Chivas USA lost by four or more goals. In those games, the team attempted 71 shots. That's just two shots fewer than the team's nine draws. With a few tweaks in the teams approach, those results can yield points in 2013.
Maybe Getting Carded Isn't so Bad
Is there a correlation between teams that pile up the yellow cards and wining? In 2012, the three most disciplined clubs all made the playoffs while nearly all of the teams with the fewest set marks for futility.
Was September Chivas USA's best month defensively?
We express some frustration at the lack of availability of many Opta MLS statistics, but we go through what we can find about Chivas USA's 2012 defense.
The Slippery Path of the Castrol Index
The Castrol Index has been used for years by top European leagues but is a relatively new convention stateside. We examine how Chivas USA players were ranked and whether those numbers accurately depict the players contributions.
Wondo Really Did Outperform all of Chivas USA
Chris Wondolowksi became the most prolific scorer since MLS's inaugural season. Meanwhile Chivas USA nearly made history themselves with their impoverished goal count. What can Chivas learn from Wondo's dream season?
How the Goats mustered two late goals against FCD
Chivas USA brought both tricks and treats in their final match this weekend against FC Dallas, where they managed to find two goals in stoppage time to pull off the unlikely equalizer in what may well be coach Robin Fraser's final match.
Which Center Backs Performed Best for Chivas USA?
What's to come from the recent shake up Chivas's central defenders? The statistics indicate that coach Robin Fraser may have messed with a good thing over the course of the season.
Agudelo needs to be played in his natural position
Juan Agudelo was acquired with much fanfare. At the close of the season, he's netted just two goals and Chivas USA has packed one of the most woeful scoring punches in MLS history. It's time to use Agudelo properly to reach his full potential.
Chivas USA are being outplayed. We give examples.
Chivas USA is officially out of the playoffs. Can the team rally to finish like champions or will the team's disintegration put the team in the MLS record book?
Chivas USA's Home Woes Epitomize 2012 Season
Chivas USA have been dreadful at home in 2012, which goes a long way to explaining their difficulties this season.
