Among the chosen few
Revolution get SuperLiga nod
NEW ORLEANS - The SuperLiga proceeded successfully without the Revolution last year. Teams were chosen for geographic and promotional reasons, the promoters vindicated by large crowds, receptive television audiences, and some dramatic outcomes.
But the credibility of the SuperLiga, a joint venture between Major League Soccer and the Federacion Mexicana de Futbol, required that the best teams in North America be involved.
Thus, the second SuperLiga, it was announced yesterday, will include the Revolution, who have won three successive MLS Eastern Conference championships. The Revolution will host Santos (July 13) and Pachuca CF (July 16), then visit Chivas USA (July 20) in Group B. The top two teams from the two groups will play in the semifinals (July 29-30), followed by the final (Aug. 5).
The Mexican teams involved include CD Guadalajara (5-0-4, 19 points), which leads the Primera Division; Santos (4-1-4, 17 points), which is tied for second; Pachuca (4-4-1, 13 points), which is tied for fifth; and Atlante, last year's champion, which is currently tied for 15th (2-4-3, 9 points) in the 18-team division.
The other MLS representatives are D.C. United, which had the league's best regular-season record last year, and two-time defending MLS Cup champion Houston.
"The tournament was great last year, the quality of play was high and it generated excitement," said Revolution general manager Craig Tornberg. "Last year, the league selected some cities in order to capture attention for the tournament immediately, and we weren't on the top four of the list, and they did it for television, fans, sponsors, and they had a highly competitive field of play and highly spirited matches.
"We were disappointed not to be involved in the first one and we were hungry to get in the second year. We were deserving last year and we earned the right to compete this year. And we love to be contemplating a situation where we could be involved in where to play the semifinals and finals."
This will be the first time the Revolution will be a host for an international tournament. They have played Champions Cup "home" matches in Bermuda and Costa Rica, partly because those tournaments were conducted in early spring. The SuperLiga, which awards $1 million to the winner, is a made-for-television event set up primarily to appeal to Latino markets. The initial SuperLiga succeeded partly because it provided a stage for David Beckham and Landon Donovan to lead the Los Angeles Galaxy to the final, a penalty-kick loss to Pachuca.
"Our fans are very hungry and this is a highly competitive tournament, which transcends the Latino marketplace, with players from Argentina and other countries they see every week on television," Tornberg said. "I believe we can exceed 20,000 attendance for these type of games."
Both of the Revolution's first-round Mexican opponents have high-profile goalkeepers: Colombian Miguel Calero (Pachuca) and Oswaldo Sanchez (Santos).
Pachuca, about 40 miles northeast of Mexico City, was the first soccer team established in Mexico, English mine workers organizing the team in 1901, and then winning the 1904-05 Mexican championship. But Los Tuzos ("Bantams") have only recently become a factor on the international scene, becoming the first Mexican club to win a South America title by defeating Chile's Colo Colo in the Copa Sudamericana final in 2006. Pachuca has twice won the CONCACAF Champions Cup (2002 and '07) and is participating in this year's tournament (Los Tuzos tied Motagua, 0-0, in Honduras in the first leg Wednesday night).
Argentine Christian "El Chaco" Gimenez leads the Pachuca offense, along with Juan Carlos Cacho and Colombians Andres Chitiva and Luis Gabriel Rey. Another Argentine, Gabriel Caballero, 37, has been the driving midfield force for Pachuca since the late '90s, and Mexican national team member Fausto Pinto plays an outside back position.
Santos Laguna, located in Torreon, has twice won Mexican titles since 1996, launching the career of Jared Borgetti. Santos's offense is led by midfielder Juan Pablo Rodriguez, who was briefly contracted to the San Jose Earthquakes in 1998, and Argentines Daniel Ludueña and Mathias Vuoso.
The Revolution will meet Honduran champion Marathon in a closed-door scrimmage here today, and in their final preseason exhibition Sunday night. Marathon (5-2-2, 17 points), tied for the Primera lead in Honduras after a 2-1 win over Deportes Savio in San Pedro Sula Wednesday, is led by goalkeeper Victor Coello and Brazilians Everson Amaral and Edmilson Da Silva and Costa Rican Andy Furtado. Marathon is coached by Jose de la Paz Herrera, who guided Honduras in the 1982 World Cup.
Frank Dell'Apa can be reached at f_dellapa@globe.com.
