Marcos Mondaini waited four matches to get back on the field and when he did, he made it count. The Argentinean had spent a month out with a suspension for a nasty tackle on Javier Morales, but came back looking spry, scoring the winning goal in Chivas USA's 1-0 win over the Portland Timbers at the Home Depot Center. The win continued the Goats' surprisingly solid season under first-year head coach Robin Fraser, while the Timbers are left still without a road win.
Chivas USA Vs. Portland Timbers: Mondaini Returns With Winning Goal For Goats
Chris Cortez began the move for the Chivas goal with a good ball into Paulo Nagamura, who ran with the ball down the wing. Mondaini was making a good run at the far post and Nagamura spotted him, playing a perfect cross in. All Mondaini had to do was tap it in and Chivas had themselves a 70th minute winning goal.
The goal was only fair for the Goats, who had dominated the first half. The passed the ball around and stretched the Timbers defense. For almost all of the first 45 minutes, Chivas were in complete control, but they couldn’t turn it into a goal. The second half started a little more even, but Chivas were still the better team and it finally paid off with their goal.
After Chivas went ahead, Portland finally began to push for a goal. They almost answered Chivas' goal right away with one from Jack Jewsbury, but Dan Kennedy was able to make a good save to deny the Timbers' captain. They continued to press, but struggled to make the final pass in the attacking third and never made their mark on the scoreboard. Chivas did enough to hold on with a few late clearances and they had themselves three points.
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