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Shining star Ageless Preki leads MLS All-Stars against Mexico's ChivasPosted: Friday August 01, 2003 8:17 PMUpdated: Saturday August 02, 2003 1:01 PM
CARSON, Calif. (AP) -- Maybe the Major League Soccer All-Star Game should be renamed in honor of Preki. The Kansas City Wizards' star from Serbia will compete in his eighth MLS All-Star Game Saturday when the league's best players take a break from tradition, facing Mexican power Chivas de Guadalajara at The Home Depot Center (3:30 p.m. ET; ABC). The 40-year-old midfielder is the only player to have participated in every All-Star game since the league began playing in 1996. "It's really an honor," Preki said Friday. A former member of the U.S. national team who has lived in this country for 17 years, Preki will be the captain of the MLS All-Stars. Preki was the MVP of the 1999 game, getting two goals and an assist to lead the West to a 6-4 victory. A capacity crowd of 27,000 is expected to attend Saturday's nationally televised game at the state-of-the-art home of the Los Angeles Galaxy that opened two months ago. Chivas is a 10-time champion of Mexico's First Division and has a strong following on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. Chivas, which has never had a non-Mexican player on its roster, becomes the first foreign team to play in the MLS All-Star game. Chivas owner Jorge Vergara said the game will be an opportunity to avenge the Mexican national team's recent losses to the United States, including a 2-0 setback in the World Cup last year. "For us, it's an honor to be here in this country, where soccer is growing up, and compete against the best players in the MLS," Chivas coach Eduardo de la Torre said through an interpreter. "These types of opportunities are always good to measure the growth of the sport in both countries. "You can rest assured we're going to put our best team on the field." Preki agreed that this game will be more competitive than past MLS All-Star games. "Tomorrow is going to be a real game -- a game for prestige," he said. "Chivas is a team that's had a long tradition. They want to take revenge for the World Cup. It's always more fun to play a competitive game. I don't know how to play friendly games." Asked about past MLS All-Star games, Preki replied: "A lot of goals. No defense. Every year." Preki said he's not looking at retirement any time soon. "I'm still having fun or I wouldn't be here," he said. Putting Chivas in the game is a continuation of the league's desire to face the best of the rest of the world. That plan began last season when the All-Star Game matched the U.S. national team, minus its European-based players, against an MLS All-Star team. The All-Stars won 3-2 at Washington, D.C., where a lightning storm caused a delay of nearly an hour. Commissioner Don Garber decided to eliminate the final 15 minutes of the first half to allow a televised halftime concert by pop singer Paulina Rubio. The game was played in an East-West format from 1996-97 and 1999-2001. MLS All-Stars from the United States faced their counterparts from the rest of the world in 1998. Garber said the MLS will probably expand from 10 to 12 teams by 2005, adding it's likely Chivas will be involved in the operation of one of the new teams. "We're going to be part of the MLS, permanent, and a permanent champion," Vergara said. Garber said expansion plans will be announced before the end of the current season, adding the league has been involved in discussions with Houston and Philadelphia. |
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