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New York cautious ahead of match with Chivas USA

May 13, 2011 - 10:15 PM Harrison, NJ (Sports Network) - Red Bull New York has been impressive in Major League Soccer, winning three of its last four, but a friendly loss against the Montreal Impact and a visit from Chivas USA on Sunday has the club cautious.

New York earned three straight shutout victories before tying the Los Angeles Galaxy last week, 1-1, and followed that with a 1-0 loss Wednesday at Montreal in a match that coach Hans Backe admitted hurt the team's preparation.

The Red Bulls (4-1-3) host Chivas USA (2-3-3) at Red Bull Arena, where it has three wins and a draw in four matches. But even with the team's success so far this year - N.Y. sits atop the Eastern Conference - it cannot overlook Chivas.

Chivas, under first-year boss Robin Fraser, is coming off a 1-0 defeat to Real Salt Lake that also left the club without forward Marcos Mondaini, who picked up a four-game suspension for a foul that left Javier Morales injured.

New York enters this weekend's clash as the clear favorite, but Backe admitted on the league's website, "will be a tricky game."

"I am a little worried about this week mentally," he added. "That's most what I'm worried about."

New York took the majority of its first team to Montreal, so the club will not be rested for the match. Luke Rodgers, who called out Landon Donovan for being too talkative to the referee last week, did sit out Wednesday but will play.

Teemu Tainio, who has made seven starts, is also back in the mix after missing time with a groin strain, giving Backe another good option for Chivas USA. And with Carl Robinson picking up a knee injury against Montreal, is's good timing as well to have Tainio back.

Chivas is just three points off the bottom of the Western Conference, so it's easy to see why Backe is worried about the team's mentality. But since going winless in its first two games, Chivas went unbeaten in five before last week.

The 1-0 loss to Real was dwarfed by the injury to Morales, as Chivas finished with nine men in the defeat. But a result at New York would put Fraser's club back on track, and provide a huge boost ahead of the SuperClasico.