Chivas reached the night of Jornada 3 against Seattle Sounders already out of the Leagues Cup 2026, so the result could not change its place in the tournament. Even so, Gabriel Milito treated the match like a final and kept the focus on how Guadalajara would respond under pressure.
The reason the search is live now is simple: this is the moment when Chivas had to play anyway, even though the math was already against it. The Leagues Cup separates Liga MX and MLS teams into general tables, and only the four best from each side advance to the Cuartos de Final. That left Chivas without a path forward before the ball was kicked, even a large win over Seattle Sounders not enough to rewrite the table.
For Milito, the message stayed firm. In Guadalajara, he said, every match is approached as a final, with maximum seriousness and intensity. That is why the game still matters inside the club even after the elimination became official: it is now about performance, not survival. Chivas had only one victory in five matches and had scored three goals during the semester, a record that makes any clean, confident outing useful as the team looks to reset.
The rotation also points to what Milito is managing. Luis Rey, Miguel Gómez, Miguel Tapias and Jonathan Pérez could receive minutes against Seattle Sounders, while Hugo Camberos, Santiago Sandoval and Samir Inda had recently rejoined Guadalajara after their participation with the Selección Mexicana Sub-20. At the same time, Raúl Rangel, Roberto Alvarado, Luis Romo and Fernando González could see fewer minutes, a sign that the staff is balancing urgency with recovery after a crowded stretch.
That is the part that gives the match its edge: Chivas must play as if the result still matters, while knowing it no longer changes its Leagues Cup 2026 fate. The next Sunday now matters more in the standings, because Guadalajara was scheduled to face Santos Laguna in Liga MX, and the night against Seattle Sounders is really about carrying something useful into that return.
