Who woulda thunk it? Real Salt Lake has matched its all-time high in points for a season with 40, after only 22 games played. They also appear to be in a unique position – likely to clinch a playoff berth early instead of waiting until the last week of the season to find out if they are post-season bound.
And now the records are about to fall.
Javi Morales has already won his second MLS Player of the Week nod for his two goal outing against Columbus last week. Now RSL are on the verge of a clean sweep of the weekly hardware, as Rimando’s save and Javi’s first goal are both leading candidates for their respective weekly awards.
Check them out, and give your vote:
Rimando’s save - http://www.mlssoccer.com/content/napa-save-week-vote-now
Morales’ goal - http://www.mlssoccer.com/content/att-goal-week-vote-now
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RSL has three Champions League/Champions Cup vets: Saborio who won the tourney in 2005 with Saprissa, Rimando who played in it with DC United, and Andy Williams who got the experience with the Chicago Fire.
Courtesy of Real Salt Lake Communications
We learned earlier that Robbie Findley will join the US National Team for a friendly against Brazil next Tuesday. Although he is not scheduled to miss Real Salt Lake’s match against the Philadelphia Union on the following day, his ability to contribute may be impacted depending on how much action he sees against Brazil.
Now we learn that teammate Alvaro Saborio will be out for the match against Philly as he will join the Costa Rican National Team for a friendly against Paraguay next Wednesday. This will leave RSL shorthanded, and could press into action Pablo Campos who has only logged 221 minutes so far this season. Saborio is not expected to miss any action beyond the one match.
Here is the full schedule for RSL’s group play in Champions League:
| August 18th | 8:00 PM | HOME | Arabe Unido |
| August 25th | 6:00 PM | AWAY | Cruz Azul |
| Sept 15th | 8:00 PM | HOME | Toronto |
| Sept 22nd | 6:00 PM | AWAY | Arabe Unido |
| Sept 28th | 6:00 PM | AWAY | Toronto |
| Oct 19th | 8:00 PM | HOME | Cruz Azul |
Robbie Findleyhas been called into action with US National team again for the upcoming friendly against Brazil. The match will take place next Tues at Meadowlands at 6 PM, but Findley will still be available for selection in Saturday’s MLS match at Kansas City and next Wednesday at Philly.
With tonight’s results in CONCACAF Champions League, we discover RSL’s Group A partners. Aribe Unico (Panama) was already in based on their position in their domestic league. Tonight Toronto tied Motagua 2-2 to win in aggregate, and Cruz Azul blasted San Francisco 6-0 to secure their place in the group stage.
Tomorrow night another game important to RSL will take place in Champions League action as the LA Galaxy visit the Puerto Rico Islanders. Whether or not the Galaxy advance will likely have an impact on their focus on winning the Supporters Shield. They currently trail Puerto Rico 1-4, and will need to have a remarkable turnaround in order to win in aggregate.
Nelson Gonzalez is up for Goal of the Week after his hustle play and wonderful chip over Troy Perkins on Saturday. He has some worthy competition in Sebastien LeToux’s wonderful finish, but my opinion is that Gonzo’s shot is the better of the two. I believe that the shot required more technique, and Nelson did more to setup the play.
What about you?
Jul 30
So the question often comes up – who is the most effective forward? This year, the question revolves around Fabian Espindola, Robbie Findley, and Alvaro Saborio.
The first problem is what constitutes an effective forward? Is it simply one who scores at a high frequency? Many would say yes. Is it one who makes those around him better? If so, how do you measure that? Do intangibles come into play? If so, what are they?
Some believe that you need to look at how many shots a player requires to score. Others thing that you have to look at how a forward helps the team in possession.
What should RSL's CCL goal be?
Total Voters: 72
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