Captain Kyle Beckerman made his 300th MLS appearance against San Jose (realsaltlake.com)
Last night was a pretty good night all around for Real Salt Lake and their supporters, though it was far from a sure thing until late on in the match. The Claret and Cobalt were looking to exorcise the demons from last year's two tough showings on the road at Buck Shaw stadium, and in the end, they managed to do exactly that.
Things started out a little shaky in the first half as the Quakes created a few really good chances. Fortunately, Chris Wondolowski rather uncharacteristically couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, and neither could his new strike partner, Mike Fucito. Nick Rimando did have to reach into his bag of tricks a couple of times though. In the 26th minute Rafael Baca directed a close range shot on frame. It was definitely headed for the roof of the net, but Rimando just got a little bit on it to parry it off of the crossbar and preserve the clean sheet.
RSL tightened things up quite a bit in the second half though, and started to get more of the quality chances. However, it wasn't until newly minted Claret and Cobalt man Joao Plata entered in the 65th minute that RSL really found their spark. In the 71st minute Plata hit Alvaro Saborio over the top with a great ball, and the Costa Rican broke on the San Jose goal. Getting in behind the defense, he easily slotted past a relatively helpless Jon Busch to make it 0-1.
The Quakes pushed hard after that, but they were obviously short on fire power without Steven Lenhart and Alan Gordon, who did not play due to injury. In the end, it was RSL who added the match clincher as Beckerman hit Sabo in the middle of the box to cap a 12 pass sequence. Sabo once again fired home a clinical finish to make it 0-2 on 85 minutes. As the match progressed into five minutes of stoppage time, the Quakes "Goonie magic" was obviously not going to manifest itself. In the dying minutes, a couple of San Jose players started running their mouths at Kyle Beckerman, who just pointed to the scoreboard in answer. It was my favorite moment of the match.
So what were the good, the bad, and the just plain ok for the Claret and Cobalt in this one?
The defense really had some issues especially up our left side in the first half. Mansally and Schuler looked a little lost at times, with Mansally drifting quite far into the center of the pitch and unveiling lots of space up that flank, which the Quakes tried to exploit a couple of times. He also gave the ball away quite cheaply a couple of times. However, both of these guys came back strong in the second half, with Mansally really responding under pressure, making a couple of key blocks and tackles in and around the penalty area. I was very impressed with the way Kenny stepped it up, great job! Set piece defense was a little shaky as well, as Wondo got free a couple of times, but in the end they were bent but not broken as they persevered and made the key clearances when they had to. My defensive grade: B.
The midfield really looked spectacular at times, especially in the second half. They did seem to have some issues pushing up through the Quakes defense and getting the ball to Sabo and Robbie Findley in the first half, but then again, coach Kreis had said beforehand that the key focus was going to be defense and weathering the storm, so it wasn't really surprising. Still, both Luis Gil and Sebastian Velasquez had some quality chances, with Sebas in particular showing off a couple of pretty sick skill check sequences.
They really came to life in the second half though. Towards the end of the match Beckerman, Gil, and Sebas really started to pick apart the Quakes defense, obviously gassed from having to deal with the speed of Findley and then Palta. The second goal was largely a result of this stellar passing as our midfield really asserted itself. Khari Stephenson and Yordany Alvarez both had solid opening showings as well. I really enjoyed the stable, veteran presence that Khari brought. Midfield grade: B+.
The forwards did what they needed to in this game. In my season predictions I mentioned that if RSL can put the ball in the net, they can really go places, and that's what happened last night. Do we expect anything less from Alvaro Saborio? He'll never get the attention he deserves, but he really is one of the top three strikers in MLS, as he clearly showed again last night with two absolutely clinical finishes. Some people will slag a bit on Robbie Findley, but I thought he was pretty solid. Plata obviously had better chemistry with Sabo than Findley did right off the bat, but Robbie did well to put himself in dangerous positions and the Quakes back line was obviously tired from having to follow him. Plata was the man though. His speed and hustle brought an immediate spark to the pitch and San Jose didn't have an answer for him. His ball to Sabo was exquisite. What a weapon for RSL to have. I would also like to see him get up top and play with Findley. If they can develop chemistry together, well, speed kills.
Even RSL rookie forward Devon Sandoval got in on the act late, making his MLS debut. He didn't get much in the way of touches, coming in on 87 minutes, but he showed a real hard-nosed willingness to get in and mix it up, and I was very impressed with his short stint. Forwards grade: A-.
The crucial question here is: Can RSL continue to successfully manage expectations? Everybody involved with the Clareat and Cobalt felt great last night. It was great to get back in the win column, especially at San Jose, it was also great to see the ball flying into the net, but this is still a work in progress. The defense needs to tighten up, especially on set pieces and up the left with Wingert out, though like I said, Mansally was 100% better in the second half. The midfield could still gel some, but the veteran/young gun mix of Beckerman/Stephenson and Veasquez/Gil worked pretty darn well. Finally. I'd like to see Findley develop more chemistry with both Sabo and Plata up front.
To sum it up, the guys definitely exceeded my expectations last night, my pick was a draw. In doing so, perhaps they sent a message to the rest of MLS.....don't forget about us!
Meet the new boss.....same as the old boss.
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