RSL tifo before Monterrey game



How RSL's CCL run will change MLS

(by Simon Borg mlsnet.com 4-28-11)

Some said that Real Salt Lake would have changed the face of MLS for good had they knocked off Mexican champs Monterrey to advance to the FIFA Club World Cup.

That’s an observation for the simpletons.

They don’t understand that win or lose the CONCACAF Champions League finals, the MLS club had already changed the face of the league. A CCL trophy or a couple of matches played in Japan in December would not have achieved what RSL already had, probably unbeknownst to the team itself.

By becoming the first team to publicly state that the Champions League was its primary focus months ago, Real Salt Lake took the onus off all the other MLS clubs. The fact is that it’s been taboo to put the CCL ahead of MLS competitions. No club has ever made it a priority in the past, despite the rhetoric that may have blown our way from other cities.

And even if teams were ever half-serious about the CCL, they never acted on it. RSL were the first team to start a de facto reserve side and defeat another MLS club in league play to preserve their top players for CCL games. And they also became the first to substantially shake up their regular-season schedule and invest in charter flights to give the squad the very best shot to succeed in the Champions League.

Real Salt Lake were rewarded for those efforts, going farther in the competition than no other MLS team has gone before and watching sell-out crowds attend CONCACAF matches at Rio Tinto Stadium when temperatures were not very inviting.

And why wouldn’t MLS teams make it a priority? RSL manager Jason Kreis himself admitted that the matches in the Champions League have exposed his team to new competitive realities and also exposed RSL’s weaknesses on the field in a way that MLS league matches do not. They will be better off for this run.

If you thought that RSL were already the best team in MLS, expect them to improve even further. Kreis and GM Garth Lagerwey will address the deficiencies that prevented them from getting past a very beatable Monterrey side.

Expect to see them tweak their squad and its tactical flexibility over the next year, perhaps with a greater role for Paulo Jr. – arguably the best finisher on the team, especially because it’s hard to believe that Wednesday's entire starting XI will still be intact for the 2012-13 Champions League, should they qualify.

With the precedent set by RSL this year, there is now no excuse for teams to shortchange the CONCACAF Champions League. No more hiding behind travel concerns or roster limitations (30 players are more than enough to face league and CCL dates). No more talk about how those games carry no weight for fans and don't transcend.

That's why every American fan should tip their cap to RSL and not just for going where no MLS team has gone before. But also for thinking the way no MLS team has done before. And this one cup run has elevated the Champions League's profile to become more important around the United States.

As a result, fan bases around the league will be more demanding of their clubs’ performances in the CCL. It will no longer be an afterthought. Thanks to RSL.

This is no silver lining in the storm cloud named Humberto Suazo that rained all over RSL’s CONCACAF Champions League party at Rio Tinto Stadium on Wednesday night. Save the consolation speeches because that loss will hurt the RSL faithful for years to come. Kreis himself called it a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” which lined up perfectly for RSL.

But RSL’s history will be richer for this run, their connection with their fans will be deeper and their supporter base will be larger with new converts.

RSL’s magical midweek cup nights over the past 10 months, and the hair-raising moments that came with them, have now given license for other MLS teams and their fans to dream the same CCL dreams that RSL did.

Congratulations are in order.

Gettin' buck wild with the streamers

The most amazing thing about last night's sold out game against Monterrey was that the entire stadium remained standing the entire game. (At least as far as I could see.)

Last night we were all one huge supporters group.

RSL loses to Monterrey

I can't talk about it, I just can't. I'm proud of our boys, I'm proud of our fans. But this is going to take a long time to get over.

Today is the day

Jason Kreis said he desperately wanted to become the first MLS team to win in Mexico

(RSL was damn lucky Humberto Suazo didn't score his second goal of the night. That would have put the game 3-1 for Monterrey and would have sucked the life out of an already lifeless RSL.)

(by James Edwards desnews.com 4-21-11)

Jason Kreis said he desperately wanted to become the first MLS team to win in Mexico.

A tie never felt as good as it did on Wednesday night, though.

Having been thoroughly outplayed the entire second half, and with Monterrey closing in on a third goal, Javier Morales scored a stunning goal in the 89th minute to lift the visitors to an improbable 2-2 draw in front of a sold-out Estadio Tecnologico in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final.

MLS teams are still 0-for-25 in Mexico, but that's just fine with Kreis.

"I think it's the best draw of my life, no doubt about it. I'm really, really proud of what the guys put into that, and I know it wasn't easy at all. It was difficult circumstances for us," said Kreis.

RSL now returns home for the second leg at Rio Tinto Stadium next Wednesday night. With its two road goals in Mexico, a victory, a 0-0 tie or a 1-1 tie will be good enough for Real Salt Lake to clinch the continental title in its home stadium.

Morales said there's nothing to celebrate yet.

"It's very good, but it means nothing 'cause we have to go home and we have to try and win the game," said Morales.

Until his late goal, it appeared Real Salt Lake would be coming home down 2-1 on aggregate.

He changed all that with a fantastic bit of individual skill after receiving a ball in the box from Arturo Alvarez. He thought about taking a quick shot, but with a defender closing quickly he cut it back on the right side of the penalty area and fired a driven shot just inside the far post.

"He takes that touch right, and I said 'goal.' He's done that so many times to us in training," said Nat Borchers.

What was a great finish was actually a nightmare start for RSL.

It took Monterrey just 18 minutes to breakdown RSL's defense with an easy goal, as Aldo De Nigris buried an open netter after a failed clearance in the box.

Conceding early wasn't necessarily a surprise.

In all but one of RSL's six Champions League road games, it conceded the first goal. To its credit, it battled back in those five games for a 1-2-2 record.

Five minutes after going down, RSL striker Alvaro Saborio missed a glorious opportunity in the box after a great build-up with Fabian Espindola. His point-blank shot from about 12 yards out was drilled right at keeper Jonathan Orozco.

The missed opportunity seemed to settle the players, and they were rewarded for their patience.

Real Salt Lake pulled a goal back in the 36th minute on a Borchers' backwards header in traffic. Borchers was in the box because of a corner kick, but Monterrey didn't clear the ball out of harm's way enough, and Will Johnson sent it back into a dangerous area, where Borchers was waiting.

"Really happy with the way we responded both times after going a goal down. Now we have our work cut out for us at home," said Borchers.

It was just the fourth home goal allowed by Monterrey in the Champions League.

The Rayados (striped ones) looked shaky the rest of the first half, but settled down and really dominated the second half.

In the 60th minute, Jamison Olave went from goat to hero in a matter of seconds.

First, he was fantastic making a lunging block on a shot by Neri Cardozo. The heroics were short-lived, though, as he whiffed on a clearance, with the ball popping up and hitting his arm. The El Salvadoran ref didn't hesitate pointing to the spot for a penalty.

Humberto Suazo, who was denied in the first half on a pair of acrobatic saves by Nick Rimando, confidently buried the penalty kick to put Monterrey back in front 2-1.

With the lead, and RSL noticeably tiring, Monterrey continued to throw bodies into the attack for a third goal. Kreis said at one point he saw both outside backs pushing forward.

RSL didn't handle things tactically as well as Kreis would've liked, and will address it for the second leg.

"There's one thing tactically that we're going to have to need to spend quite a bit of time on this week, so we're a bit more prepared and we won't have to look at so many attacks coming at us," said Kreis.

Borchers was pleased with how well the team did absorbing the pressure.

"They just committed a lot of numbers to the attack. I thought we did brilliantly to fend them off. I thought guys were in good spots," he said.

Suazo had a golden opportunity to push the lead to 3-1 in the 85th minute with a one-on-one opportunity in the box, but his chipped shot over Rimando went about five feet to the right.

After the draw, just the fourth by an MLS team in Mexico, Kreis echoed the sentiment of Morales, saying nothing will come easy in the second leg.

"I would think they're going to come to us with a extremely aggressive mentality knowing they have to win," he said.

Schmid knows what RSL are going through in CCL

(by Andrew Winner mlsnet.com 4-19-11)

Seattle Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid has unique perspective on the CONCACAF Champions League, both in the recent and not-so-recent past.

As the head coach of the LA Galaxy, Schmid was the last MLS coach to win the CONCACAF trophy 11 years ago. Now in charge of Seattle, he's also the last MLS coach to face off against Real Salt Lake's opponents in this year's finals.

On the eve of RSL’s away match against Monterrey on Wednesday, Schmid took a moment to reflect on the tournament.

“The competition in 2000 was much different because it was a tournament where all the teams came to one location,” Schmid recalled of his 2000 title, when the tournament was called the CONCACAF Champions' Cup and was played over six days in January in the Los Angeles area. “You played your group games, then you advanced out of the group. It wasn’t the home-and-away competition it is now.”

Complicating matters for the Galaxy were a handful of injuries. Schmid recalled entering the tournament, which required three matches in six days, with problems along the back line and no healthy forwards. In particular, youngster Danny Califf came down with an injury and could not play, while recent signing Alexi Lalas was not fit for game action.

The problems along the front line were more urgent, requiring a creative solution from Schmid.

“We actually took a kid named Adam Frye, who had played forward for me when he was a freshman at UCLA and hadn’t played forward since, had played as a defender for five years, we played him as a center forward,” Schmid said.

After advancing via penalty shootouts in the team’s first two games, current Sounders assistant coach Ezra Hendrickson scored two goals in the final as LA defeated Olimpia of Honduras by a score of 3-2.

Ultimately, the Galaxy faced disappointment. Despite qualifying for the FIFA Club World Championship, the competition was canceled that season, robbing LA of the chance to play against some of the world’s best teams – including a date with Real Madrid at the Estadio Bernabéu.

On the eve of RSL’s first match in this year's Champions League finals, Schmid offered insight into Monterrey, whom beat Seattle twice in the group stage of this season’s CCL. In the second of the two group-stage matches last September, the Sounders got out to a 2-0 lead at Estadio Tecnológico before succumbing 3-2.

“We said that when we started in group play last year with our team that we were probably in the toughest group,” Schmid said. “Two of the four teams – you got one team in the final and the other team got knocked out in the semifinal. I think that shows that we were in the toughest group for sure.”

“They’re a good team," he said of los Rayados. "Monterrey is a difficult place to play at. Their stadium is a difficult place to play. We were able to get up on them but it was a game that they didn’t necessarily need to win so they probably approached the game a little bit differently and sat some players that are very important.”

Arena believes RSL have shot to join, one-up DC

(by Luis Bueno mslnet.com 4-20-11)

In the early days of Major League Soccer, Bruce Arena’s D.C. United squads set the standard around the league.

Not only did DC claim the first two MLS Cups, but Arena’s team also piled up a meaningful international title. D.C. United were the first MLS team to win a CONCACAF championship, claiming the 1998 Champions' Cup with a victory over Toluca.

Real Salt Lake are aiming to be the third MLS outfit to win a league championship. While having been the first MLS team to win an international competition, Arena said the challenge facing RSL is unlike what DC went through to win 13 years ago.

“It was great, but [a] different scenario than it is now," he said. "We played a championship format. It was a little different, but Salt Lake has gotten good experience in the group play to be prepared for this. They obviously know what’s at stake.”

The other team to claim a CONCACAF title is Arena’s current team, the LA Galaxy. Like DC, the Galaxy won the 2000 Champions' Cup when it was held over a week-long stretch. Since the tournament morphed into a home-and-away format in 2002, and then a full tournament with a group stage and knockout round in 2008, an MLS team has not reached the final until now.

In 1998, DC played host to the Champions' Cup. In their quarterfinal match, United routed Trinidadian side Joe Public 8-0, then beat Mexican side León, who had previously ousted MLS Cup '97 runners-up Colorado in a qualifying series. After their 2-0 win, DC beat Toluca in the final 1-0 on a goal by Eddie Pope.

After DC and the Galaxy won it two years apart, such a thought may have seemed improbable.

“I don’t think at that point in time anyone kind of understood that we were going to have this type of dry run in the competition,” Arena said. “Now that it’s been such a big gap, I think it will be a great achievement for the league and certainly for Salt Lake.”

RSL will have to do what D.C. United did not have to, as RSL will play in Monterrey in the first leg of the series on Wednesday.

“Having the first game away is never easy," Arena said. "I think it’s easier the other way, when you have the first game at home."

Still, the opportunity for RSL to etch their names among D.C. United and the LA Galaxy in MLS lore exists. Salt Lake will have an advantage heading back to Utah for the second leg, scheduled for April 27, and as long as the series is close after the first leg, there is a chance for a third regional trophy for MLS.

“The good thing they have is they have a little altitude when Monterrey has to come back to Salt Lake," Arena said. "The altitude in Salt Lake is going to be a factor. If they can keep the game even or within a goal, I think they’ll have a chance at home to win.”

i Vamos Real !

Comments from Rimando's Facebook page

Only 4 mini purple flashlights, 5 lighter, and 1 bag of sand thrown at me. Not bad.... Can someone throw me a beer now?

Heard I was Tony Rimando tonight, all good.... as long as they know they name on my chest!

Thanks for all the love and support today, we needed that come 2nd half. Much love to all the fans around MLS and especially to our 801 RealNation.
On to the Final!

Real Salt Lake to face Monterrey in CONCACAF final

(by James Edwards desnews.com 4-6-11)

Real Salt Lake's reward for beating Saprissa on Tuesday night was an exhausting travel day to Boston as it prepares for a league match against the New England Revolution this Saturday.

Shortly after landing in Beantown on Wednesday night, RSL learned its fate in the CONCACAF Champions League final, and it won't be the rematch many thought.

In the all-Mexican semifinal affair in Mexico City, visiting Monterrey scored on a late penalty kick to salvage a 1-1 draw with Cruz Azul and advance on aggregate, 3-2.

Monterrey will now take on Real Salt Lake in the two-leg Champions League final, with the winner qualifying for the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan in December.

Monterrey, which plays in the third-largest city in Mexico, will host the first leg on Wednesday, April 20, at 8 p.m. at the Estadio Tecnologico.

The return leg will be at Rio Tinto Stadium on April 27 at 8 p.m.

"Monterrey is a very good team. Suazo is one of the best attacking players in South America, and they also have a very good set of defenders," said RSL midfielder Javier Morales.

Both teams have enjoyed a tremendous home-field advantage throughout Champions League play. Real Salt Lake went 3-0 at home in group play, outscoring its opponents 9-3. It beat Columbus at home 4-1 in the quarterfinals and then Saprissa 2-0 in the semifinals.

Monterrey, the 2009 and 2010 Mexican League champions, also went 3-0 at home in group play, outscoring the opposition 6-2. In the quarterfinals, it beat Toluca 1-0 at home and then in the semifinals beat Cruz Azul 2-1.

"Monterrey has a lot of pace, a very strong forward up top. They looked very good in first game against Cruz Azul. It will be fun to face a new team, a team that doesn’t know us," said RSL midfielder Will Johnson.

For most of Wednesday's match, however, visiting Monterrey looked like its impressive Champions League run was coming to an end. Cruz Azul grabbed an early lead on Cesar Villaluz's goal in the 23rd minute, and it maintained the lead up until the 81st minute

Everything changed, though, when the referee pointed to the spot after Cruz Azul defender Waldo Alonso pushed a Monterrey player in the back in the 78th minute. Humberto Suazo buried the resulting penalty to tie the game at 1-1, and Monterrey survived as keeper Jonathan Orozco came up with a huge save in the waning minutes.

RSL met Cruz Azul twice in group play, but in Monterrey it will be facing a team it's never played.

Real Salt Lake scores historic victory

Olave scores on a cracker of a shot

(by Jeff Carlisle espn.go.com 4-6-11)

In Major League Soccer's roughly 15 years of existence, the word "historic" has been bandied about with too much frequency. It's been used to trumpet everything from player signings to All-Star Game victories. Mostly, it's been a bunch of nonsense. But on Tuesday, Real Salt Lake delivered a performance that lived up to that description, advancing to the CONCACAF Champions League final by defeating Costa Rican side Saprissa 3-2 on aggregate.

The win marks the first time since 2000 that an MLS side has reached the final of CONCACAF's biggest club competition. Back then, it was called the CONCACAF Champions Cup, but comparing that edition to the current incarnation is like relating a Sunday cruise to an episode of "Deadliest Catch." Every game of the 2000 tournament from the quarterfinals on was held in Southern California, a convenient location for eventual champion Los Angeles Galaxy.

RSL, on the other hand, had to navigate its way through a six-game group stage and two knockout rounds, an odyssey that involved travel to Panama, Mexico and now Costa Rica. Real's triumph also marked the first time in five attempts that an MLS side had beaten Saprissa in a two-game series, and just the second victory in nine tries against Costa Rican opposition over two legs.

But what was even more impressive was the professional way Real went about its business. Holding a 2-0 lead from the first leg, RSL showed little in the way of nerves in the first half. It refused to bunker in and instead displayed enough attacking initiative to keep Saprissa honest. In fact, had it not been for the heroics of Saprissa keeper Victor Bolivar, who delivered two sharp saves to deny Kyle Beckerman and Alvaro Saborio, the visitors may very well have extended their lead heading into halftime.

That's not to say Real Salt Lake didn't face some tense moments. When Saprissa defender Luis Diego Cordero scored from long range a scant 42 seconds into the second half, the ghosts of past MLS failures in the CCL seemed ready to haunt RSL. Saprissa had all the momentum. Real appeared to abandon the patient buildup that had served it so well in the first half and began playing very direct. As a result, maintaining possession of the ball became near impossible.

But where previous MLS sides had crumbled in such moments, RSL managed to steady itself. When Jamison Olave hammered home a rebound from Nat Borchers' header in the 61st minute, Real was on its way to making a new kind of history.

"I'm looking out there at the guys to see whether or not we're going to lose our stuff and continue to kind of go in a downward spiral," said Real manager Jason Kreis through a team spokesman. "I don't think we did; I think we kept it together pretty well. That's another bit of evidence of them being a mature group."

Not even Alonso Solis' 87th minute penalty, which condemned RSL to a 2-1 defeat on the night, could take the shine off a truly momentous aggregate victory.

Of course, Kreis wasn't about to let his side bask in what it has already achieved. "We did accomplish something, there's no doubt about it," he said. "But I think all of us feel that the real history is to be made. We've gotten to the dance, now we'll see what we can do."

Kreis has every reason to be wary. RSL is set to play the winner between Mexican sides Cruz Azul and Monterrey, and the record of MLS teams against Mexican opposition is even grimmer than it was against Costa Rican sides. Only once in 12 attempts has an MLS team prevailed over two legs against a Mexican team. That was back in 2002, when the then Kansas Wizards defeated Santos Laguna in the quarterfinals.

Things haven't gone much better in the CCL since CONCACAF first instituted a group stage during the 2008-09 tournament. In group matches, MLS teams have gone 2-12-2 against Mexican teams. But one of those wins came when RSL beat Cruz Azul 3-1 this past October. That win came after the two sides played an epic encounter two months earlier in Mexico City that Cruz Azul won, 5-4.

Such numbers aren't likely to trouble Kreis. He'll look at it as another opportunity to rewrite the history books.

Real Salt Lake advances to CONCACAF final despite loss

(by Adam Williams desnews.com 4-5-11)

Losing never tasted so sweet.

Real Salt Lake will be the first MLS team to ever play in the CONCACAF Champions League final, despite a 2-1 loss to Costa Rican club Saprissa on Tuesday night.

RSL entered Tuesday's game with a two-goal advantage and won the series by a 3-2 aggregate score after beating Saprissa 2-0 on March 15 at Rio Tinto Stadium. RSL will play either Cruz Azul or Monterrey of the Mexican League in the CONCACAF championship game. The two Mexican sides square off tonight.

"We would have liked to advance to the final in a more impressive fashion," RSL coach Jason Kreis said. "This was not our best game, but I don't want to take anything away from the accomplishment. The guys are pleased and we are happy to moving on to the finals."

After a reasonably tame first half for both sides, Saprissa stunned RSL in the first minute of the second half when midfielder Luis Diego Cordero unleashed a twisting blast over the arms of RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando. The goal awakened the raucous crowd, who took to chanting, singing and jumping, shaking the stadium and giving Saprissa its first taste of momentum.

But it was short-lived.

In the 60th minute, RSL defender Jamison Olave smacked in a loose ball from six yards out to tie the score. An RSL corner kick was deflected in the box and floated toward Olave, who used a right-footed volley to power the ball past Saprissa keeper Victor Bolivar.

As quickly as the crowd of 15,000 had created deafening noise in the stadium known as the "monster's cave," they were immediately muted by Olave's goal.

"It was critical for us to respond at that point in the game," Olave said after the game. "We'd just fallen behind and their crowd was getting loud.

"When we tied the score, it completely changed the game. It gave us a cushion and let us relax again. We couldn't relax the first 15 minutes of the second half."

After RSL tied the score, the next 20 minutes passed with little difference between the sides, as RSL worked off chunks of the clock by holding possession and stifling the Saprissa attack.

Yet, right when it looked like the game would end in a 1-1 draw, in the 87th minute, Saprissa was awarded a penalty kick. Alonso Solis converted the penalty kick and gave Saprissa to 2-1 lead. The final three minutes of regulation, plus three minutes of extra-time, were a hectic bombardment of the RSL box and goal. Saprissa pushed all of its players forward looking to score again, while the RSL defense sat back and repeatedly cleared the ball downfield.

In the waning seconds of the game, Saprissa forward Javier Arrieta fired a shot just wide of the RSL net. The crowd groaned and the final whistle blew.

The exhausted RSL players embraced and congratulated each other on the foreign turf.

"When the final whistle blew, we were both relieved and happy with the result. The second half was tough and their pressure was relentless," RSL midfielder Andy Williams said. "But we were able to hold them off and accomplish what we set out to do. Now we'll start thinking about the next round."

RSL is the first MLS team to ever reach the CONCACAF Champions League finals. The CONCACAF Champions League is played annually between the best club teams from North and Central America.

"It means a lot to this organization to be heading to the finals," Olave said. "It says a lot about the organization we are becoming. We are a mature team and are seeing a lot of success in the early part of the season. I have total confidence that we are going to have a very successful year."

Real Salt Lake shuts out Saprissa, takes 2-0 lead to Costa Rica

(by James Edwards desnews.com 3-16-11)

In the build-up to Tuesday's match with Saprissa, Real Salt Lake never shied away from declaring it the most important match since MLS Cup.

Just like it did in Seattle two years ago, RSL took care of business Tuesday night.

It wasn't easy against a very physical Saprissa side, and it doesn't guarantee the club anything with the second leg still upcoming, but RSL is in great shape after its 2-0 victory in the first leg of its CONCACAF Champions League semifinal series.

"If you'd have given us 2-0 at the start of the game, we would've been extremely pleased with it. I think everyone feels happy with it at the end of the game," said Salt Lake midfielder Will Johnson.

The home-and-home, total-goals series shifts to Costa Rica on April 5.

Like RSL, Saprissa enjoys a fantastic home-field advantage. Tuesday night, however, Saprissa got its first exposure to the Rio Tinto Stadium magic.

Spurred on by 16,888 RSL faithful, Alvaro Saborio scored early in the first half and Fabian Espindola doubled the advantage with an early second half goal as RSL extended its home unbeaten streak to 35 straight in all competitions.

"It's our home field, you have to be aggressive, you have to have the right mindset," said Johnson.

For RSL, the goal was always to jump out to a quick lead.

"I was really, really, really pleased with the first 15 minutes with the way we handled ourselves," said RSL coach Jason Kreis. "They did exactly what we asked of the guys to jump all over them. We really gave them no space to breathe."

RSL capitalized on the possession with a ninth-minute goal. Andy Williams started the sequence by knocking the ball into space for Espindola at the left edge of the penalty area. Espindola then passed it across the top of the box for Saborio who buried it with a clinical finish for the 1-0 lead, and his eighth goal of the competition.

The goal came three minutes after a Nat Borchers goal was disallowed after what appeared to be a phantom push in the box.

Real Salt Lake continued to attack hoping for a second goal, but Kreis thought his players started to deviate from the game plan. After the 15th minute Kreis said his team got stretched way too often, which enabled Saprissa to settle into the flow of the game after a shaky start.

The second half was relatively even, but RSL got the insurance goal it needed in the 56th minute on Espindola's breakaway finish.

The Argentine should be credited with a self-assist, too. He knocked down Saprissa defender Robert Wong while going in for a 50-50 challenge, and Williams was right there to corral the deflection and quickly played an over-the-top ball into Wong's vacated space. Espindola ran into the space and had plenty of time to assess the situation, and he calmly side-stepped a defender and buried a right-footed shot for the 2-0 lead.

Nick Rimando helped protect the two-goal cushion with a spectacular diving save in the 63rd minute and then a quick recovery to smother the rebound, finishing the game with six saves.

RSL picked its spots to try and snag a third goal, but Johnson said the team didn't want to get too greedy for fear of giving away a soft goal.

Saprissa outshot Salt Lake in the second half 8-6, but it's leaving Utah without scoring the all-important road goal. In the Champions League, the first tie-breaker is away goals. That puts RSL in great shape heading into the second leg, especially if it scores a goal.

"It was huge. Our objective was to win the game, don't give any goals up and that's exactly what we did," said Rimando.

Saprissa's objective all game was to disrupt RSL's possession-oriented attack by playing very physical. It committed 20 fouls, and ex-RSL player Douglas Sequeira accounted for six of them and one of Saprissa's five yellow cards.

Real Salt Lake's players never let the tactic get under their skins.

"What I am very pleased with our is our reactions tonight. Some of the fouls that happened out there away from the ball could've easily seen reactions from our players that could've picked up yellow cards for retaliations," said Kreis.

Real Salt Lake committed just nine fouls and nobody was shown a yellow card.

On a night when just about everything went right for RSL, it wasn't all good news as Jamison Olave was forced to exit the game at the half with a strained right hamstring.

It seems highly unlikely he'll be available this Saturday when RSL opens the MLS regular season at San Jose.

Real Salt Lake advances in CONCACAF Champions League

(by James Edwards desnews.com 3-1-11)

Real Salt Lake can start making travel arrangements to Central America.

It won't know whether it's heading to Costa Rica or Honduras until tonight, but RSL officially advanced to the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals on Tuesday night with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Columbus at Rio Tinto Stadium.

RSL didn't look anything like the team that notched zero shots on goal in the first leg of the quarterfinal series last week. Instead, spurred on by a passionate crowd of 15,405, it played like a team in midseason form.

"People were knocking our attack a little bit, but obviously we showed we're still a pretty good attacking team," said RSL midfielder Will Johnson.

There was definitely some pressure on RSL heading into the second leg after a scoreless draw in Columbus last week, and much of that pressure was self-inflicted.

Throughout the group stages last year and then this past offseason, RSL's management did a lot of talking about how important the Champions League was to the franchise.

"To be completely honest, I was a little concerned coming into the match because we've been talking a lot about it and what we've managed to do is put ourselves under a tremendous amount of pressure. We really raised the level of expectations for ourselves," said RSL coach Jason Kreis.

Without a suspended Nat Borchers in the lineup there was even more reason to be concerned, but Kreis' anxiety was put to rest fairly early. RSL came out with a positive mentality from the opening minute, and the result was a dominating performance in spite of a 15-minute lull to start the second half.

Javier Morales and Andy Williams were magicians in the midfield, combining for three goals and three assists.

"With two players like that on the same pitch on the same team having that kind of night, you're most of the time going to walk out with a positive result. Those guys were truly special," said Kreis.

Real Salt Lake will now face either Saprissa (Costa Rica) or Olimpia (Honduras) in the CCL semifinals. The second leg of that quarterfinal series is tonight, and Saprissa owns a 1-0 lead. Regardless of the opponent, RSL will host leg one of the semifinals on March 15. The second leg will be on the road between April 5-7.

"It's another step in the right direction, positive step for this club. It was a fantastic night. We'll enjoy the night and look forward to the semifinals," said Johnson, who had a wicked shot bang off the right post in the 13th minute.

RSL eventually opened the scoring on a wonderful bit of skill from three different players in the 23rd minute. Williams cleverly flicked a ball to Morales, who then played a precision through ball to Alvaro Saborio. The Costa Rican striker did what he does best, buried the ball for the 1-0 lead — his seventh goal of the competition dating back to last year.

Thirteen minutes later Williams and Morales linked up again, with Williams supplying a perfect pass into the box to an unmarked Morales, who calmly slotted it home to double RSL's advantage.

Despite such a dominant first half, things got a bit scary early in the second half when Columbus pulled a goal back on a curling right-footed shot by Andres Mendoza in the 49th minute.

The Crew continued to put RSL under pressure knowing that a second goal would not only tie the game at 2-2, but put them in the driver's seat for advancement because of the away goals rule.

"We had a bit of a letdown at the beginning of the second half, but then put the foot back on the gas and finished off the game," said Johnson.

Chris Schuler, a surprise starter in place of Borchers, nearly tacked on a much-needed insurance goal with a powerful header off the crossbar in the 68th minute.

RSL continued applying the pressure though and Morales finally put a rocking Rio Tinto Stadium at ease in the 79th minute as he slotted a shot from the top of the box through traffic and past a diving keeper for the 3-1 lead.

Fittingly on a night when he and Morales were at their best, Williams hammered home a scintillating 30-yard free kick that Columbus keeper Ray Burse Jr. had no hope of saving.

Real Salt Lake, Crew tie 0-0 in CONCACAF first leg

(by Shawn Mitchell desnews.com 2-22-11)

Real Salt Lake opened its season with a scoreless draw against the Columbus Crew Tuesday night in the opening leg of a CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series.

The game, Salt Lake coach Jason Kreis said, was a match more akin to boxing than soccer.

"Tonight was more of a battle than a game," Kreis said. "They were difficult circumstances to play a soccer match."

Three red cards — two shown to RSL players, a field covered in ice pellets after a Monday night storm and a gametime windchill factor of 18 degrees made RSL's first meaningful match of the year an ugly affair.

The rebuilding Crew, heavy on rookies and newcomers, used a lineup that included five players who made their debut for the team.

Yet the patchwork Crew held RSL to zero shots on goal.

"We didn't know a lot about those new players, but we knew that they're going to fight and be organized because that's what the Columbus Crew does," said RSL keeper Nick Rimando, who made four saves.

"But we felt we did our job, especially being a man down, to go into the next leg at 0-0."

Rimando made a save on the best chance of the first half when he knocked aside an angled, short-range blast by Crew forward Emilio Renteria at the near post in the 19th minute.

The Crew had another early look in the 30th minute, but a header by midfielder Eddie Gavin went wide.

The Crew could not capitalize on a lengthy man advantage after RSL defender Tony Beltran was sent off with a second yellow card in the 53rd minute.

Referee Jaime Marrufo later ejected RSL defender Nat Borchers and Renteria for a fracas away from the ball in the 72nd minute.

A furious Borchers said he retaliated after Renteria elbowed him in the throat.

"If you want to use an analogy, I think what I did was petty theft and what he did was a first-degree felony," Borchers said. "I hope they caught it on tape. He hit me right in the neck. Had I not backed off and he connected, I might be speaking to you through a breathing tube."

Kreis said he was upset by the field conditions and the Crew's decision to not cover the playing surface on Monday night.

A Crew staffer said the team left the field uncovered because of potential damage to an already wet field and the difficulty of removing accumulations of ice or snow from a ground covering.

"It's not ideal, that's for sure, but I'd take this over 100 degrees and humidity," RSL defender Chris Wingert said. "At least you can run in stuff like this."

Crew coach Robert Warzycha said he was pleased with the result given the state of his injury-riddled roster.

Kreis and his players were pleased to leave Columbus with a tie and return to Rio Tinto Stadium on even footing.

RSL will be favored in the deciding second leg, to be played Tuesday in Sandy, despite losing Borchers and Beltran to suspension.

RSL is 3-0 and has outscored the Crew 7-1 in Rio Tinto.

"I think we can't be scared to play these guys," Warzycha said. "We showed today we are capable of stepping out there and winning a game."

An anemic offense troubled Kreis, but he allowed that the conditions might have been the biggest factor in the less-than-impressive performance of forwards Fabian Espindola and Alvaro Saborio.

The starting strikers each took two shots. Midfielders Will Johnson and Javier Morales each had a single shot. The rest of the team attempted one shot.

"More than anything it was the conditions," Kreis said. "It's just difficult. When that happens you don't possess the ball well and you don't create chances."

The winner of the series will advance to a semifinal series against Olimpia of Honduras or Saprissa of Costa Rica.

No American team has previously advanced to a Champions League semifinal since they changed the format to the current.

The winner of the Champions League will face some of the world's best professional teams in the FIFA Club World Cup that will be played in Japan in December.

The Crew or Salt Lake is guaranteed to play a Mexican team in the final if either advances. Four teams from the Mexican first division occupy the other half of the bracket.

Mexican teams have won the past five CONCACAF Champions Leagues.

Real Salt Lake draws Columbus in Champions League

(desnews.com 11-1-10)

In a draw held at the CONCACAF headquarters in New York City on Monday, Real Salt Lake was paired with fellow MLS club Columbus in the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals.

Columbus will host the first leg between Feb. 22-24, with RSL hosting the second leg between March 1-3. It figures to be an intriguing quarterfinal between the two most recent MLS champions.

The other quarterfinal pairings are: Toluca (Mexico) vs. Monterrey (Mexico), Cruz Azul (Mexico) vs. Santos Laguna (Mexico) and Saprissa (Costa Rica) vs. (Honduras).

Real Salt Lake beats Cruz Azul, wins CONCACAF Champions group

(by James Edwards desnews.com 10-19-10)

Under coach Jason Kreis, Real Salt Lake is a goals-driven team.

One of their objectives this summer was to become the first MLS team to win a CONCACAF Champions League match in Mexico. It came close, but instead coughed up four goals in the final 20 minutes of a monsoon to lose a heart-breaker to Cruz Azul.

It more than made up for it Tuesday night at Rio Tinto Stadium, and in the process checked another first of its list.

In the final group game of the Champions League for both teams, RSL picked up an emphatic 3-1 victory in front of stadium record 20,463 fans to win Group A with 13 points. It is the first MLS team to finish atop a CCL group.

"It's kind of nice to get a little payback," said Rauwshan McKenzie. "They're coming here thinking they're going to put one on us, but we just held our ground and showed them what home field advantage is."

Getting the job done with a make-shift line-up that included Will Johnson starting on defense and teenager Luis Gil starting as well — against Cruz Azul's first-choice line-up — speaks volumes about how confident Real Salt Lake is at home. The victory ran the club's unbeaten streak at home to 32 straight in all competitions.

"Winning the group the way that we did with our second team, against their absolutely first team in our stadium in front of a pretty hostile crowd says a lot about the guys we have on this team," said Johnson. "It was a lot of fun to be a part of. It was a huge accomplishment."

Real Salt Lake will now turn its attention back to MLS play this weekend as it tries to win the MLS Supporter's Shield.

RSL had already secured passage into the Champions League quarterfinals regardless of Tuesday's result, so Kreis had the luxury of resting most of his regulars for this weekend's game in Colorado.

Not surprisingly, Cruz Azul took advantage by dominating possession early.

"A lot of the first half we were a little bit tentative again. I thought there were more opportunities for us to play and possess and we were doing quite a good enough job," said Kreis.

With an estimated 50-50 split in the stadium between RSL supporters and Cruz Azul supporters, nerves were to be expected from RSL's youngsters.

One player who didn't demonstrate those nerves was Paulo Junior. In his first start for Real Salt Lake he scored twice, including the all-important first goal late in the first half.

His second goal doubled RSL's lead in the 67th minute, and rookie Collen Warner increased the lead to 3-0 four minutes later.

Against any other team a three-goal lead is safe, but not necessarily at Cruz Azul.

The visitors pulled a goal back on a wonderful finish by Cesar Villaluz in the 71st minute, and RSL keeper Kyle Reynish came up with a huge save in the 83rd minute to keep the score line at 3-1.

"I just can't say enough about the contributions of the players that came in, and they have for the past six weeks," said Kreis.

Pablo Campos had a great opportunity to put RSL in front in the 32nd minute, but his penalty kick was saved by Cruz Azul keeper Yosgart Gutierrez. Campos was fouled in the box by Adrian Cortes following a great piece of individual skill as he beat three defenders.

Even though the experience of Johnson and Andy Williams made them more logical choices to take the PK, Campos insisted on taking it but he was denied.

With the visitors dominating possession, it could've been a disastrous miss.

Fortunately for Campos, Paulo Junior came to the rescue in the waning minutes of the second half as the speedy striker split a pair of Cruz Azul defenders and chipped the ball over the keeper.

Both RSL and Cruz Azul advance to the two-leg quarterfinals of the Champions League on Feb. 22-24 and then March 1-3. RSL will open on the road and then host the second leg against a yet-to-be determined team.

"It's a step in the right direction. We won't stop here. We need to make strides to get further in the tournament come spring," said Kreis.

Real Salt Lake reaches CONCACAF quarterfinals with tie at Toronto

(by Steven Sandor desnews.com 9-28-10)

Javier Morales recovered from a bad knee in the nick of time.

Introduced as a substitute at halftime of Tuesday's night's CONCACAF Champions League game against Toronto, Real Salt Lake's midfield general got a clutch free-kick goal that gave Real Salt Lake a 1-1 draw with Toronto FC, and the single point required to send RSL to the quarterfinals of the tournament.

Morales had missed the last four games through a mix of suspension time and a knee problem.

Morales' goal was the first time a Real Salt Lake player has scored at BMO Field since Toronto FC came into existence in 2007. That's a total of 428 minutes of scoreless soccer in Canada's largest city. RSL drew 0-0 with the Reds when they met in MLS play Aug. 28.

With a 2-0 win over Arabe Unido on Tuesday, Cruz Azul also clinched a spot in the quarters, transforming their mid-October group stage game in Sandy into a meaningless friendly.

Not that coach Jason Kreis will be complaining. He rested five of his regulars in Saturday's 1-1 draw with the Colorado Rapids so he could field the best possible lineup for the Toronto game, ensuring that his club could focus on MLS down the stretch.

But his plan went awry when bad weather scuttled the team's connecting flight in Atlanta on Sunday. Instead of arriving in Toronto on Sunday night, half the team still hadn't crossed the border on Monday morning. They arrived on a number of planes through the day. Kreis was forced to cancel practice and couldn't evaluate if Morales was ready to return or not.

"It's hard to describe how difficult the travel situation was," said Kreis.

Before the match, Morales went through a quick fitness test, but neither player nor coach had any idea how his knee would hold up.

But, after a goal from former Colorado Rapid Jacob Peterson — his first as a TFC player — gave the Reds a 1-0 halftime lead, Kreis and Morales agreed that it was time to roll the dice.

"Absolutely, it was a big gamble," said Kreis. "The question was, how many minutes could he last?"

"It was a risk we had to take," Morales said. "I felt OK. I wasn't sure that I could go 45 minutes, but we were lucky — everything was good."

In the 68th minute, Morales smashed a free kick over the defensive wall. TFC midfielder Julian de Guzman had a chance to head it off the line, but the ball skidded off the top of his head — it deflected slightly but still found the back of the net.

TFC had de Guzman, who is 5-foot-7, on the goal line, rather than a tall defender. It was a mistake that cost the home team dearly,

Had Morales not pulled RSL out of the fire, the final group-stage game with Cruz Azul would have been a nailbiter. Because the Mexican side had already clinched its quarterfinal spot, it likely would not have started its best lineup. But RSL would have gone into that game without captain Kyle Beckerman, who will serve a yellow-card accumulation suspension after he was cautioned for kicking de Guzman long after the ball had gone.

Instead, Beckerman will miss a meaningless game.

"We're an extremely pleased team right now, to accomplish one of our major, major goals this season," said Kreis.

Peterson opened the scoring after taking a 50-yard throw from keeper Jon Conway. Toronto FC rested starter Stefan Frei, the MLS saves leader, but Conway was solid in his place.

Will Johnson, Real Salt Lake's Canadian midfielder, laid out to try and intercept the pass, but the ball got by him. Because Johnson went to the turf, it allowed Peterson to lead a two-on-one break into the RSL half, and he buried a perfect shot just inside keeper Nick Rimando's left post.

Rimando made an outstanding save on a 20-yard curling drive from Dwayne De Rosario in the second half, keeping the game at 1-0, allowing Morales the chance to perform his heroics.

Only 10,581 fans turned up for the game — the smallest crowd in TFC history.

Toronto FC coach Nick Dasovic said he wasn't concerned about the turnout.

"Anywhere you go in CONCACAF, there hasn't been great crowds," he said.

Real Salt Lake leads group after beating Arabe Unido

(by James Edward desnews.com 9-22-10)

Thanks to a gutty performance in Central America, Real Salt Lake is on the doorstep of advancing out of CONCACAF Champions League group play.

Despite conceding an early goal yet again, RSL responded quickly to build a two-goal halftime lead and then hung on for the 3-2 victory over Arabe Unido in Panama City on Wednesday night.

With the victory, Real Salt Lake now leads Group A with nine points through four matches. Cruz Azul sits in second with seven points, followed by Toronto FC with four and Arabe Unido with three.

"It's one step closer to getting to what is a huge priority for us to advance out of this tournament, but I also know the work is not done. We can't take a breather," said RSL coach Jason Kreis.

RSL's next Champions League match is at Toronto on Sept. 28, and it wraps up group play on Oct. 19 at home against Cruz Azul. A tie in either match should be more than enough for RSL to clinch a spot in the CCL quarterfinals next February.

Perhaps not surprisingly, it was another shaky start Wednesday night for Real Salt Lake. Just like in its previous three matches, RSL allowed the first goal — this one shockingly early as Arabe Unido scored in the second minute on a free kick by Williams Aguilar.

Kreis didn't want to harp too much on the early goal because he believes the foul that led to the free kick was "very suspect."

The way his team responded to the adversity was what Kreis was most pleased about. RSL never panicked, and by halftime the visitors led comfortably as Will Johnson scored twice and Alvaro Saborio tacked on his sixth goal of the tournament.

Johnson worked his tail off for his 10th minute equalizer. He relentlessly applied pressure on a pair of Arabe Unido defenders near the end line, eventually deflecting the ball toward goal, and after Fabian Espindola's initial toe poke was saved, Johnson was there to tap it into the empty net.

"A lot of good things happen because he works so hard," said Kreis.

In the 36th minute, Saborio headed in a Nelson Gonzalez corner kick to put RSL ahead 2-1, and two minutes before halftime, Saborio set up Johnson for the 3-1 lead.

"I'm really pleased with the response of the group," said Kreis. "It showed a really positive response on our part, no panic."

The second half got a bit too hectic for Kreis' liking, however. In the 53rd minute, Tony Beltran was whistled for a foul in the box, and Mario Angulo converted the penalty kick to cut the deficit to 3-2.

RSL dropped back defensively the final 15 minutes into a 4-5-1 formation to protect the lead as Jean Alexandre entered the match for Saborio.

Perhaps the only negative to come out of the match was Espindola's red card from the bench late in the match after he had played 60 minutes early in the match. He'll be forced to miss next week's match at Toronto as will Gonzalez for yellow card accumulation.

The win was all the more satisfying for Real Salt Lake considering several key starters didn't even travel with the team.

Nat Borchers, Chris Wingert and Andy Williams did not travel because Kreis believes they deserved some much-needed rest, while Javier Morales didn't travel because of a quad injury.

"I feel good again that we've been able to insert some players, develop a rotation and get some results," said Kreis.

Chris Schulter started in place of Nat Borchers, and he's quickly establishing himself as a viable option at center back despite being a rookie.

RSL returns home today and will have to immediately shift its focus back to Major League Soccer as it hosts rival Colorado Saturday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.

In the midst of a 23-game home unbeaten streak, RSL needs to secure the full three points against the Rapids to continue to put pressure on the L.A. Galaxy, who enjoy a three-point cushion at the top of the MLS table.