Real Salt Lake’s tumultuous season has taken another turn recently. This time, however, it’s been for the better, as RSL has downed both Dallas and Colorado — teams that sat above Real in the Western Conference standings — at home in consecutive weeks.
These two matches had a lot of similarities, and not just in terms of the higher-ranked opponents or the results. Both followed similar patterns of play, with the opponent coming into Rio Tinto Stadium with a good awareness of what RSL would do and taking the early initiative; Real would then find its way back into the match, score a critical goal, and see out the closing minutes.
For example, early on against FCD, it didn’t look terribly promising for RSL, as Dallas’ tactics and team speed made life difficult for Real. Oscar Pareja and his staff had clearly done their homework, and their game plan was quite effective in the first half.
FCD overloaded the midfield and used tempo to their advantage, closing quickly on Real to force the pace of play. It wasn’t quite a full-blown press, but had a similar effect — RSL either had to move the ball more quickly through the midfield or look for long balls over the top. Meanwhile, Dallas’ speedy attackers kept Real’s back four honest, forcing Demar Phillips and Tony Beltran to be wary of pushing high for too long.
Once Real began to match FCD’s speed of play, the game got much more competitive. By moving off the ball and cutting down on the number of touches with the ball, RSL’s midfield was able to find space and chances started to materialize.
The second half was a different story, however; although the first 20 minutes of the half were similar to that of the first half, something changed around the 65 minute mark. Dallas appeared to tire a bit, perhaps feeling the effects of altitude, while RSL picked up its own effort and began to threaten the visitors’ goal more often.
It wasn’t the prettiest victory, but Real successfully met the challenges that a very talented FCD side posed. RSL was much better with second and third balls than in previous matches, an improvement that carried over into the Colorado match.
After an opening 25 minutes that looked pretty dire and saw the Rapids take a one-goal lead, Real managed to turn things around and play its way back into the match. Colorado, much like Dallas the week before, came out looking to force RSL’s hand from the opening kickoff.
Again, once Real picked up its speed of play and subsequently cut down on the number of turnovers in the middle third, everything improved. Phillips was able to get forward and assist on the first Yura Movsisyan goal, for example, instead of being pinned back. And Movsisyan himself was able to make the right touches to find space and get the shot off for his second goal, something that the entire attack has struggled with when the pace is too slow.
If there’s a lesson to be learned from these last two matches, it’s that RSL actually seems to play better against top opponents. When faced with an opponent that wants to outplay them instead of just overwhelm them with numbers, Real has risen to the occasion recently.
RSL won’t play again until September 7, when Real will face its real nemesis, the LA Galaxy. That’s unfortunate for several reasons, only one of which is the fact that RSL seems to be a very momentum-driven team this year. This group isn’t the old Real Salt Lake that would bludgeon everyone in the league to death with its consistency at home — it seems to be much more driven by emotion, by finding a little bit of confidence and then feeding off that energy.
Having downtime after a run of good results was a huge buzzkill for the team earlier in the season, when the Copa America break brought what had been a spectacular season to a screeching halt. Facing the Galaxy in that first match back will be a considerable mental test for the players. Many of them will remember the 5-0 playoff loss of a few seasons ago, and all of them will recall the difficulties they faced in the 5-2 loss in LA earlier this season.
Can the players re-generate the energy and excitement created over the last two weeks against an opponent that has traditionally been difficult for RSL to handle? The answer to that question just may have huge implications for the rest of Real’s season.
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