Real Salt Lake will face the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday afternoon in a key Western Conference match. Sunday’s fixture, which will be nationally televised as part of the MLS Sunday block, will mark RSL’s first-ever visit to the Quakes’ new Avaya Stadium.
Although Real is unbeaten so far in 2015, the team earned its first win last Sunday in a 2-1 victory over Toronto FC. That match was marked by last-minute heroics from academy product Jordan Allen, who scored his first MLS goal to give RSL three points.
Meanwhile, their opponents are coming off a 2-1 loss at New England last weekend. Marvell Wynne and Sanna Nyassi were both substituted due to injury; Wynne is unlikely to play on Sunday, while Nyassi is listed as questionable. Another notable absence is that of longtime RSL nemesis Steven Lenhart, who is recovering from a knee injury as well.
Real head coach Jeff Cassar will be forced to make lineup adjustments yet again, as striker Sebastian Jaime sustained a tibial fracture last week against Toronto and will be out on Sunday. However, Alvaro Saborio, Nick Rimando, Luis Gil, Elias Vasquez, and Boyd Okwuono have returned from international duty and will be available for selection.
Saborio and Rimando are virtual certainties to reclaim their starting positions, although Cassar will have some difficult decisions to make elsewhere in his starting eleven. Gil, Allen, and Sebastian Saucedo — who made his first-team debut last week — are all candidates to take over for Jaime on the right wing in the 4-3-3. If Gil is selected, that would in turn open the door for Luke Mulholland to start in midfield after making a strong case for himself with a goal last weekend.
