Rivals face off in Mountain Cup finale
REAL SALT LAKE v COLORADO RAPIDS
RICE-ECCLES STADIUM, Salt Lake City, Utah
7:30 p.m. MT (FSC/FSE)
Sept. 22, 2007 (WEEK 25) / MLS Game #163
The third meeting for the Rocky Mountain Cup is ahead as the two rivals face off in a desperate chase for points for both. Home-standing Real Salt Lake is in the more precarious position, now 11 points out of the final playoff spot with just five games to play after their midweek home draw with the LA Galaxy. The Colorado Rapids are closer but still not in the top eight, still two points adrift of the Chicago Fire with five games to play heading into the weekend after their 1-1 draw with Chivas USA last Sunday afternoon at home.
REFEREE: Abbey Okulaja. SAR (bench): Chris Strickland; JAR (opposite): George Gansner; 4th: Feliciano Palomino
MLS Career: 69 games; FC/gm: 29.7; Y/gm: 3.6; R: 9; pens: 19
Games involving Real: P6 W2 L3 T1; FC/gm: 24.2; Y/gm: 3.7; R: 1; pens: 3
Games involving Rapids: P10 W5 L4 T1; FC/gm: 29.5; Y/gm: 3.8; R: 1; pens: 3
INJURY REPORT: REAL SALT LAKE - OUT: DF Nik Besagno (R meniscus tear); QUESTIONABLE: MF Nathan Sturgis (L calf strain); PROBABLE: FW Alecko Eskandarian (R hamstring strain), FW Fabian Espíndola (R shin contusion), MF Javier Morales (L rotator cuff strain) ... COLORADO RAPIDS - OUT: DF Dan Gargan (R knee ACL tear); FW Herculez Gomez (R ACL and meniscus tears); FW Conor Casey (R knee swelling); QUESTIONABLE: DF Brandon Prideaux (L hamstring strain); PROBABLE: MF Pablo Mastroeni (illness); DF Mike Petke (illness)
SUSPENDED: RSL: Alecko Eskandarian (through Sept. 23; eight cautions) ... COL: Facundo Erpen (through Sept. 23); Pablo Mastroeni (through Sept. 23; five cautions)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: RSL: Kyle Beckerman, Atiba Harris ... COL: Mehdi Ballouchy, Facundo Erpen, Ugo Ihemelu
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: RSL: Jean-Martial Kipré, Ritchie Kotschau, Carey Talley, Chris Wingert ... COL: Bouna Coundoul, Mike Petke, Brandon Prideaux
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (10 meetings): Real Salt Lake 2 wins, 9 goals ...Rapids 6 wins, 13 goals ... Draws 2
IN SALT LAKE: (4 meetings): Real Salt Lake 1 wins, 3 goals ... Rapids 3 wins, 6 goals ...Draws 1
• This is the third of four meetings between the teams as the Rocky Mountain Cup is again on offer to the winner of the season series. After meeting twice in 10 days at the start of the year, this the first encounter since May; they meet Oct. 20 in Commerce City in the regular season finale.
• A year ago, the Rapids claimed the Rocky Mountain Cup for the second successive season, getting a pair of 1-0 victories (the only goal coming from Nicolas Hernandez in each) with Real winning once after the teams opened with a draw.
• Colorado also claimed a victory when the teams met in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup at Rice-Eccles Stadium, the lone goal coming from Jacob Peterson (61).
• In Real's inaugural season, the then-expansion club won for the first time ever, in their home debut, defeating Colorado 1-0 in the first meetings between the border state rivals, before the Rapids took the final three encounters that season.
• Coaches record: Fernando Clavijo vs. RSL: P10 W6 L2 D2 ... Jason Kreis vs. COL: P1 W0 L0 D1
2007 (MLS):
4/30: RSL 0, COL 2 (Brown 71, Beckerman 75)
5/10: COL 1, RSL 1 (Stewart 4 og - Mastroeni 15 og)
• The Rapids claimed a 2-0 victory at Real Salt Lake on April 30 in the first Rocky Mountain Cup. After last season, the Rocky Mountain Cup has truly turned into a bitterly contested affair between the regional rivals, and there was no shortage of energy from the start of the contest.
• But the goals didn't come until late. In the 71st minute, a long ball down the right flank bounced past RSL defender Danny Torres, and Rapids striker Roberto Brown was able to corral it in the Real penalty area. As he cut inside to the heart of the box, Torres fell down and Brown was left with the goal at his mercy, blasting a shot high past goalkeeper Chris Seitz.
• Then four minutes later, defender Jack Stewart sent a back pass to Seitz -- who was the second-youngest goalkeeper to start a game in MLS history -- and when he handled the ball, referee Abbey Okulaja called for an indirect free kick in the penalty area.
• Colorado's Herculez Gomez sent the ball under the wall and into the back of the net on the first attempt, but Okulaja had not whistled for play to restart. So on the second chance, Gomez's shot banged into the wall -- but the rebound went back to Kyle Beckerman, and he lashed home a low shot through the goalmouth scrum.
• The teams played to a 1-1 draw at Dick's Sporting Goods Park then on May 10. The game got off to a strange start, as four minutes in, Herculez Gomez got free down the right flank. He whipped in a low cross and Nick Rimando dove out to get a hand onto it, only to see it bounce off the thigh of a retreating Jack Stewart and into the RSL goal.
• But the Rapids returned the favor 11 minutes later. Freddy Adu - very active and dangerous all night long on the left flank, drove in a rolling cross from the left side of the penalty area that Pablo Mastroeni stuck out his foot to stop, only to see slip inside the near post as Rapids 'keeper Bouna Coundoul went the other way.
• It was the ninth time in MLS history there had been two own goals in the same game, and the sixth that each team had scored from an own goal in a game. But it was the first time that all the scoring in a 1-1 game came from own goals.
• Gomez had two apparent goals - one in each half - flagged for offside. He got on the end of a rebound and sent it off Rimando and home in the 13th minute, but was offside on the initial shot. In the 67th minute he again looked to have scored off a pass from substitute Jose Cancela, but again the assistant referee's flag went up.
• Here's Clavijo's team (4-4-2): Bouna Coundoul - Dan Gargan, Pablo Mastroeni, Mike Petke, Greg Vanney - Terry Cooke (Jacob Peterson 90), Kyle Beckerman, Jovan Kirovski (Jose Cancela 57), Nicolas Hernandez - Herculez Gomez, Roberto Brown. Substitutes Not Used: Conor Casey, Nico Colaluca, Ugo Ihemelu, Zach Thornton, Chris Wingert
• Here Kreis' team (4-1-3-2): Nick Rimando - Jack Stewart (Jean-Martial Kipre 61), Eddie Pope, Daniel Torres, Willis Forko - Carey Talley - Chris Klein, Mehdi Ballouchy, Freddy Adu - Jeff Cunningham, Atiba Harris (Chris Brown 67). Substitutes Not Used: Nikolas Besagno, Duke Hashimoto, Chris Lancos, Chris Seitz, Jamie Watson
REAL SALT LAKE
Real Salt Lake battled back for a late equalizer, but couldn't get back on a winning track, seeing their winless run reach four games after settling for a 2-2 draw with the Los Angeles Galaxy on Wednesday evening at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Real now have 20 points from 25 matches, still two points ahead of the Galaxy in the Western Conference while 10 points behind the Chicago Fire, who hold the final playoff spot.
LAST MATCH
• The Galaxy came into the game having lost their last two and eight of their last nine, while Real Salt Lake had followed back-to-back losses with a scoreless draw in Toronto as both teams scrapped to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.
• Each team hit the woodwork in the opening 45 minutes, Edson Buddle's quick shot on the turn pushed onto the post by RSL 'keeper Nick Rimando, and Kyle Beckerman's angled effort glancing off the face of the bar. Then in the 56th minute, after spilling a rebound, Galaxy 'keeper Joe Cannon pulled down RSL striker Yura Movsisyan as he was first to it, and Carey Talley converted from the spot.
• On Sept. 1, RSL scored two goals in five minutes to come back for a 2-1 win against the Galaxy, and it seemed like the Galaxy would return the favor. Mike Randolph was pulled down by Jean-Martial Kipré in the left side of the area, and Terry Vaughn pointed to the spot for the second time. Landon Donovan - who had missed a spot kick in that game, his second consecutive miss - hammered home the chance this time for the leveler (79).
• Then in the 85th minute, Donovan laid on a perfect through ball for Gavin Glinton to run onto from deep, and he slotted home past Rimando to send the Galaxy into the lead.
• Yet barely a minute later, Real won a free kick just outside the top of the LA area. Javier Morales - who had come on a substitute just before the goal - whipped the dead ball around the right edge of the wall and into the upper corner, beating Cannon cleanly for his first MLS goal.
• Morales was a threat over the final minutes and nearly provided RSL the winner. He found Chris Brown with a cross and his header beat Cannon. But Kelly Gray chested it across the goal while standing on the goal line, keeping it just far enough out for Cannon to recover and the punch the ball away to safety.
• RSL head coach Jason Kreis made five changes to the team that played to a scoreless draw against Toronto FC the previous Saturday. Jean-Martial Kipré returned to the lineup along with Ritchie Kotschau, in place of Chris Lancos and the suspended Matias Mantilla. Fabian Espindola was also suspended, meaning Andy Williams returned to the lineup. Yura Movsisyan made his RSL debut and came into the attack along with Robbie Findley, in place of Javier Morales and Chris Brown.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-2-3-1): Nick Rimando - Jean-Martial Kipre (Javier Morales 84), Ritchie Kotschau, Eddie Pope, Chris Wingert - Kyle Beckerman, Carey Talley - Alecko Eskandarian (Kyle Brown 75), Andy Williams, Robbie Findley - Yura Movsisyan (Chris Brown 67). Substitutes Not Used: Atiba Harris, Chris Lancos, Chris Seitz, Jack Stewart
• "We're not happy with it. We're not pleased with it and we're not content with it. We feel our team did enough over the course of 70 minutes where we didn't feel like L.A. was getting anything against us," Kreis said. "For me it comes down to two things -- not putting the game away at that point when we're having all those attacking chances ... and obviously a crucial, crucial mistake by a defender."
TEAM NEWS
• Kreis was pleased with the performance of striker Yura Movsisyan, who made his Real debut after being acquired from the Kansas City Wizards the Friday before on the MLS trading deadline.
• "He was fantastic. I thought he was very, very good and he did exactly what we asked of him, which was to play the high forward and hold the ball up and involve other players and he did that. I'm not 100 percent certain that's the role he wants, but he did a very good job of it tonight," Kreis said.
• Said Movsisyan: "I guess I wasn't getting playing time over there (with the Kansas City Wizards). As a professional, you just want to play, you just want to get out there and play. At the end of the day I am just thankful to Jason (Kreis) and the club for doing this and getting me out here."
• But Kreis had a black mark for his own performance, especially taking off Jean-Martial Kipré for Javier Morales just before the Galaxy's go-ahead goal. "When we made the switch and pulled out our right defender and went to three in the back that was my biggest concern - if Landon gets the ball are we going to have somebody to deal with him right away? And it came true, I don't know, 30 seconds after we made the sub. So perhaps it was a learning experience for the coach."
• But Morales made him look good in return, whipping a free kick around the wall and into the upper corner, the ball flying in cleanly after goalkeeper Joe Cannon first took a step in the other direction. "From where I was standing it was fantastic. I've been watching him train and hitting free kicks and obviously I've seen him hit some free kicks on some videos before he came here, so I knew he was capable of it," Kreis said. "It was good for the entire team really, to get Javier Morales' first goal -- a well-taken goal -- in a pressure situation."
• For Morales, it was his first goal with RSL. It now means that all three of Real's Argentinean acquisitions have found the back of the net since their arrival on the Wasatch Front.
• "I think we had the clearest opportunities to score. They had one counterattack to get the penalty, and then we were pushing forward looking for the win," Morales said. " ... The hardest thing for me right now is I have a hurt shoulder and it is hard for me to recover to be 100 percent, but I am working hard, my teammates are helping me a lot and I am very happy to be here."
• While both teams could feel happy about their respective comebacks for the tie, it doesn't do either any good in the chase for the MLS Cup Playoffs. The single point left the teams still at the bottom of the MLS overall table, RSL with 20 points and the Galaxy with 18. The Chicago Fire still sit in eighth place with 30 points; any combination of six points won by the Fire or lost by Real will eliminate the Utah club from playoff consideration.
• "We dominated, we had more chances, and to not even come out with a point ... to even have to fight to get the point," Beckerman said. "We played good soccer. The thing we didn't do was finish our chances. We really felt that today was one of our better games that we played and to not get the win, it's a gutted feeling."
COLORADO RAPIDS
The Colorado Rapids maintained touch with the top eight in the MLS overall table and the playoff spots, coming back to gain a 1-1 draw with Chivas USA last Sunday at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The Rapids now have 29 points from 25 matches, now a point ahead of the Columbus Crew but still a point behind the Chicago Fire for eighth place and the final spot in the postseason.
LAST MATCH
• Chivas USA came in riding a six-game unbeaten streak after their Super Clasico win three days earlier, and in first place at the latest point ever in the season. The Rapids had also been hot of late, seeing their four-game unbeaten streak put to an end the weekend before by the LA Galaxy.
• The game took a dramatic turn just 13 minutes in. Laurent Merlin escaped behind the Colorado backline and was running free toward goal. Rapids center back Facundo Erpen chased him down, and just as he reached the area, pushed over the Chivas striker. Referee Richard Heron showed Erpen a straight red card and awarded Chivas a penalty kick, which was then easily finished by Sacha Kljestan.
• The match was then twice delayed by weather -- first adding about 17 minutes to the halftime break, then for some 42 minutes at the 70-minute mark. And after the second delay, still down a man and a goal, the Rapids came out flying.
• They found the equalizer just six minutes after the resumption. Terry Cooke found Conor Casey on the right, and he slid a square pass to Colin Clark across the edge of the area. Clark's first touch split a pair of Chivas defenders and he raced to collect the ball deep in the area, chipping it over the on-rushing Brad Guzan for his second goal.
• Rapids head coach Fernando Clavijo made two changes to the team that lost 3-1 to the LA Galaxy the Sunday before at The Home Depot Center. Pablo Mastroeni returned from illness and Conor Casey from injury, as Brandon Prideaux and Herculez Gomez were both out to injury, Gomez for the season.
• Here's Clavijo's team (4-3-1-2): Bouna Coundoul - Tony Sanneh, Ugo Ihemelu, Mike Petke (Stephen Keel 23), Facundo Erpen - Terry Cooke, Pablo Mastroeni, Colin Clark - Jovan Kirovski (Jose Cancela 79) - Mehdi Ballouchy (Jacob Peterson 54), Conor Casey. Substitutes Not Used: Omar Cummings, Jordan Harvey, Daniel Osorno, Zach Thornton
TEAM NEWS
• Clavijo was facing some real selection issues entering the game. Petke and Mastroeni were both suffering from food poisoning - it had kept Mastroeni out of the game against the LA Galaxy the weekend before, as well as his call into the U.S. national team friendly against Brazil. Petke was able to last just 23 minutes before he had to come off.
• "The way everything happened coming into the game, with Mike Petke and Pablo Mastroeni sick, we really didn't know what was going to happen. Really, it was an outstanding effort. Every time we came in, Pablo was getting an IV to try to get fluids in. When you look at all that, and the red card 12 minutes in, one point at the end of the day is not that bad, but we were definitely looking for three points."
• There will be more issues this weekend. Erpen will be suspended after receiving the red card, while Mastroeni will also be banned after reaching the yellow-card threshold.
• "I think we put ourselves behind the 8-ball early, but we battled back against the hottest team in the league. We put out the effort, didn't sit back, and applied pressure as much as we could," Mastroeni said. "At the end, I think it was a good result, but at no point in the game were we comfortable with getting the draw."
• Even down a man, the Rapids were a changed team coming out of the locker room following the second of the weather delays.
• "I've always felt that our group is some of the hardest working guys in the league. You know, Pablo, he'll run 'til he passes out -- it's amazing. That's why he's captain for us, and was captain for the national team for quite a while. Playing with somebody like that, it's easy to get up and work your butt off."
• While the Rapids were not able to completely rebound from the loss that put an end to their three-game winning run, they were still able to grab a point and maintain contact with the teams they are scrapping with for the final playoff spot. It seems as if it will come down to a fight between Colorado, Columbus and Chicago for the eighth place in the MLS overall table; Kansas City is in seventh place, six points ahead of eighth-place Chicago, and all of the teams have either five or six games left.
• "Columbus lost (Saturday) night, Chicago tied, so the two teams that we're fighting directly didn't get away," Clavijo said. "We showed a lot of character today. I think we deserved better."
• In the days leading up to the Chivas match, the Rapids received some devastating news when Herculez Gomez was lost after a significant knee injury, suffering tears to the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his right knee. He will out for the remainder of the season, his return not expected for 6-9 months.
