Teams on rise meet in New York, RSL
Interconference scuffle on tap with upcoming playoffs the focus
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GIANTS STADIUM, E. Rutherford, N.J.
Sept. 13, 2008 | 7:30 p.m. ET (MSG; KSL-NBC)
WEEK # 25 | GAME # 165
A pair of clubs right in the thick of the MLS Cup Playoffs battle meet in an interconference clash at Giants Stadium when the New York Red Bulls face Real Salt Lake. Both teams are currently in the playoff picture - the Red Bulls holding onto the final wild card spot, with the eighth-best record overall, while RSL sits in second place in the Western Conference, with a point fewer than the Bulls. The Red Bulls come into the game after having their six-game unbeaten streak ended last week, while RSL is playing the second in a stretch of four out of five games on the road, where they have won just once on the season.
REFEREE: Kevin Stott. SAR (bench): Emiliano Monje; JAR (opposite): Jose Corro; 4th: Andrew Chapin
MLS Career: 159 games; FC/gm: 26.4; Y/gm: 3.3; R: 43; pens: 33
INJURY REPORT: NEW YORK RED BULLS - NONE REPORTED ... REAL SALT LAKE - OUT: DF Tony Beltran (L adductor strain); FW Fabian Espíndola (R severe ankle sprain); MF Nathan Sturgis (L hamstring strain); DOUBTFUL: MF Dema Kovalenko (L calf strain)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: none
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: none
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: NY: Andrew Boyens, Seth Stammler, Sinisa Ubiparipovic ... RSL: Kyle Beckerman, Kenny Deuchar, Ian Joy, Dema Kovalenko, Jamison Olave, Chris Wingert
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (6 meetings): Red Bulls 1 win, 14 goals ... Real Salt Lake 0 wins, 5 goals ... Ties 5
AT GIANTS STADIUM (3 meetings): Red Bulls 1 win, 8 goals ... Real Salt Lake 0 wins, 2 goals ... Ties 2
• This is the first of two meetings between the teams this season, with both coming in the final two months of the campaign. The clubs will face each other in less than a month's time, Oct. 9 when Real Salt Lake open their new stadium in Sandy.
LAST SEASON (MLS):
5/5: RSL 3, NY 3 (Klein 61; Cunningham 90; C. Brown (90) - Richards 12; Mathis 28, 83)
9/29: NY 2, RSL 2 (Doe 49; Angel 80 - C. Brown 22; Beckerman 75)
• The teams have played to draws in five of their six all-time meetings - with a 6-0 New York victory on Aug. 26, 2006 the only time either team has taken the three points. After playing to a scoreless draw in RSL's first game ever, April 2, 2005 at the Meadowlands, there have been four score draws since.
• Last year saw draws in both meetings, 3-3 at Rice-Eccles Stadium and 2-2 at Giants Stadium.
• Coaches record: Juan Carlos Osorio v RSL: P1 W1 L0 D0 ... Jason Kreis vs. NY: P2 W0 L0 D2
NEW YORK RED BULLS
The New York Red Bulls lost for the first time in nearly two months, the Chicago Fire getting the game's only goal for a victory Saturday evening at Toyota Park. The Red Bulls are still tied with United for fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 32 points from 23 matches, now six points behind the second-place tie between Chicago and New England.LAST MATCH
• The Fire had lost two of their last three after a seven-game unbeaten run, while the Red Bulls were one of the hottest teams in the league, with three wins and three draws in their last six contests.
• The game's lone goal came in the 36th minute when Red Bulls defender Diego Jimenez won the ball in the area, but sent his clearance right in front of goal, where Stephen King intercepted and slid it home for his second goal of the season. It was the first goal allowed by the Red Bulls in 380 minutes; earlier, Jimenez had headed a Mike Banner shot off the line.
• Jon Busch was called upon to make two saves in goal in recording his league-leading 10th shutout for the Fire, who have allowed just 18 goals in 23 league games.
• Red Bulls boss Juan Carlos Osorio made four changes to the team that played to a scoreless draw with D.C. United the weekend before on the road. Hunter Freeman, Gabriel Cichero and Jeff Parke came into a completely rebuilt back four, in place of the suspended Kevin Goldthwaite, Andrew Boyens (international duty) and Chris Leitch. Mike Magee was a late scratch with an infection, and Sinisa Ubiparipovic made his return to the team.
• Here's Osorio's team (4-4-1-1): Jon Conway - Hunter Freeman (Danleigh Borman 74), Gabriel Cichero, Jeff Parke, Diego Jimenez - Dane Richards, Juan Pietravallo (John Wolyniec 61), Seth Stammler, Dave van den Bergh - Sinisa Ubiparipovic - Juan Pablo Angel. Substitutes Not Used: Danny Cepero, John Gilkerson, Chris Leitch, Carlos Mendes, Luke Sassano
TEAM NEWS
• The Red Bulls saw their shutout streak snapped at 380 minutes, the third-longest in club history. The New York record is 421 minutes, set last season. The 380-minute mark was also the longest in MLS this season, passing the 355-minute mark set by Real Salt Lake from June 28-July 28.
• "I think we have improved a lot in terms of quality and the standards of where we want to be," Juan Pablo Angel said. "That's why we're disappointed because we know that we're better than this and we have better over the last five, six games. That's where the disappointment comes from. We raised the bar and we want to keep it going."
• Over the last six games, the Red Bulls have allowed just three goals. That followed a 10-game stretch where they allowed multiple goals in half of those contests, including four goals on two occasions and five once - the loss in the first meeting with the Fire.
• "A couple of months ago I don't think we were right anywhere," Jon Conway said. "We were kind of lacking some defensive gusto and I think now we have some good confidence and everyone is playing well. But again, one play really cost us the game. Other than that we created some chances and we had chances to score. Just unfortunate."
• After playing in a striking role for a few games, Dane Richards returned to a wide right position as Osorio readjusted his tactics for the trip to Chicago. But it didn't work out at planned.
• "The service was very poor today," Osorio said. "But it bothers me that in the run of play we managed to get the ball wide, especially on the right side and we need better from that side. We need better delivery to give our strikers at least a chance. We didn't do that today and that's probably the most disappointing thing for me."
• Said Richards: "We lacked concentration in some parts of the game and it cost us a goal, passing was not good and our decision making in the final third wasn't good also. I'm at fault of that in this game. We just need to clean that up. We got our chances, don't get me wrong. We could have tied, we could have won, but unfortunately we didn't."
• Mike Magee, who had scored three goals in four games, had expected to be in the starting lineup before numerous family members and friends, playing in his Chicago home. Instead, because of a staph infection in his right arm, he was not able to play.
• "It was pretty hard to accept," Magee said. "I don't think the timing could have been much worse. At the end of the day, with the infection that I had, it was pretty serious. The doctor said if I would have waited another 24 hours it would have been real serious and if I would have played and something happened it could have gotten pretty ugly."
REAL SALT LAKE
Real Salt Lake came back to take a second-half lead but couldn't hold on, as they battled the Los Angeles Galaxy to a 2-2 draw last Saturday at The Home Depot Center. RSL remains in second place in the Western Conference with 31 points from 23 matches, now seven points in back of the division-leading Houston Dynamo and just a point ahead of Chivas USA entering the week.LAST MATCH
• The Galaxy were looking to give Bruce Arena his first win in his third game in charge of the club, while putting an end to a 10-game winless run dating back to mid-June. Real had rebounded from back-to-back losses in their last match, a Rocky Mountain Cup win against rival Colorado.
• RSL appeared to have taken the lead after six minutes when Fabian Espindola nodded a Kyle Beckerman blast home, but the goal was eventually ruled out for offside. In celebrating his apparent success, Espindola injured himself and needed to be substituted.
• With Espindola still off the field, the Galaxy took the lead. Edson Buddle broke down the RSL defense on the left and sent a half-shot, half-cross aimed toward the far post that slipped past goalkeeper Nick Rimando right to Bryan Jordan, who knocked it into the empty net.
• But RSL drew even in the 21st minute. Chris Wingert flighted a cross from the right flank that Kenny Deuchar flicked on, and Yura Movsisyan got on the end to drive home from inside the box.
• Then in the 52nd minute, Real pulled ahead. Will Johnson, making his first start since signing with the club, played a one-two with Movsisyan, receiving the return pass inside the area and bending a wonderful shot off the inside of the right post for his second career goal.
• Yet the Galaxy came back with the leveler in the 69th minute. A cross from the left sailed over everything, but Jordan tracked it down and sent back in front of goal. The ball deflected off Alan Gordon to Edson Buddle, who settled, turned and fired, beating Rimando for his 13th goal on the season.
• RSL head coach Jason Kreis made one change to the team that defeated the Colorado Rapids 2-0 at home the weekend before. Clint Mathis made his first start since re-signing with the club, coming in for Andy Williams, away on international duty.
• Here's Kreis's team (4-3-1-2): Nick Rimando - Chris Wingert, Nat Borchers, Jamison Olave, Ian Joy - Will Johnson, Kyle Beckerman, Clint Mathis (Dema Kovalenko 67) - Javier Morales - Kenny Deuchar (Robbie Findley 75), Fabian Espindola (Yura Movsisyan 9). Substitutes Not Used: Kenny Cutler, David Horst, Robbie Russell, Chris Seitz
• "We're a bit disappointed in that result. We came into the game knowing that they were missing a lot of key players, a lot of important players and we were confident enough to come here and think we could take away the full three points," Kreis said. "Having said that, we haven't been very good on the road this season so I think we have to do take some positive stuff out of the game."
TEAM NEWS
• When Fabian Espindola was forced off injured, Yura Movsisyan was the choice to replace him, his second consecutive substitute appearance after five turns in the starting lineup. He scored for the second time in four games, after getting his first of the year in league play in the 4-3 loss to Houston.
• "He's been very bright over the last few weeks and really making good decisions and scoring goals," Kreis said of Movsisyan. "Wednesday night he scored a goal against Tigres so I wasn't surprised to see him play well (Saturday) and score."
• Despite taking the second-half lead, RSL couldn't hold off the Galaxy, but still came away with just their third result in 11 road matches. Along with Kansas City and New York, they have just one win on the road this season, fewest in MLS.
• "We were confident enough to think we could come here and take away the full three points. We haven't been doing too well on the road this season," Kreis said. "On a positive note we played some good soccer and at the end of the day we came away with one point, which is better than most of our road games this year."
• Real have seven more games remaining - three at home and four on the road - as they chase the first playoff spot in club history.
• "Well, I just think overall we are a more talented team, with a higher number of talented players. Our top players are better than they have been in the past. Also, I think we are really buying into the team mentality," Kreis said. "Our guys really fight for each other, work hard for each other and have an understanding of what we are trying to do."
• Real announced that Espindola did not break his leg, as originally feared, but instead suffered a severe ankle sprain that will sideline him for 4-8 weeks.
• "I'm embarrassed," said Espindola to the Salt Lake Tribune. "I'm never going to do that again. I don't know what happened. I've done it a million times. If I would have known I never would have done it."
