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SANDY — Real Salt Lake ended its four-game losing streak with a 2-0 win over Champions League opponent Tauro FC Tuesday night, extending the club's CONCACAF hopes and giving the team badly needed momentum.
With the victory, the Salt Lake side looks to take that momentum and confidence gained Tuesday night into Major League Soccer play on Friday as it travels to face the Philadelphia Union.
“I think we try to take the confidence that we scored the goals and we were on top of things,” said RSL head coach Jason Kreis. “It was a night where finally things went right for us so I think when you do that often times the flood gates open — if we can continue with that confidence and say ‘OK, we’re playing well and we scored goals and we won and we had a shut out,’ and take all those positive things and roll them into the game on Friday.”
RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando agreed with his boss and said the club knows exactly what to do with the momentum gained Tuesday.
“If we go into Philly and knock the ball, keep the ball, you could see that we have a lot more energy out there because we kept the ball, we moved off the ball. So if we do that (Friday) I think the boys will be good,” said Rimando.
Both goals Tuesday night came within 10 minutes of each other just into the second half — in the 48th and 58th minutes. Costa Rican striker Alvaro Saborio and captain Kyle Beckerman each tallied a goal, respectively, to give the Claret and Cobalt to victory.
The Claret and Cobalt will return to Champions League play September 18 when it travels to Panama to face Tauro FC again. However, the club will travel without Beckerman due to a red card shown in the 72nd minute on a hard foul.
It's a foul that Kries believes kept RSL from scoring more goals against Tauro FC — something that is significant in Champions League play.
“I think you saw a team in Tauro that was really tiring and I think that if it hadn’t been for the ejection, I think perhaps we could have scored more goals,” said Kreis.
And it's a foul that Kreis also says could cost RSL in Panama.
“I think we’re in a good spot, but I wouldn’t go any further than that,” he said. “I think we did ourselves right tonight by getting a result and a 2-0 result as well that could be important, but it’s going to hurt to not have our captain available for the next match.”
RSL will return to Rio Tinto September 1 to host MLS opponent DC United.
Kira Terry is a sports writer covering Real Salt Lake for KSL.com. Follow her on Twitter, @kiraterry.
