CCL knockout stage a good consolation for RSL after missing playoffs


Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

SANDY — Despite being the first-ever MLS side to advance to the CONCACAF Champions League final, more than four years had passed since Real Salt Lake had made it to the knockout stage of the competition.

That was until Tuesday night.

RSL defeated Guatemalan club Municipal 1-0 to finish the group stage with 10 points and move on to the quarterfinals in the first season in the last seven that the Salt Lake club missed the MLS playoffs.

"It means a lot to me personally," RSL coach Jeff Cassar said of advancing the competition. "The most important thing is for the players and this club, it's an opportunity to keep going. You're in the quarters; you're technically six games away from winning the championship.

"Now the offseason is we have our eyes on something at the beginning of the year next year. And I think that's going to help everyone not get over this year, but really start to focus on next year with a positive note."

Captain Kyle Beckerman admitted after the win that it had been a "tough" year for everyone, and he thanked the fans for their continuous support by doling out high-fives to those left in the first row in Rio Tinto Stadium after the win over Municipal.

"Now that we're out of the playoffs we really needed this," he said. "I think it's just big for us moving forward and starting to rebuild this club. We're going to need some of that money that we'll get for this, so that will help us, but it's all about rebuilding for next year.

"We'll give it a go in the quarterfinals. It makes it fun. Preseason will be a little shorter and we'll get into some games."

Real Salt Lake's Kyle Beckerman (5) looks to pass against C.S.D. Municipal in a CONCACAF Campions League group match at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2015. (Photo: Chris Samuels, Deseret News)
Real Salt Lake's Kyle Beckerman (5) looks to pass against C.S.D. Municipal in a CONCACAF Campions League group match at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, UT, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2015. (Photo: Chris Samuels, Deseret News)

He added that preparing for the knockout stage will add a heightened sense of focus to the club at the beginning of 2016.

But for a club with an MLS Cup championship to its name and a runner-up finish, this win was crucial. Sure it gives them additional funds to work with. It also adds minutes to the legs of field players. Yet it was the only way this season could really be considered a success.

"I think everyone's excited," Cassar said of RSL's 8-1-1 home record in Champions League games. "I know the fans love to see a different style of soccer, a different team rather than just MLS teams always coming in, so it adds a different level of excitement to it. I know our players feed off that."

RSL took care of business in the group stage, allowing only one goal while recording three shutouts.

"It's impressive to this group," Cassar said of the team's defensive performance in the four contests. "It's not easy to scout, especially in the first rounds because you're playing smaller leagues, it's tough to get games. You can always see the Mexican teams and a lot of times the Costa Rican teams, but the other teams are a little more difficult. So the players and the staff have to work extremely hard and be extremely focused, and three shutouts is really impressive from the guys."

Jamison Olave, who scored the goal that put RSL in the 2011 Champions League final, said he was happy to score Tuesday but it couldn't trump the feeling of his goal more than four years ago.

He added that RSL knew how important this game was considering the team had lost two in a row and been eliminated from playoff contention.

"We need to move forward," he said. "That's a different tournament. If you want to advance to another round, we had to clean up."

RSL has another building block for next year following the victory, and given the anguish of the team around missing the postseason, it might just be enough to give the team what it needs for another playoff run. Kyle Spencer is a freelance journalist residing in Orem. You can find him on Twitter @kyledspencer or reach him by email at kspence04@gmail.com.

Related stories

Most recent Sports stories

Related topics

SportsReal Salt Lake

ARE YOU GAME?

From first downs to buzzer beaters, get KSL.com’s top sports stories delivered to your inbox weekly.
By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

KSL Weather Forecast