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SANDY — Real Salt Lake is officially halfway through the MLS season, with 17 games down and 17 to go. That presents a prime opportunity for reflection on how the team has performed to this point.
Head coach Pablo Mastroeni has stressed this season that the strength of RSL is in the team, not the individuals — a familiar ideology for the Salt Lake City club. In fact, when asked who he would nominate for the MLS All-Star Game, Mastroeni named the entire field of players who have played meaningful minutes this season.
Pablo Mastroeni's #RSL nominations for #MLSAllStarhttps://t.co/Eg0eoHHrytpic.twitter.com/M1Y3y3hdLU
— Caleb Turner (@calebturner23) June 21, 2022
Nonetheless, the team is made up of individuals, and some have been better than others this season, especially considering the multitude of injuries and changes to the lineup.
Starting from the back of the field to the front, here are the midseason grades for the players that have seen the field for RSL this season. Players included must have played at least 10 games to this point in the season.
Zac MacMath (Goalkeeper): A+
MacMath has not only been the best and most consistent presence on the team so far this season, he has done it all in his 11th MLS season and from a presumed back-up role. David Ochoa was the starter for RSL last season during its run to the Western Conference Finals and appeared to be the franchise keeper going forward. Injuries and personal issues got in the way, however, and Ochoa has not played a single MLS match so far in 2022, giving MacMath the opportunity to show that he's still got it after a decade in the league.
MacMath leads the MLS in saves with 60 this season and is second in shutouts with seven. He has started all 17 games for RSL and also leads the team in minutes played at 1,530, playing every minute of the season so far. He is a major reason the team currently sits at second in the Supporters Shield standings and is undefeated at home, giving up just four goals in eight matches at Rio Tinto Stadium.
Marcelo Silva (Center back): A+
Silva has been the RSL captain for most of the season, with the exception of the three matches that Damir Kreilach started before going down with a back injury. He has also scored two goals this season from the center back position, tied for second place among all RSL players. He and MacMath have led a stout defense that has given up multiple goals just five times this season. He is one of the most durable players on the team as well, playing in all but one match and playing the third-most minutes on the team.
Justen Glad (Center back): A+
Silva's partner in the center defense, Glad was injured early in the season but has come on in a big way since. His return almost matched up exactly with RSL's turn of form in late April. He is tied for the most goals on the team with three, including the first score in a thrilling comeback last month to get RSL's first-ever win in Montreal.
Andrew Brody (Left back): A+
Brody has been the feel-good story of the season so far for RSL. He came up through the academy and Monarchs, almost gave up on soccer after trying his hand overseas, and now is having a breakout season, earning himself a multi-year contract extension. He is tied with MacMath and Maikel Chang for the most games played this season, appearing in all 17 matches so far.
His lone goal on the season was the game winner against Austin FC on May 14 that jumpstarted the team's recent run of stellar form. His play along the wings on both offense and defense has been crucial to RSL's success so far this year.
Aaron Herrera (Right back): A-
Herrera is the final piece of a robust back line for RSL, owning the right side of the field from box to box opposite Brody. Herrera was injured for the early part of the season and has played in just 11 matches so far, including missing one due to a red card suspension. The red card, Herrera's one true knock on his grade, came in stoppage time against Vancouver, resulting in a penalty that cost his team a point on the road. He also recently earned a multi-year contract extension, locking up both wing defenders for RSL for the foreseeable future.
Tate Schmitt (Left back): A
Schmitt filled in for Herrera during his absence early in the season, forming an early breakout tandem with Brody at the wing-back position. He is tied for second on the team in goals with two and has an assist on the year. Both of his goals were game winners, coming in back-to-back weeks against New England and Nashville during the tumultuous opening stretch of the year for RSL.
Pablo Ruiz (Midfielder): A
Ruiz was the early-season pick for team MVP and potential All-Star, with his durability and control of the midfield calming an otherwise stormy opening third of the season for RSL. He is second on the team in assists with four this season and added a goal to earn RSL a point in Colorado in April. He leads the team in tackles won by a large margin at 29. The next closest player has 15.
Jasper Loffelsend (Midfielder): A
If Ruiz was the early darling for fans and pundits in the midfield, Loffelsend is the latest recipient of such praise. He has started just seven games, but appears to have earned the right to start alongside Ruiz in the other "pivot" spot as Mastroeni calls it, holding down the defense while Silva and Glad make runs to help the offense.
Loffelsend mentioned this week that he would like to be more involved in the offense and find the right balance as a box-to-box midfielder. He has yet to score a goal but did contribute an assist in the early-season 3-2 victory against New England on the road. He also has the third most-accurate passing percentage among rotation players at 85.2%.
Jasper Löffelsend with a monster performance for #RSL yesterday:
— MLS Gone Wild ⭐️ (@MLSGoneWild) June 26, 2022
33/39 passing (85%)
2/2 long balls
3/3 successful dribbles
10 duels won (most) pic.twitter.com/brRlcDCDcn
Scott Caldwell (Midfielder): B
RSL is undefeated when Caldwell plays the whole game (3-0-3), but the 31-year-old MLS vet doesn't have any stats in the box score to boost his grade any higher. In 10 starts, Caldwell has zero goals, zero assists and just one shot. The one stat that buoys him up is tackles won, where he is tied with Schmitt and just one under Glad.
Everton Luiz (Midfielder): B
Luiz is the other veteran midfielder, along with Caldwell, that has added a steadying presence to the midfielder, even if he doesn't raise the team's ceiling on the pitch. He is second in passing accuracy among rotation players at 86% and has appeared in 12 of the 17 matches so far.
Justin Meram (Winger): A
At 33 years old, Meram is punching well above his weight as a starting winger on the second-place team in the league. He has started 16 of the 17 matches so far this season and is fifth in total minutes played. He is tied for second on the team in goals with two and also has three assists on the year, good for third behind Ruiz and Maikel Chang.
He is a threat on offense while also remaining responsible on defense. He has drawn 22 fouls, second on the team behind Sergio Cordova, and has just one yellow card despite getting called for 13 fouls. He is the seasoned veteran presence every playoff team needs.
Maikel Chang (Winger): B+
Chang leads the team in assists with five and also has a goal on the year, filling in well on the wing opposite Meram until RSL found its permanent star in Jefferson Savarino. He is one of just three players along with MacMath and Brody to appear in every match so far this season, and is second on the team in tackles won. His one major knock is his passing accuracy, which ranks 13th among rotation players at just 76.5%.
Sergio Cordova (Forward): B-
Cordova is one of the more recent additions to the team, joining on loan just before the season began — and to this day remains a bit of a mystery to fans and pundits alike. The 6-foot-2, 24-year-old Venezuelan seems like a promising and tantalizing attacking prospect on paper, but as the most-used striker on the team has just three goals this season, tied with Glad, a defender. He leads the team in both shots and shots on target at 30 and 15, respectively, but the back of the net has largely eluded the Claret and Cobalt's starting striker.
Bobby Wood (Forward): B-
I hate to assign him a lower grade just as he is announced out for an extended period with an injury; but along with Cordova, Wood has been severely underwhelming in front of goal. He has 26 shots and 12 shots on target, but also just three goals to show for it all. Rubio Rubin will now get the chance to improve where Wood was unable to.
Rubio Rubin (Forward): B
Rubin has not scored or assisted this season, but he also hasn't had the chances Cordova and Wood have had. Despite playing in 10 games, he has started just two and averaged just over 30 minutes per game. He has taken just five shots, with three of them on frame. Rubin's biggest opportunities are likely ahead of him, as he looks to fill in for Wood and contribute at a higher level than the 29 year old. An encouraging sign is Rubin's goal that he scored with the Guatemalan national team earlier this month.
Obvious omissions from this list due to lack of playing time include: Savarino, Kreilach, Anderson Julio, Jonathan Menendez, Nick Besler and Erik Holt.
The next chance for the players to make their mark is this Saturday against Minnesota FC at 6 p.m. MDT at Allianz Field.