It’s all about adjustments for Real Salt Lake this week. After falling 5-2 to the LA Galaxy last week, RSL is now looking to bounce back against a Houston Dynamo team that has struggled to find the back of the net in recent weeks. At the same time, Houston has shown an ability to put on an explosive scoring display, so RSL is not about to overlook the bottom team in the Western Conference.
“They’ve got some explosive players – some players that can make some plays happen. It’s only a matter of time before they explode,” RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando said. “We can’t take them lightly. We have to be organized and ready for this game.”
Salt Lake is 4-1-2 this season after suffering its first defeat of the year against the Galaxy and has found the scoreboard in each of its seven matches. With goals from Juan Manuel Martinez – who now has goals in each of his last two matches – and Javier Morales, RSL now has gotten scoring contributions from each of its four top attacking players and showed that even the loss of Joao Plata, who leads the team in goals and assists but was sidelined by a hip flexor/quad injury in the week before facing the Galaxy, can’t slow the team’s scoring ways.
Houston has seen some versatility of its own of late, although it hasn’t led to a change in results. After putting on a scoring exhibition through the first three matches that saw the Dynamo net 11 goals and post an emphatic 5-0 win over FC Dallas, Houston has scored just twice in the last four matches. In the last two matches, Head Coach Owen Coyle has started 16 different players in two different formations. With two players – goalkeeper Tyler Deric and midfielder Alex – serving suspensions this week, Coyle will again make some changes to the lineup but how it will affect the formation won’t be known until they take the field on Saturday. With so many options for the opposition, RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar is preparing his team for the unknown against Houston.
“They’ve been shuffling around their lineup a lot. I still think they’re trying to search for exactly the way they want to play. With that being said, they’re capable of putting out a really, really good team. They’ve got a great coach and talented players. We’re having to prepare for a few things right now,” he said. “It’s just making sure they recognize both. The difficult thing is, a lot of times we have a really good idea of who we might play against. This team, I’m not sure who’s going to play. It’s making sure that the guys are prepared, but then also, when we get into the field, adapting and recognizing it quickly.”
RSL has won its last four meetings with Houston, with the last defeat dating back to September 6, 2012. In the last three matches alone, Morales has scored five goals to pace the attack and Salt Lake has allowed just three goals in the last four meetings.
Kickoff for Saturday’s match is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. MT with live television coverage on KMYU.
