PREGAME FACTS AND INFO SHEET
REAL SALT LAKE v PORTLAND TIMBERS
SAT., AUGUST 15, 2015 – 8:00 pm MT
on KMYU / AMERICAN SPORTS NETWORK, ESPN700 & 102.3 LaGranD
0 – goals conceded by the RSL defense in its last 436 minutes of CCL play, dating back to the club’s first group game of 2012 in the 14th minute at Costa Rican power Herediano … RSL allowed 7 goals in its first two all-time SCCL matches (2010: 5-4 loss v Cruz Azul; 3-2 win v Arabe Unido), but has allowed a total of only 6 goals in its last 7 SCCL road games …
1 – home loss all-time for RSL against Portland in 9 tries, coming last June when RSL was decimated by World Cup duties for Capt. Kyle Beckerman, GK Nick Rimando and FW Alvaro Saborio, a 1-3 game that saw an early Luke Mulholland goal erased by a Tony Beltran red card and a Chris Schuler PK call …
2 – appearances in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinals by Utah teams in now 102 iterations of the tourney, previously accomplished by Real Salt Lake back in 2013 during the club’s run to the Final, as well as this season … RSL has advanced to the QuarterFinal stage in 2006, 2011, 2013 and now 2015 …
5 – games over the first 15 days of August, RSL splitting 2 of the first 4 away, across 3 competitions, 4 time zones and nearly 11,000 air miles as RSL zig-zags across the continent … RSL dropped the first match, 4-6, at D.C. United last Saturday, prior a midday Sunday arrival for Tuesday’s 1-0 win at Guatemala in the CCL Group G opener … Following last week’s 0-4 loss at Vancouver, the club dropped the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinal 1-3 at Kansas City, conceding twice in the final 10 minutes … Next Saturday, on the heels of the extended road marathon and tonight’s return home, RSL returns to its Rio Tinto Stadium home for another critical Western Conference match against Seattle …
7 – consecutive playoff berths for RSL from 2008-14 (the longest active run in MLS), during which time the club has averaged 1.58 points per game) … RSL also owns a league-record 5 consecutive seasons with 15+ wins and 50+ points, matching LA’s active run from 2010 to present …
10 – combined total of red cards (8) and ejections (2) for RSL players and coaches this season, setting a new club single-season record for both in RSL’s 11-year, 404-game history … DF Abdoulie Mansally is ineligible tonight, as is Head Coach Jeff Cassar, who will observe from the 4th floor … Cassar also received a post-game ejection back on July 11 at Colorado, RSL winning at home 2-0 against Houston the following week …
11 – games remaining on RSL’s league schedule this season, including five reg. season home matches and six road games starting tonight – all effectively “six-pointers” against Western foes – to go along with three CCL group games and Wednesday’s Open Cup Semi, with a potential additional USOC Final on Sept. 30 (if RSL emerges at KC on Wednesday) …
+12 – goal differential all-time for RSL in CCL play (30 GF, 18 GA) through three iterations, the club amassing a 9-4-4 mark in group and knockout play … The club’s home mark has been a dominant 6-1-1 overall, but the two blemishes – especially the 0-1 home loss to Monterrey (MEX) in the 2011 Final Second Leg, as well as the 0-0 home draw against Herediano (CRC) in the 2012 group stage, when RSL just needed any scoring draw to advance – will forever leave a mark … Tuesday’s 1-0 win at Municipal improved RSL to 3-3-3 all-time in the continental championship away from home …
14 – wins and draws for the Claret/Cobalt in 16 all-time RSL games between Portland and RSL, as the Utah side has amassed a 9-2-5 mark across all competitions in the series … Portland notched its only win at Rio Tinto Stadium last June 7 in a 3-1 victory here during the FIFA World Cup in Brazil, with the other Timbers win coming 1-0 back on April 30, 2011, just three days after RSL dropped the home/second leg of the CONCACAF Champions League Final to Monterrey … In between, RSL went 11 consecutive games unbeaten in Open Cup (2013 Semifinal, a 2-1 home win) and Playoffs (2013 West Finals, 5-2 aggregate), as well as MLS reg. season play (5-0-3) … this season, RSL tied 0-0 at Providence Park and won 2-0 in Open Cup Round of 16 here at RioT on July 1 …
20 – career MLS goals as well as the jersey number worn in 2015 by RSL’s newest player, M/F Luis Silva, making his first-ever home Claret/Cobalt start tonight, after his first XI debut against Vancouver last Saturday … Silva made his RSL debut August 1 in D.C., playing the final 8 minutes against his former D.C. United club after being acquired on July 16 in exchange for Costa Rican international Alvaro Saborio … Silva has 20 goals in 101 career MLS matches for Toronto (2012-13), where he played alongside Joao Plata and Aaron Maund, D.C. United (2013-15, with whom he won the 2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final at Rio Tinto Stadium) and now RSL, the former UC-Santa Barbara Gaucho also playing the final 5 minutes in Guatemala Tuesday at Municipal … Silva was ineligible to participate in this season’s Open Cup, as he appeared for DCU earlier in the tournament …
26 – all-time PK denials by RSL GK Nick Rimando, who went 3-for-5 against opponents in his last eight games – denying Rapids MF Dillon Powers on June 7 to preserve a home point … Opposing PK takers have seen their conversion rates now drop to 43-for-70 against Rimando all-time, including 22-for-40 with Nick in an RSL uniform … Amazingly, Rimando has stopped 9 of the last 13 PKs faced and 11 of the last 17 … #WalloftheWasatch indeed …
59 – number of players in RSL’s 11-year, 125-player, 344-game league history to have scored at least one MLS goal for the Claret-and-Cobalt, now that FW Sebastian Jaime opened his MLS account June 21 against Kansas City … Several players will have the opportunity to become #60 tonight against the Timbers …
94 – home wins since 2008, as RSL has amassed a 94-19-39 mark on home soil in all competitions in its last 152 home matches, during which it has outscored opponents by 164 goals (275-111) … RSL returns home tonight against Portland with a 75-14-36 record in MLS reg. season games (226-92 goals), and a 6-1-1 CCL mark (17-5), a 5-2-2 playoff resume (11-4), and an 8-2-0 ledger in Open Cup (21-10) …
125 – players to have appeared in an MLS game for RSL in 11 seasons, as Jeff Cassar has given several players – Justen Glad, Phanuel Kavita, Boyd Okwuonu, Elias Vasquez, Demar Phillips, Sebastian Saucedo & Pecka – opportunities this season … 27 players have seen league minutes this year, meaning everyone on the roster except GK Lalo Fernandez (MF Fito Ovalle is on a season-long loan to the USL Monarchs) have seen MLS time …
287 – minutes played between RSL and Portland across all competitions since a Timbers goal, a Will Johnson PK in the 73rd min after a Chris Schuler handball in the box …
1,343 – minutes played across all competitions – nearly 15 games worth – since DF Jamison Olave last appeared for RSL, as the hulking behemoth tore his quad muscle on June 7 against Colorado, just minutes (six officially) into that day’s eventual 0-0 draw with Colorado … RSL has posted a 7-5-3 mark in all competitions (Open Cup, CCL, MLS) without the veteran in that time …
11,000+ – air miles zig-zagging across the continent the first two weeks of August for RSL, as the club wrapped up the road marathon Wednesday night, losing 1-3 at Kansas City in Open Cup, after a 4-6 loss at D.C. United on August 1, recovering for a 1-0 win over Municipal Aug. 4 in Guatemala City to open CONCACAF Champions League play, prior to last Saturday’s 0-4 loss at Vancouver …
