ORLANDO, FL – (Saturday, July 11, 2020) – Real Salt Lake returns to the field to open its 2020 MLS Is Back Tournament venture on Sunday, July 12 against the Colorado Rapids. The match will be the club’s first competition since March 7 and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN beginning at 8:30 p.m. MT from the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida.
RSL returns to the field with a near-full squad with every player who traveled to Florida available for selection for Head Coach Freddy Juarez. The match will be the first of the club’s three guaranteed matches in Group D, with all group stage matches counting towards its regular season points total. The top two teams from the group will advance to the knockout round of the tournament.
RSL and the Rapids reignite the Rocky Mountain Cup rivalry in Orlando with each team having played two matches thus far in the 2020 regular season. RSL enters the match having played to two draws to open the season seeing a scoreless draw against Orlando in Week 1 give way to a dramatic 1-1 draw in its home opener. Against Colorado, RSL holds a dominant 21-13-11 (74 points) record since 2005.
How to Follow Real Salt Lake vs. Colorado Rapids – Sunday, July 12, 2020
·Coverage Begins: 8:30 p.m. MT
·National TV: ESPN
·Digital Streaming: N/A
·English Radio: ESPN700
·Spanish TV: N/A
Game Notes for Sunday’s RSL @ COL game Available Online
Those seeking the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Sunday’s contest between Real Salt Lake and the Rapids can be found here. Media members looking to receive the document as an attachment or have further questions are asked to please contact Taran Meyer in the RSL Communications Department via email at tmeyer@rsl.com.
RSL finished the 2019 regular season seeing 12 different players notch goals for the club. The team was led in scoring by MF Albert Rusnák with 10 goals, followed closely by FW Sam Johnson with nine goals while Rusnák added an additional five assists. 2018 RSL Golden Boot winner MF Damir Kreilach remained a steady presence in multiple roles for RSL in 2019, providing six goals and five assists in 32 starts this season.
On the backline, defender Nedum Onuoha returns in 2020 after becoming a mainstay at centerback in his first full season with the club, featuring in 27 of the club’s 34 matches. The former Manchester City and Queens Park Rangers defender was been paired alongside fellow returners Justen Glad, Marcelo Silva and Erik Holt and Nick Besler. On both sides of the backline, Homegrown defenders Aaron Herrera and Donny Toia return as the club welcomes MLS veteran Ashtone Morgan and MLS debutant Alvin Jones. Herrera led the team in matches played and minutes in 2019 having featured in 32 of RSL’s 34 matches for 2,768 minutes played.
In goal, David Ochoa and Andrew Putna return to the goalkeeping core and welcome veteran Zac MacMath to the team for the 2020 season. Putna saw action in goal for RSL and Real Monarchs last season, starting five of RSL’s 34 matches while earning two shutouts on the year in RSL’s dominant 3-0 victory over 2019 expansion side FC Cincinnati on April 19 and a scoreless draw against New England on September 21.
