Real Salt Lake will face its next test in preparation for the 2015 season on Wednesday evening when it faces the New England Revolution in the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup.
In a match that will be streamed live on RealSaltLake.com (6 p.m. MT), RSL will face the defending Eastern Conference champions for a second time this preseason. New England won the previous match 2-1 in Casa Grande, Arizona, on January 31 in an abbreviated scrimmage. This time, RSL will be playing a full 90-minute match to start the annual tournament in Tucson with an eye on preparing for the start of the new season.
The team will be split into two groups, with one of them playing more minutes in the Saturday matches and the other seeing extended time in the Wednesday matches. Regardless of how many minutes he plays, though, RSL midfielder Javier Morales knows there is incredible value to each match, seeing every chance to get on the field as an opportunity to sharpen up ahead of the regular season opener on March 7.
“I think we have to go step by step. Tomorrow, we have to think about tomorrow,” Morales said on Tuesday. “It doesn’t matter if we play 90 minutes, 30 minutes or 20. We have to keep working like we were during the week and try to play our best.”
RSL has seen daily progress toward what Head Coach Jeff Cassar hopes to see from his team when it opens the 2015 campaign against the Portland Timbers.
While the Revs provide a good opponent and gauge for the team’s development, Jeff Cassar and his team are focused more on how RSL is playing than it is on generation opponent-specific game plans. So although results are important and a good by-product of success on the field, it isn’t the only barometer by which preseason is measured.
“In this kind of game, we don’t have to focus too much on the other team,” Morales said. “Right now, the focus is on us. It’s going to be a test for us to see how we are working together.”
Every RSL match in the Desert Diamond Cup will be streamed on RealSaltLake.com.
Round 1: Wednesday, Feb. 18
6:00 pm: Real Salt Lake vs. New England Revolution, Kino North Grand Stand
Round 2: Saturday, Feb. 21
6:00 pm: Real Salt Lake vs. FC Tucson, Kino North Grand Stand
Round 3: Wednesday, Feb. 25
8:00 pm: Real Salt Lake vs. Sporting Kansas City, Kino North Stadium
Finals: Saturday, Feb. 28
TBD
