Real Salt Lake 0 vs. LA Galaxy 0
May 6, 2015; Rio Tinto Stadium
Records: Real Salt Lake (2-2-5, 11 points). LA Galaxy (3-2-5, 14 points)
Man of the Match: When you make a stoppage-time save of a would-be game-winning penalty, you are pretty well assured of being name Man of the Match. Nick Rimando did just that on a penalty kick from Juninho to preserve his 119th career shutout and fourth in seven games this season. He finished the night with three saves for his fourth shutout in seven starts this season.
Telling Stat: 41.6%. That’s the save rate for Nick Rimando in the 36 penalties he has faced in a Real Salt Lake uniform. Through the 2014 season, there were 89 stoppage-time penalties taken since 2000 in MLS. Of them, 68 were converted, 18 saved and three were put off frame. That’s a conversion rate of over 76% … or 17% worse than Rimando has allowed in his RSL career.
What You Missed: There was a 62-minute delay at the start of the match due to severe weather. How severe, you might ask? During the U.S. National Anthem, sung Wednesday by the a cappella group Ransom Notes, thee sky on the East side of Rio Tinto Stadium was illuminated by a tremendous lightning bolt, causing a reaction from the crowd that was both startled and amazed.
So What: The offense continued its struggles to put the ball in the net, but with 11 shots and six shots on goal Wednesday, it was clearly a team headed in the right direction. With another match just around the corner on Saturday against the Chicago Fire, RSL is optimistic and confident going forward.
