PREGAME FACTS AND INFO SHEET
REAL SALT LAKE v NYCFC
SATURDAY, MAY 23, 2015 – 8:00 pm MT on KMYU & ESPN700 / 102.3 LaGranD / 1600 AM
1 – goals scored in opening 15 minutes for RSL this year, after accumulating a league-leading total of 10 in 2014 … The club’s first of 2015 came when Jordan Allen found Alvaro Saborio in the 13th minute of the club’s 2-1 W at Chicago …
2 – road games still remaining this month after today, as RSL hits the road again for a back-to-back against West foes LA on Wednesday, May 27 – the club’s first Stubhub return since last Fall’s 0-5 playoff elimination – and a continuation up the West Coast to Vancouver on Saturday, May 30, the first game on the new BC Place turf being installed for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup …
7 – consecutive playoff berths for RSL from 2008-14 (the longest active run in MLS), during which time the club has amassed a 99-66-62 record (avg. of 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 …
8 – number of RSL games likely missed by RSL #SwissArmyKnife Jordan Allen, who departed post-game last week in Montreal for Auckland, New Zealand, to represent the USA in the FIFA Under-20 Youth World Championship … Expecting a deep run from the U.S., RSL will play 7 league games and at least 1 Open Cup match between now and June 28, Allen’s anticipated return date …
9 – consecutive seasons in an RSL uniform for GK Nick Rimando, MF Kyle Beckerman & MF Javier Morales … The longest-tenured RSL men also rank 1-2 amongst Major League Soccer’s active leaders in games/starts/minutes (Rimando: 379/379/34,273; Beckerman: 364/335/30,082) … Morales has either scored or assisted on nearly 25% of the club’s all-time 441 goals scored, with the Argentine “maestro” tallying 39 goals and 68 assists, despite missing most of the 2011 season …
11 – the number of former RSL players, coaches and staff now with NYCFC in its expansion season, as Jason Kreis, CJ Miles and Miles Joseph compose part of the coaching staff, while head athletic trainer Kevin Christen and equipment manager Danny Laroche also called RSL home … DF Chris Wingert, MF Ned Grabavoy, DF Kwame Watson-Siriboe, GK Josh Saunders, MF Sebastian Velasquez and MF Mehdi Ballouchy all wore the Claret-and-Cobalt during their MLS careers prior to this season …
13 – club-high goal total a year ago by RSL FW Joao Plata, who could make his 2015 debut today … Plata broke the fifth metatarsal on his left foot in an indoor turf non-contact incident on January 29, in the club’s first preseason session … During the offseason, RSL purchased outright the contract for the 22-year old diminutive forward, making him one of the club’s three designated players …
15 – wins needed by RSL GK Nick Rimando in 2015 to become Major League Soccer’s all-time leader in that category, overtaking Kevin Hartman … Rimando now has 119 career shutouts, 7 more than Hartman in 38 fewer games all-time …
19 – players to have started a game for RSL in the club’s first 11 games this season … RSL boss Jeff Cassar has given 25 players minutes this year, meaning everyone on the roster except GK Lalo Fernandez, DF Justen Glad & DF Boyd Okwuonu have seen MLS time …
25 – all-time PK denials by RSL GK Nick Rimando, who went 2-for-3 in his last three games on on PKs – denying LA MF Juninho in stoppage-time prior to Jeff Larentowicz’s consolation late at Chicago (Rimando denied Piatti last week in Montreal to boot) … Opposing PK takers have seen their conversion rates now drop to 43-for-68 against Rimando all-time, including 22-for-38 with Nick in an RSL uniform … Amazingly, Rimando has stopped 8 of the last 11 PKs faced and 10 of the last 15 … #WalloftheWasatch indeed …
+40 – RSL’s home record during all competitions in the four seasons from 2010-13 under former boss Jason Kreis, who guided the club to a 56-16-16 mark at Rio Tinto Stadium in MLS reg. season, playoff, Open Cup and CONCACAF Champions League play …
42 – wins when FW Alvaro Saborio scores in all competitions for RSL, the club recording a 42-6-13 mark all-time when the Costa Rican international finds the back of the net … RSL is only 22-35-26 when he plays and doesn’t score, but is 25-12-8 when he is unavailable due to suspension, injury or national team duty …
56 – points earned by boss Jeff Cassar in his first season at the helm, with a 15-8-11 record … Cassar and his RSL club got out of the gates a year ago with a league-record-tying 12 games unbeaten (6-0-6), the best mark since 1996 for a rookie head coach …
100 – wins in his 8-year RSL career for GK Nick Rimando, with nearly 80% of the club’s all-time 123 victories …
110 – Veteran RSL DF Tony Beltran has earned the start in 110 of the club’s last 128 games (including today) on the right side of the back four ... The RSL “Iron Man” – part of a 3-man outside back rotation with Chris Wingert and Robbie Russell prior to RSL’s trade of Russell to D.C. United prior to the 2012 season – has remained injury-free and playing at a high level, usually seeing days off only in exhibition or Open Cup play, or sometimes succumbing to a rotation during 3-game weeks ...
123 – players to have taken the field in MLS play for Real Salt Lake in last 11 seasons, now that 25-year old Brazilian MF Wellington “Pecka” Paeckart made his debut a month ago at New England …
380 – career MLS appearances for RSL GK Nick Rimando, who surpassed Steve Ralston last week and trails only fellow league goalkeeping standout Kevin Hartman (416) atop the MLS record book …
