Real Salt Lake 2 vs. Houston Dynamo 0
July 18, 2015; Rio Tinto Stadium
Real Salt Lake (6-7-8, 26 points); Houston Dynamo (6-8-6, 24 points)
Man of the Match: Javier Morales had another masterful match, but the MOTM goes to Joao Plata simply for the fact that he celebrated his first goal since returning from a fractured fifth metatarsal in his right foot in preseason training camp. The 23-year-old forward has three assists in his 687 minutes this season, but his 65th minute goal put the match out of reach for Houston and RSL was able to coast after that.
Telling Stat: 113. With one goal and one assist on Saturday, Morales now has 41 goals and 72 assists in his Real Salt Lake career, ranking second on the club’s all-time scoring list and first in assists and his 72 assists rank 15th on the all-time MLS list. Fitting, too, that The Maestro would have such a stellar performance in his 200th career MLS match.
What You Missed: Newly acquired midfielder Luis Silva was in attendance on Saturday after a morning flight from D.C. He met with media before the match and expressed excitement about playing in front of the Rio Tinto Stadium crowd. Afterwards, he couldn’t stop smiling about the result or the 20,174 in attendance.
So What: The win marked the third time this season that RSL had won twice in a row, across all competitions. Both wins this time around have been strong team performances after a 1-0 win in the U.S. Open Cup against the LA Galaxy on Tuesday.
