There are many benefits that come with having an off-weekend on the calendar, as Real Salt Lake does this weekend. There is the ever-important rest, but also being able to work on things internally that become more difficult when you are entrenched in the grind of game weeks and multi-game weeks, are RSL as seen for the last 11 weeks since the last weekend the club had without an MLS match on the weekend schedule.
Head Coach Jeff Cassar is looking to take advantage of this week’s reduced schedule as much as possible, even while the club is missing eight players with RSL and Real Monarchs to international duty.
“I think it comes at a good time in that we have a lot of players gone with national team duty,”
Cassar said Tuesday on his weekly segment on The Bill & OC Show on ESPN 700. “I do like that we can work on things. We can keep the mood light and work on our fitness. Then next week when we have everyone together we can focus on what we want to do for Houston.”
RSL will take on the Houston Dynamo on September 12 at BBVA Compass Stadium. Last time around Salt Lake topped the Dynamo 2-0 at Rio Tinto Stadium. Now with most of the team healthy, RSL has eyes on repeating last year’s 5-2 result in Houston, but to get ready for that match, the team is spending this week’s training sessions focusing on correcting mistakes that led to a 1-4-0 record in the month of August.
The lone win in league play came against Seattle Sounders FC in convincing fashion at Rio Tinto Stadium, so the team has shown flashes of brilliance at times. Finding ways to get the results needed to stay in the playoff chase will be the focus of the final seven matches of the season and it starts with a lighter week this week.
“We’re going to use this week to get a lot of touches on the ball, a lot of competitive games and some players up to full fitness,” Cassar said.
To hear the full interview, click here.
