Real Salt Lake vs Seattle Sounders FC
March 12, 2016; 2 p.m. MT
Rio Tinto Stadium
TV: KMYU (2.2 air / 12 satellite / 643 Comcast HD)
English Radio: ESPN 700 AM (1:00 p.m. MT)
Spanish Radio: 102.3 La Gran D FM / 1600 AM
Stream: MLS Live
Over the course of the last seven MLS seasons, Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders FC have enjoyed some tremendous matches. From heated regular season tilts at the intimate Rio Tinto Stadium and jam-packed CenturyLink Field to the hotly contested MLS Cup Playoff matchups, there has been a fair share of matches for the ages between the two clubs.
In 17 MLS matches, RSL holds a slight advantage at 7-6-4 while the all-competitions record favors Seattle at 9-8-5, including a 2-1-1 advantage in the playoffs and a win in the only Open Cup match between the two clubs in a qualifier back in 2009.
So when they square off at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday in the first of three scheduled matches this season and the only one in Utah, RSL is anticipating another memorable affair.
“We’re excited. We’re always up for Western Conference games,” Real Salt Lake captain Kyle Beckerman said. “We’ve had great games with them and hopefully we can continue to do well against them at home, get three points and keep moving forward.”
As much as the players enjoy the matchups, the fans are in lock-step and that has projected on the field to enhance the atmosphere for both clubs.
“We’ve had a number of big games against them in the playoffs and we know how talented they are,” RSL defender Chris Wingert said. “Absolutely it’s going to be a challenge and I’m sure our fans are going to be pumped so I’m looking forward to it.”
Real Salt Lake has reason for excitement after a great performance in the first home match of the season in a 1-1 draw against Tigres in CONCACAF Champions League. Coupled with a successful run of four straight home wins over Seattle and a five-game unbeaten streak dating back to 2011 that has RSL’s all-time home record at 5-1-2 against the Sounders, and the Claret-and-Cobalt has an opportunity to continue some trends to make Rio Tinto Stadium a fortress once again.
Although it’s a talented Sounders team on the other side of the ball, it’s a team that is undergoing some tactical and personnel changes – including the loss of star forward Obafemi Martins – and has shown its vulnerability in a 1-0 home loss to Sporting Kansas City to open the season.
“We’re going to have to come out with the right mentality and definitely feed off of our crowd,” RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar said. “They have a lot of the same players. Obviously Sigi (Schmid) is a fantastic coach. They have a great coaching staff. But they are playing a little bit of a different formation than they did last year. With that comes a little bit of inconsistency, which we experienced last year. They have talented players in all of their positions, but I don’t think they’ve quite gelled yet in that formation and hopefully we can take advantage of that.”
Tickets to Saturday’s home opener are available by visiting RSL.com/tickets.
