We are now just two days away from the kickoff of the 2017 MLS season for Real Salt Lake when the Claret-and-Cobalt open the year at Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday against Toronto FC. And we are now at No. 2 on our list of reasons to visit the RioT this week and throughout the season.
In the second season of his second stint with Real Salt Lake, our focus today is on forward Yura Movsisyan.
However, Movsisyan won’t be the same as the man who notched nine goals and three assists in his return to RSL last season after six years in Denmark and Russia. Those numbers were career-best marks in his MLS career, but when asked about what can be expected from him this year after the club completed his purchase from Spartak Moscow over the offseason and gave him a new contract.
“More goals,” he said with a wry smile.
It sounds trite, and he doesn’t mean it that way, but it’s the simple target of a man who has spent his life working to hone his craft and better the lives of himself and his family. Once refugees from Eastern Europe seeking sanctity in America, Movsisyan now leads the charge for a young core of attacking players in the Claret-and-Cobalt.
Is he ready to take on the task of being a senior leader on a team that had featured longstanding veterans in attacking positions for the last several years? Again, the smile returns, but this time with a knowing shrug of his shoulders.
“Of course.”
Watch Movsisyan lead the goal-scoring charge starting on Saturday against Toronto FC and throughout the year at the RioT.
