How cruel of the Timbers, kicking Real Salt Lake when they were
down. Without a hint of compassion in their play, the Portlanders rubbed a
handful of salt in an open emotional wound when they gave RSL their first loss
of the young 2011 season last weekend.
Where’s the sympathy? How about all of that #MLS4RSL camaraderie?
How about a letting up a little on the team that just lost out on a continental
title and a trip to Japan for the Club World Cup?
Kidding, of course. If there one thing that’s certain in the
aftermath of RSL’s Champions League disappointment, it’s that league opponents
won’t be taking it easy on them. For all the equity RSL built up as Major
League Soccer’s best team over the first month of the season, all it takes is
one apparent chink in the armor for opponents to feel like they can have their
shot at a favorite.
The loss in Portland wasn’t troubling as much as it was a wake-up
call; if RSL doesn’t figure out how to put the loss to Monterrey behind them
quickly, the league campaign could be impacted. When the season started, the
Claret-and-Cobalt club had eyes on four trophies – every one for which they
were in contention. It would be a pity if missing out on the first silverware
available affects the chances of winning any of the others. It’s too early to
be derailed.
It’s Jason Kreis’ job, perhaps the most important of his many
duties, to right the ship should rough seas arise. He has to assess the team
and determine where the stressors might be. Was Portland a fluke, nothing more
than an emotionally drained team facing a hostile environment and a motivated
Timbers side? Or was it something else; the first leak, that, if not mended
quickly, could spawn others, perhaps more critical? Is there a crisis of
confidence coming out of the CCL final, or was it a reasonable reaction to
being so close and falling just short?
No goals. Maybe the loss in Portland would have been slightly more
palatable had RSL found the net. That was the problem against Monterrey, of
course, so there’s reason to find worry in the shutout loss to the Timbers.
Álvaro Saborío is carrying an injury. Fabian Espíndola isn’t quite himself,
leading to his omission from the travel squad to Portland. Paulo Jr., an
exciting young player who provides RSL with depth many MLS teams can only dream
of, has his own injury. The strike force is gassed, for lack of a better word,
and it might be up to the team’s solid middle to get the goals. Make no
mistake: they’re capable. It’s just a question of how much of the burden they
can carry.
Defense has never been a problem. Rimando, Olave, Borchers and
company aren’t suddenly going to turn into a sieve overnight. Even if the
offense is struggling, giving up two goal over two games – one to a South
American dynamo named Humberto Suazo (whom Javier Morales calls the best
striker in CONMEBOL) and the other without reigning MLS Defender of the Year
Olave in the lineup – shouldn’t worry anyone. If there’s a silver lining,
that’s probably it. Just score a goal or two, and things will be fine.
And if there’s any team in MLS equipped to handle the fallout of
the two 0-1 losses last week, it’s this RSL team. No matter what happened
against Monterrey, magnified or not by the stumble against Portland, this is
still one of Major League Soccer’s best teams. It shouldn’t take a gargantuan
effort to turn things around. With teeth gritted and resolve steeled, the
process of restarting the engines on the 2011 MLS campaign shouldn’t be all
that difficult.
Certainly not against Chivas USA, and most definitely not at Rio
Tinto Stadium.
In the psychological sense, the so-called “crisis” – which this
isn’t by any reasonable measure but which approaches that level simply because
RSL hadn’t lost at home in nearly two years, the same span since back-to-back
goose eggs – is already over. It was a bad four days which probably felt like a
month. Jason Kreis won’t dwell, why should his team?
Portland giving RSL its first loss of the season last week just
means there’s a break between the Champions League portion of 2011 and the rest
of the season. Everything from here on out is Act II, wherein RSL has the
chance to regain their mojo and reestablish themselves as the obvious top team
in the league. If this was a movie, there would be no doubt about it happening.
The disappointment of losing to Monterrey at home would be the catalyst for a
dominant run.
But since this is real life, there are no guarantees. MLS doesn’t
have easy games, not even at home against inconsistent teams like Chivas USA.
RSL shouldwin. That fact
might actually apply more pressure. That Chivas USA’s head coach is ex-RSL
assistant Robin Fraser returning to Utah in a bit of a homecoming muddies the
emotional waters. The pitfalls are there for another shocking loss when no one
sees it coming.
If this game is just about Chivas though, and not about lingering
angst from the Champions League or the performance in Portland, things will be
fine. MLS4RSL is over and done. There’s a Supporters Shield and MLS Cup – and
even a U.S. Open Cup – left to win. No one is going to take it easy on RSL’s
pursuit.
Jason Davis founded Match Fit USA in December of 2008
(MatchFitUSA.com). Since, he has written for numerous outlets covering American
soccer, including USSoccerPlayers.com and FourFourTwo.com. He also hosts The
American Soccer Show, a weekly podcast discussing the biggest stories in the U.S.
game.
