Real Salt Lake 1 at FC Dallas 1
March 3, 2018; Frisco, Texas; Toyota Stadium
Real Salt Lake (0-0-1, 1 point); FC Dallas (0-0-1, 1 point)
Man of the Match: Nick Rimando made five saves and was a deterrent to the FC Dallas attack on several other occasions. His first-half stop on a low-angle shot from Maxi Urruti was easily the play of the match – and a stop that not many other goalkeepers in MLS would make.
Telling Stat: Real Salt Lake’s counter attack is dangerous and Dallas knew it. The home side committed 19 fouls in the match to just six for RSL, seemingly targeting Damir Kreilach and Albert Rusnák to slow RSL’s possession and break up the play.
What You Missed: After the match, former RSL playmaker Javier Morales spoke with several of his old teammates outside the locker room. His two children, Santi and Mateo, who were regulars in the locker room during their father’s time with RSL, popped from locker to locker to see old friends and kick the ball around.
So What: Real Salt Lake is unbeaten in its last nine regular season openers at 5-0-4. Giving up the late own-goal to equalize is going to make the end result hard to swallow, but after dropping both matches to FC Dallas last year, including a 5-2 defeat at Toyota Stadium in June, the disappointment in a 1-1 draw in their building is a sure sign of just how far this team has come since midseason last year.
