On any club, there will be acquisitions that don’t garner massive headlines, but prove to be important down the road. That was the case for Sunday Stephen and Real Salt Lake, as “Sunny” would make a big impact in RSL’s midfield despite missing several months after a mishap against the New York Red Bulls left him with facial fractures.
Sunny came to RSL from Alanyaspor in Turkey, but had spent time in his career plying his trade in Spain, Israel and Bulgaria before landing the U.S. in 2016. Soft-spoken off the field, Sunny’s presence alone carried weight with his new club, as he brought with him UEFA Champions League experience with Valencia in 2007.
His time with the Claret-and-Cobalt got off to a strong start when he scored in his second MLS match against the Sounders and he went on to play 15 matches. He missed a lengthy stretch from June 22-September 10 after a collision with New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles left him with facial fractures that required surgery.
All told, he was a solid contributor in RSL’s midfield and the club went 7-2-3 in his 12 starts before suffering the injury.
We continue to count down the Top 10 RSL stories of 2016 throughout the next two weeks.
No. 10 – Monarchs-to-MLS
No. 9 – Always Sunny at the RioT
