REAL SALT LAKE DOWNED 2-1 BY CREW
COMEBACK
Pair of Columbus Goals in Final 15
Minutes Counters DF Jamison Olave’s Return to Scoring Column
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Wednesday, June 8,
2011)– A promising
start on the road for Real Salt Lake
was cancelled out by the Columbus Crew,
as the home side used a pair of goals in the final 15 minutes to power past the
Utah side 2-1 in front of 9.650 at Crew Stadium.
Real
Salt Lake (6-3-2, 20 pts.; 4th in West) controlled the opening 20 minutes
of the contest, its steady attack rewarded just six minutes in when DF Jamison Olave beat his mark to a MF Nelson González corner kick and knocked
the half-chance into the upper corner to give the away side a dream start.
Olave
would also factor in the opening tally for the Crew (4-3-6, 18 pts.; 3rd
in East), as the Colombian was judged to have made enough contact to send Columbus
FW Justin Meram to ground just
inside the top of the area, setting up a penalty kick that FW Andres Mendoza slammed home in the 76th
minute to even up the contest. Just six minutes later the Crew made their
comeback complete when DF Josh Gardner’s
25-yard blast deflected off the leg of RSL DF Chris Schuler and past a committed GK Nick Rimando to end the night’s scoring in the 82nd
minute.
Real
Salt Lake Match Notes
- In the midst of a three-game-in-eight-day stretch, RSL head Coach Jason Kreis elected to use nearly the exact same side that defeated Vancouver 2-0 last Saturday in Sandy, the only change being Jamison Olave spelling fellow veteran center-back Nat Borchers.
- The goal for Olave was the ninth of his MLS career, but marked the first tally scored away from home in his 37th road contest. Tonight’s finish broke an 18-match scoreless streak in regular season play, his previous finish coming in RSL’s 5-0 win over New England back on July 2, 2010.
- After scoring his first career MLS goal two weeks ago against Seattle, Nelson González notched his first assist of 2011 and the second helper of his MLS career via his 6th minute corner kick. The other assist also came from a corner, converted by Álvaro Saborío on April 10, 2010, to give RSL a 2-2 share of the spoils during its 2010 home opener against Sounders FC.
- Tonight’s contest marked the first time in over two years that Real Salt Lake had relinquished a pair of goals past the 75th minute in league play, breaking a streak of 63 regular season games. The last occasion came on May 6, 2009, when goals from the Los Angeles Galaxy’s Landon Donovan and Mike Magee helped a wild match at Rio Tinto Stadium end in a 2-2 draw.
- Despite allowing a pair of goals for the second time in three contests, Real Salt Lake still boasts the top defense in MLS by a fair margin, its 0.55 goals against average (6 GA in 11 GP) still ranking above the Galaxy’s 0.75 average.
- Real Salt Lake will continue its mini-road swing out east against the squad with the third best defense in Major League Soccer – the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia Union (6-3-3, 21 pts.) – this Saturday, June 11. The matinee kickoff at PPL Park in suburban Chester, Penn. is set for 2:00 p.m. MT and will be televised live on KYMU 2.2 (Comcast 22 / Dish Network 12).
MLS POST-GAME
QUOTE SHEET
COLUMBUS
CREW 2 : 1 REAL SALT LAKE
REAL SALT LAKE HEAD
COACH JASON KREIS
On having control throughout the game:
“I
think that apart from the first 15 minutes we didn’t manage the game very well,
tactically we didn’t stay compact enough. We got too stretched out, we lost the
ball in really critically bad positions and when you do those things it causes
you to defend for long stretches and I thought Columbus was unfortunate not to
score in the first half. Because of that it really affected the energy we
played with in the second half.”
On the heat being a factor in the loss:
“I
felt both teams were a little sluggish. It is never easy to play in 95-degree
weather. But we have no excuses and another game on Saturday at 4 p.m. in
Philadelphia.”
On trying to exploit the set pieces and scoring the goal:
“Typically
over the past couple of years the team has been very good on attacking set
pieces. We have guys who are a little dangerous. It was a great service in and
a great finish by Olave.”
REAL
SALT LAKE GOALKEEPER NICK RIMANDO
On the first half:
“I thought it was a sloppy first half. We
came out and wanted to pressure Columbus. It paid off and we got a corner kick
followed by a sloppy goal. We came in at the half in good spirits knowing we
were up a goal.”
On the second half and the ensuing comeback
mounted by the Crew:
“In the second half we came out the totally
opposite. We stayed in our 18 yard box. I felt some guys didn’t really put the
effort in and when you don’t put the effort in you don’t get a result. Today we
didn’t get a result because we didn’t put the effort in. We pretty much let
down a lot of people on the team.”
On the heat being a factor:
“Yes,
we were tired and it showed. We couldn’t push our lineup. We acted like we were
defending but we really didn’t put the effort in to defend and that was the
result of us losing. Obviously a penalty and a deflection are two different
things, but we train all day to trap players on the 2-v-1 and they get out of
it and that’s how they get a goal.”
COLUMBUS CREW HEAD
COACH ROBERT WARZYCHA
General impressions:
“I
think we started the game as usual, gave up a goal in the 10th
minute, and it was a bit frustrating because it was on the first corner and
they got a lucky bounce and scored. We responded pretty well and the game was
even in the first half. We came in the second half with not as much energy as I
would’ve liked. Salt Lake had a couple of corners in a row and put us in the
box a bit, but after that we started to pick up the tempo and in the end we
scored two goals against a very good team.”
On coming back in the last three games:
“It
was about time we got the extra goal. Whether it was against Seattle (May 7) or
Chivas (May 28) or tonight, we created enough chances to come out on top, but
the ball somehow didn’t want to go in the back of the net. The header from
Cunningham that hit the crossbar was very good but no luck. In the end we
pushed for a goal and we got rewarded.”
On getting scored on early in the last few matches:
“We
would love to avoid it, but as I said, other times what is important is the
result at the end of 90 minutes. And at the end of these 90 minutes it was 2-1
so we got three points and that is what was important.”
COLUMBUS CREW
DEFENDER JOSH GARDNER
Impressions on the game:
“I
thought we came out and were unlucky to let a goal in. We had to chase the game
again and being able to fight back in the second half and get those two goals
was huge.”
About his game-winner:
"Justin
Meram came from the left side and provided a little spark for us and was able
to link up with Mendoza. He turned and swung the ball across which allowed me
to free up some space, so I took a touch and hit one. Even though I am better with my left foot, I
scored some of my best goals on my right foot.”
COLUMBUS CREW DEFENDER
SEBASTIAN MIRANDA
On the game:
“It
was a great game. I think we played well throughout most of the game.
Unfortunately they scored on us in the beginning. But it was important that
this team has the personnel and the will to bring back a positive result. I
think we showed that we are well prepared to mount comebacks. Unfortunately it
is not ideal to start matches down a goal. It would be nice to start and finish
matches winning, but the important thing is this team has the strength and
willpower to continue to fight until they get the result.”
COLUMBUS CREW FORWARD
AARON HORTON
On his debut:
"It
was a dream come true. Just getting on the field at Crew Stadium and get my
first few minutes, there’s nothing better for me. I was thinking I wanted to
get a goal but the most important thing was to preserve the win. I wanted to
get in there, work hard and not let anybody come down the side I was playing.
I’m going to continue to work hard every day at practice and hopefully I’ll get
in again.”
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