Ahead of this weekend’s clash between Real Salt Lake and LA Galaxy in the first leg of the Western Conference Semifinals, we look back at the storied history between RSL head coach Jason Kreis and LA head coach Bruce Arena.
Despite their large age-difference, Jason Kreis and Bruce Arena have crossed paths over the past 20 years, starting at the college level.
College Days
Kreis attended Duke University, starting in 1991, and regularly faced off against ACC foe the University of Virginia, which was then coached by Bruce Arena. The fierce college soccer rivalry often ended with Bruce Arena and the Cavaliers coming out on top.
Kreis on the Field
Kreis and Arena would meet again, this time in Major League Soccer with Kreis as a player for the Dallas Burn and Real Salt Lake and Arena as a coach for D.C. United and New York Red Bulls. Throughout this player-coach period, the two met 10 times with Kreis notching five goals and recording a 4-6-0 record against Arena-led sides.
National Team
Arena called Kreis up to the U.S. national team several teams during his tenure, with the RSL boss earning seven of his 14 career international caps under Arena in 1999 and 2000. Kreis started three of the seven games he appeared in for Arena, scoring his lone international goal and picking up a yellow card in 256 minutes of action under the LA coach/GM.
Coaching Rivals
Jason Kreis became Real Salt Lake’s head coach on May 3, 2007 and in his first game at the helm, faced off against a Bruce Arena-led New York Red Bulls side, with the teams playing to a thrilling 3-3 draw at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Kreis won his first match as RSL boss against Arena on June 13, 2009 when Real Salt Lake defeated the LA Galaxy 2-0 at the Home Depot Center. The four previous meetings between Kreis and Arena had resulted in ties.
Kreis achieved the ultimate victory over Arena when RSL and LA faced off in MLS Cup 2009, with the Claret-and-Cobalt defeating the Galaxy 5-4 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw at Qwest Field in Seattle.
Arena got a measure of revenge in 2011, defeating Real Salt Lake in that year’s Western Conference Final, on his way to leading the Galaxy to the 2011 MLS Cup title. Arena went on to lead the Galaxy to another MLS Cup title in 2012.
All-time, Kreis is 6-6-4 when coaching against an Arena-led squad.
RSL v. LA Galaxy
Real Salt Lake and LA Galaxy have met a total of 27 times across all competitions with the Claret-and-Cobalt posting a 10-11-6 record against LA. RSL is 10-10-5 against the Galaxy in MLS regular-season play.
Since Bruce Arena became head coach of the Galaxy on Aug. 18, 2008, Kreis and RSL are 6-6-3 against the LA side.
