PREGAME FACTS AND INFO SHEET
REAL SALT LAKE at SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES
SUN., SEPTEMBER 27, 2015 – 5:00 pm MT
on FOX SPORTS 1, ESPN700 & 102.3 LaGranD
1 – goal allowed in the run of play with DF Jamison Olave on the field for RSL in his last five games, the club notching three wins, two clean sheets in that time … RSL has conceded PKs at Houston (3-1 W) and at DAL (0-2 L), along with the Nat Borchers header at the death (Olave had been subbed out by the 95th minute in his return Aug. 15 v Portland) … Prior to his return from a torn quad muscle, RSL had conceded 23 goals in 14 games across all competitions during his absence …
2 – clubs against which RSL boasts an all-time +.500 road mark, San Jose (5-4-4) and New England (4-3-2) … RSL has earned points against San Jose in 16 of its last 21 games against the Earthquakes (20 in MLS play, once in an Open Cup play-in match) …
3 – road wins in MLS play this season, RSL winning at San Jose (1-0, April 5), at Chicago (2-1, May 9) and at Houston (3-1, Sept. 12) … RSL also won on August 4 at Municipal in CCL play by a 1-0 scoreline in Guatemala its first-ever international road win outside of Panama … RSL also owns shutout draws this season at Portland (March 7), at Kansas City (April 12) and at Santa Tecla (Sept. 15) …
4 – active unbeaten streak for RSL in San Jose, including a 1-0 win at Avaya Stadium back on Easter Sunday this season, a game which marked the second of three consecutive road clean sheets to start 2015, won by a scintillating shot by Javier Morales, who slammed home the rebound of his own free kick into the wall from 25 yards out just before halftime … RSL’s last loss at San Jose came in July, 2012, when a Kyle Beckerman red card opened the gates for a 5-0 shellacking by the Earthquakes, the largest margin of victory by either team in the series …
5 – consecutive wins needed in RSL’s five final league games this season to extend the club’s active streak of 15-win, 50-point seasons to six seasons, matching LA Galaxy’s run from 2010-present …
7 – consecutive playoff berths for RSL from 2008-14 (the longest active run in MLS), during which time the club has averaged 1.58 points per game) …
9 – career goals, along with 6 assists, for RSL MF Javier Morales in 16 career MLS games against San Jose … Morales will miss tonight’s game at San Jose, a hip flexor strain suffered while providing assists on both goals in Thursday’s 2-1 home win over Santa Tecla (SLV) knocking the “Maestro” out for the 10th time in 31 possible MLS starts this season (5 concussion, 2 hamstring, 1 red card, 1 rest and now 1 hip flexor) …
10 – all-time CCL wins for RSL, the club amassing an overall CCL record of 10-4-5 – including a dominant 7-1-1 mark in group and knockout play at home, where it needs a win or draw on Oct. 20 against Municipal (GUA) to advance to next February’s Quarterfinal stage … The club’s history in the continental championship includes two heartbreaking home blemishes – the 0-1 home loss to Monterrey (MEX) in the 2011 Final Second Leg, as well as the 0-0 home draw against Herediano (CRC) in the 2012 group stage, when RSL just needed any scoring draw to advance – will forever leave a mark, preventing advancement …
21 – starts in the last 25 games across all competitions for RSL DF Aaron Maund, who has been a key component this season during the injury woes suffered by DF Chris Schuler and DF Jamison Olave … One of the four missed starts includes his 83’ performance on June 7, when Olave suffered a torn quad muscle at home against Colorado … When Maund has seen 80 or more minutes, the club has conceded 27 goals in those 20 matches, with 7 clean sheets …
24 – road MLS games played by RSL since it last won back-to-back away games, emerging victorious May 3/11 at Chicago and Houston last year … Can the streak be snapped today at SJ, on top of the Sept. 12 win at HOU?
26 – all-time wins on Utah soil against international opponents in either CCL play (7-1-1, with a 19/6 goal advantage), exhibitions (7-4-4, 20/17 difference) or against visiting Canadian MLS teams (12-2-3, with a 32/14 +/-) … At Rio Tinto Stadium, RSL has 21 wins, 2 losses and 6 draws against int’l clubs or in CCL competition …
60 – number of players in RSL’s 11-year, 126-player, 349-game league history to have scored at least one MLS goal for the Claret-and-Cobalt, now that FW Juan Manuel Martinez opened his MLS account Sept. 12 in Houston … Martinez, nicknamed “El Burrito,” joins a group that includes Brian Dunseth, Robbie Findley, Matias Mantilla, Kenny Deuchar, Pablo Campos, and Luke Mulholland to have scored in their first-ever MLS start for RSL, while three players – Luis Tejada, Kyle Brown and Paulo Junior each scored in debut starts outside of league play …
76 – RSL #maestro Javier Morales’ assist on the Devon Sandoval game-winning goal in the 3rd minute against LA on Saturday was the 76th of his illustrious MLS career, surpassing Jason Kreis on the all-time list for the No. 14 rank in MLS history … This season, Morales has now has a team-high 8 goals and 11 assists in 22 league games, just 1 goal and 4 assists shy of the 35-year old’s career highs in each category ... Morales made his 207th MLS reg. season appearance against LA, moving into lone possession of 3rd place all-time, joining a 200+ reg. season games played-group that includes Nick Rimando (244), Kyle Beckerman (224), Nat Borchers (205) and Chris Wingert (204) ... Morales now has a franchise-high 18 game-winning assists (1 ahead of Captain Kyle Beckerman) and 76 assists overall to go with his 45 career goals, the Argentine MF responsible for nearly 25% of the club’s all-time 470 MLS goals, despite missing all of the 2005/06 seasons and most of both 2007 & 2011 …
97 – home wins since 2008, as RSL has amassed a 97-20-39 mark on home soil in all competitions in its last 156 home matches, during which it has outscored opponents by 169 goals (282-113) … RSL returns home October 14 against Portland Timbers in a critical Western Conference tilt with a 77-15-36 record in MLS reg. season games (231-93 goals), and a 7-1-1 CCL mark (19-6), a 5-2-2 playoff resume (11-4), and an 8-2-0 ledger in Open Cup (21-10) … This season, RSL is 11-2-6 in MLS, Open Cup and CCL play, outscoring opponent 27-14 …
126 – players to have appeared in an MLS game for RSL in 11 seasons, as Jeff Cassar has given several players – Justen Glad, Phanuel Kavita, Boyd Okwuonu, Elias Vasquez, Demar Phillips, Sebastian Saucedo & Pecka – opportunities this season … 28 players have seen league minutes this year, meaning everyone on the roster except GK Lalo Fernandez (MF Fito Ovalle is on a season-long loan to the USL Monarchs) have seen MLS time …
207 – RSL #maestro Javier Morales, the 9th-year player, comes off back-to-back MLS games with a goal and an assist … When Javi starts and plays the full 90 this season, he has 8 goals and 11 assists – the entirety of his scoresheet appearances – in those 20 games, leaving “the maestro” 1 goals and 4 assists shy of matching career highs in both categories … Morales has scored in 3 of his last 4 league games, never finding the back of the net in 4 out of 5 … Will Sunday at San Jose add another first to the ageless wonder’s 2015 tally? …
587 – Shutout streak for RSL’s rearguard in CCL play, snapped in the 61’ Thursday against Santa Tecla after not allowing a goal in the last 5+ games since the 14’ of an 0-1 road loss at Herediano in July, 2012 … That streak is the longest in CCL history, while RSL shares the competition’s record for consecutive shutouts (5) with Alajuela (CRC) and Pachuca (MEX) … GK Nick Rimando owns a personal 436’ streak, while Jeff Attinella allowed 1 goal in 180 minutes against Santa Tecla in Sept. …
21,004 – record RioT crowd last weekend against LA, marking the fourth time this season that the venue has set a new RSL attendance mark in the club’s home venue … Seven of the top 12 crowds in Rio Tinto Stadium history have come in 2015, including the top 5 all-time …
