Real Salt Lake 0 at New York Red Bulls 0
March 25, 2017; Harrison, New Jersey; Red Bull Arena
Real Salt Lake (0-2-2, 2 points); New York Red Bulls (2-1-1, 7 points)
Man of the Match: In his MLS debut, Matt VanOekel did everything asked of him in earning a shutout against a difficult opponent in the New York Red Bulls. He finished the match with three saves to keep the clean sheet, but one play that didn’t log as a save was just as crucial when he came off his line to deter Bradley Wright-Phillips in the second half. Sliding to prevent a shot while also avoiding contact, he forced the goal-scoring dynamo into a heavy touch that allowed Aaron Maund to shepherd the ball out for a goal kick – a veteran move for a man of 125 career matches at the USL and NASL levels.
Telling Stat: 32. It had been 32 MLS regular season road matches since Real Salt Lake last had a road shutout. The last clean sheet came on April 11, 2015 in a scoreless draw with Sporting Kansas City. In the 32 matches since, RSL has allowed 68 goals for an average of 2.13 goals per game. Conversely, the last time the Red Bulls were shut out at home was July 10 last season against the Portland Timbers – a span of nine regular season matches. In those nine matches, the Red Bulls had scored 20 goals, an average of 2.22 per match.
What You Missed: It was a day for debuts for RSL. In addition to VanOekel, midfielder Jose Hernandez also made his MLS debut and Daryl Shore earned a point in his first match as Interim Head Coach. Omar Holness and Aaron Maund also made their 2017 debuts, meaning RSL has already used 23 different players in the first four matches.
So What: RSL needed a positive result on Saturday after a tumultuous week that saw Head Coach Jeff Cassar dismissed on Monday. With just three practice sessions under Shore and nine players out of action because of injury, suspension or international duty, it was a tremendous performance to walk out of Red Bull Arena with a point in hand. RSL touted its depth in the offseason and matches like this one prove just how valuable that depth can be.
