Late in Real Salt Lake’s Rocky Mountain Cup match with the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, RSL Head Coach Mike Petke looked to make an alteration to the lineup to generate more out of the attack. The move he was looking to make would have flipped Brooks Lennon from the left side, where he had shifted after switching sides with Sebastian Saucedo earlier in the half. As the sub was about to be made, though, Lennon pleaded his case with his coach.
“I was set to bring on an offensive sub and move Brooks over to the other side and he looked at me and said: ‘I got this guy,’” Petke said after the match. “He said ‘I’m going to cut inside and I’m going to score.’”
With the match knotted up in the 88th minute after Yura Movsisyan knocked home a PK, that’s exactly what Lennon did, dribbling from left-to-right until he spotted the slightest opening and confidently banged his shot into the net, leaving the Rapids stunned and Petke exuberant.
“It’s unbelievable,” the RSL coach said.
The youth movement at Real Salt Lake is continuing to take hold as the Claret-and-Cobalt develops young talent all around the field through the club’s renowned Academy system and Lennon’s game-winning goal against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday put the spotlight on the young talent gracing RSL’s roster.
He was one of three U.S. U-20 internationals to start the match for RSL, joining Saucedo and right back Danilo Acosta. That trio, with the addition of injured center back Justen Glad and University of New Mexico defender Aaron Hererra, make up some of the core of the U.S. squad that won the CONCACAF U-20 Championships for the first time last month and will now head to South Korea for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in May.
To U.S. U-20 Technical Director Tab Ramos, it’s a systemic belief and work ethic that started with Martin Vasquez and Freddy Juarez at the RSL Academy that has helped produce outstanding talent that can make an impact in any competition.
“They’re very dedicated to the sport. They have good skill level. They’re aggressive. And they are guys who are willing to pay the price to learn,” Ramos said this week on ESPN 700’s On Frame. “They are always working hard and always willing to listen to coaches and get better.”
Already this year, RSL’s youngsters have gotten extensive seasoning with the U-20s and in MLS. Lennon started all six matches at the U-20 Championships, leading the team with four goals. Saucedo started in three of his four appearances and scored two goals himself while Acosta was a starter in five matches at left back and scored the winning PK in the shootout to clinch the championship against Honduras. In addition, Glad started all six matches before suffering an injury in the final that has kept him out of action for RSL in the early stages of the regular season.
With that experience on their resumes, Lennon, Saucedo and Acosta have the confidence to make an impact when called upon by Petke with RSL. While Lennon’s goal was the exclamation point on that faith, Acosta has managed himself well at right back and Saucedo has been aggressive and dangerous on the wing in his time on the field.
Getting that first-team action will be vital in preparing players for the World Cup, especially considering the limited time Ramos will have with his team to prepare for the tournament.
“That’s incredibly important,” Ramos said. “They come in having played in the top division and for the first team. They come in fit.”
As beneficial as it could prove to be for the U.S. U-20s, it has also been a boost for RSL. A team that has had as many as eight players out of action due to injury, international duty and suspension at various points in the young season, opportunities have arisen for players and they have taken advantage of those chances.
Lennon’s goal was the result of that percolation and was possibly a sign of things to come as RSL continues through the season.
“Brooks is a relentless worker. He’s willing to take advice and he’s willing to suffer for the team,” Ramos said. “In the end, he’s got great skill. He’s one of those guys that is only going to get better.”
To hear the full interview with Ramos, listen below.
