MATCH 3: REAL SALT LAKE AT TORONTO FC (MARCH 30, 2018)
Today's Starting XI:
Goalkeeper: Rimando.
Defenders: Lennon, Silva M., Glad, Phillips.
Midfielders: Beckerman, Kreilach, Rusnak.
Forwards: Savarino, Silva L., Saucedo.
Bench: Sparrow, Henley, Horst, Sunny, Saucedo, Baird, Ortuno
Competition: 2018 MLS Regular Season, Week 4. Real Salt Lake at Toronto FC
Venue: BMO Field. Toronto, Ontario.
Time: 6:00 pm MT
TV: KMYU
Streaming: KSL TV app or KSL.com
Radio: ESPN 700
Weather: 40 degrees, clear skies.
Refs: Allen Chapman
MATCH 4: REAL SALT LAKE at TORONTO FC (MARCH 30, 2018)
Starting XI:Nick Rimando; Brooks Lennon, Marcelo Silva, Justen Glad, Demar Phillips; Kyle Beckerman ©, Damir Kreilach; Jefferson Savarino, Albert Rusnák, Joao Plata; Luis Silva.
Bench:Connor Sparrow, Adam Henley, David Horst, Sunny, Sebastian Saucedo, Corey Baird, Alfredo Ortuno.
Lineup notes:
·Marcelo Silva, Joao Plata and Luis Silva all return from injuries that had them out of a 1-0 win over the New York Red Bulls.
·Albert Rusnák is back from international duty, where he scored his first international goal in helping Slovakia win the King’s Cup in Thailand.
·Luis Silva and Joao Plata are both returning to where they made their MLS starts at Toronto FC.
·Injury list: Jordan Allen (knee), Shawn Barry (knee), Tony Beltran (knee), Aaron Herrera (hamstring), Adam Horwath (calf), Luke Mulholland (hamstring) and Taylor Peay (knee).
·GK Nick Rimando (USA/22 caps/38 years old/3 games, 3 starts (455, 455)/1-1-1 (197-151-107), 2.00 GAA/D.C. United) – Second in MLS with 14 saves through the first three matches. … Just one of his 197 career MLS wins has come at BMO Field.
·RB Brooks Lennon (USA/0 caps/20 years old/2 games, 1 start (27, 16)/0 goals, 0 assists (3, 4)/Liverpool (England)/HGP) – Made his first career start at right back in a 1-0 win over the New York Red Bulls on March 17.
·RCB Marcelo Silva (Uruguay/0 caps/29 years old/1 game, 1 start (10, 10)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 0)/Zaragoza (Spain)/TAM) – Returns from injury after missing the last two matches. In his 740 minutes with RSL, the club has a 0.73 goals against average.
·LCB Justen Glad (USA/0 caps/21 years old/3 games, 3 starts (56, 54)/0 goals, 0 assists (2, 1)/RSL Academy/HGP) – Making his 22nd consecutive start since returning from injury and international duty last June. RSL is 10-6-5 in the 21 previous starts, outscoring the opposition 37-26 in that stretch.
·LB Demar Phillips (Jamaica/72 caps/34 years old/3 games, 3 starts (63, 53)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 7)/Aalesund (Norway)) – Making his fourth straight start to open the season.
·DM Kyle Beckerman (USA/58 caps/35 years old/3 games, 3 starts (435, 406)/0 goals, 0 assists (40, 49)/Colorado Rapids) – Has started in 15 of the 16 all-time meetings between RSL and TFC. His two goals and four assists both rank second in the series behind Alvaro Sabrio’s four goals and the five assists of Javier Morales.
·CM Damir Krielach (28 years old/3 games, 3 starts (3, 3)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 0)/Union Berlin (Germany)/TAM) – Shared the team lead with five tackles in a 1-0 win over the New York Red Bulls on March 17, equaling the total of Brooks Lennon.
·RW Jefferson Savarino (Venezuela/1 cap/21 years old/3 games, 3 starts (25, 22)/0 goals, 0 assists (6, 5)/Zulia (Venezuela)/DP) – Had five shots, including two shots on goal last week against LAFC.
·CAM Albert Rusnák (Slovakia/10 caps, 1 goal/23 years old/3 games, 3 starts (33, 32)/1 goals, 1 assist (8, 15)/FC Groningen (Holland)/DP) – Scored his first international goal for Slovakia in a 2-1 win over United Arab Emirates in the 2018 King’s Cup in Thailand. Also scored the lone goal in RSL’s 1-0 win over New York.
·LW Joao Plata (Ecuador/4 caps, 2 goals/26 years old/2 games, 2 starts (171, 145)/2 goals, 0 assists (42, 40)/Toronto FC/TAM) – Started his MLS career with Toronto FC in 2011, notching three goals and five assists in 26 matches in his first MLS season. Played 10 games in 2012 before a move to RSL to start the 2013 season.
·FW Luis Silva (29 years old/2 games, 2 starts (140, 101)/0 goals, 0 assists (27, 16)/Tigres (Mexico)) – Returns to the starting lineup after he was a late scratch against the Red Bulls. Had five goals and five assists in his first MLS season with Toronto FC in 2012. Went on to play 44 games, 33 of them starts, for Toronto in 2012-2013 before a move to D.C. United.
Bench:
·GK Connor Sparrow (23 years old/0 games, 0 starts (0, 0)/0-0-0 (0-0-0)/Real Monarchs) – Had seven shutouts in 18 appearances last year for Real Monarchs in the USL, leading the Monarchs to the USL regular season title.
·DF David Horst (32 years old/3 games, 2 starts (146, 128)/0 goals, 0 assists (5, 4)/Houston Dynamo) – Made two starts in place of the injured Marcelo Silva, giving him 12 career starts in two stints with RSL.
·DF Adam Henley (Wales/2 caps/23 years old/0 games, 0 starts (0, 0)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 0)/Blackburn Rovers (England)) – Missed the first two matches with a hamstring injury suffered against NYCFC in preseason.
·MF Sunny (Nigeria/1 cap/29 years old/2 games, 0 starts (38, 33)/0 goals, 0 assists (1, 2)/Alanyaspor (Turkey)) – Came off the bench to replace Alfredo Ortuno in the 79th minute of RSL’s 1-0 win over New York.
·FW Sebastian Saucedo (21 years old/2 games, 1 start (31, 7)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 2)/Veracruz (Mexico)/HGP) – Made his first of the season on the left wing in RSL’s 1-0 win over New York.
·FW Corey Baird (22 years old/1 games, 0 starts (1, 0)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 0)/Stanford/HGP) – Made his MLS debut coming off the bench against the Red Bulls. Scored his first professional goal for Real Monarchs last week in a 3-2 road win over the Tulsa Roughnecks.
·FW Alfredo Ortuno (27 years old/2 games, 1 start (2, 1)/0 goals, 0 assists (0, 0)/Cadiz (Spain)/TAM) – Made his first MLS start against the Red Bulls on March 17. Came to RSL after scoring 17 goals in 40 matches in the 2016-17 season for Cadiz in Spain.
Storylines:
·Real Salt Lake is 4-1-1 in the last six matches against Toronto, dating back to 2011, a stretch that includes RSL’s only win at BMO Field, a 1-0 win in 2013.
·Toronto FC has reached the MLS Cup final in each of the last two seasons, losing in a shootout in 2016 and topping Seattle for the club’s first MLS Cup title in 2017.
