Over the last year, a lot has changed for Albert Rusnák. One year ago this weekend, the Real Salt Lake midfielder extraordinaire registered his first MLS goal as RSL toppled Vancouver Whitecaps FC 3-0 in a snowy day at Rio Tinto Stadium for the club’s first win under Head Coach Mike Petke.
Now, a year later, he looks back on a year of firsts on and off the field and how he has grown to love Salt Lake City and the RSL faithful.
The date was April 8, 2017, and Real Salt Lake was looking for its first win of the season while the newly-signed playmaker was seeking his first goal in a tumultuous first month of his first MLS season. After the club went winless in its first five matches, Petke was taking the reins as head coach with his first match coming against Vancouver and the forecast called for a frigid night in Sandy, Utah.
What was a cold and rainy night turned into snowfall at halftime and RSL stormed to a 3-0 win as Rusnák scored one and assisted on two more en route to MLS Player of the Week honors.
“That was a start for us in the league to start winning games. For me, personally, it was my first goal so that’s obviously one to remember,” Rusnák said this week while preparing to face Vancouver again on Saturday at Rio Tinto Stadium. “Another thing was the weather conditions. It was the first time I’ve played in so much snow and such weather conditions. All around, I have good memories playing against Vancouver at Rio Tinto.”
Since then, Rusnák has earned RSL’s MVP and Golden Boot honors after posting seven goals and 14 assists in 2017. In his first season in MLS, Rusnák led the league with 13 primary assists and was second with 99 chances created according to Opta, trailing only former New York Red Bulls midfielder Sacha Kljestan. This year, though he has just one assist, he is actually creating chances at a slightly higher rate with 14 chances created through the first four matches (3.50 per 90 in 2018 after posting 3.45 per 90 in 2017).
His success on the field isn’t limited to the club level though.
While still remaining in the mix for the Slovakian National Team, he earned his first start on October 8, picking up an assist in a 3-0 win over Malta in the final match of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Although Slovakia didn’t make it through to this summer’s World Cup in Russia, they have worked young players into the fold to build toward 2022 qualifications and Rusnák has played a prominent role. On March 22, he scored his first international goal as Slovakia rolled to a 2-1 win over United Arab Emirates in the 2018 King’s Cup in Thailand, a tournament they would go on to win.
While he shows a great level of pride in scoring for his national team, those goals and victories don’t carry any more weight for Rusnák than the ones he has scored on the club level.
“When you’re a kid you dream of these moments. You imagine yourself scoring in every league you play in. For a national team, that’s another thing,” he said. “They are the moments you’ll remember for the rest of your life. I’ll remember exactly who I scored against and what type of a game it was. You remember because they are special. The goal for the national team, that’s the first one so that’s the one to remember, but I think I’ll remember every single goal.”
While juggling his schedules for club and country, Rusnák had another reason to celebrate in September when he and his longtime girlfriend welcomed their first child, daughter Ariana. Even in the midst of all of his travel around the world, he has been energized by the new addition to his family.
“It changes your life. When you come home, you know there’s something to do,” he smiled. “I’m very happy we got a daughter. She’s growing so fast.”
At six months old, Ariana has brought a new challenge into Rusnák’s life, but a playful challenge at that.
“You can’t drop your eyes off her. It’s a 24-hour a day job,” he continued. “I enjoy the time – every time she smiles. She’s going to probably be just like me when I was a kid – so much energy, always wants to do something and can’t lay down for a minute.”
While his growing family and successes on the field for RSL and Slovakia have made Salt Lake City a special place for Rusnák, there is so much more that has endeared the 23-year-old to the community since he arrived last year.
He quickly became a fan-favorite when he burst onto the scene with an engaging personality and a sense of the history with the club and the impact players have on the fans. He has felt that impact reciprocated from a welcoming fanbase that has made him feel like a part of the community from his first day in Utah.
They are the reason for his beaming smile after wins. And the reason he takes so personally the defeats.
“The fans are the reason I feel so angry after we lose. They always turn up. They’re always there. They’re always supportive. If you see them on the street, they’re always talking in a positive way. We should appreciate how they are and how they see the game and how they support us,” he said. “When you win, you feel like you’ve given them something back.”
Saturday’s match against Vancouver kicks off at 7:30 p.m. MT. Tickets are available at ksl.com/rsl.
