REAL SALT LAKE ANNOUNCES 2020 ROSTER DECISIONS
RSL Retains 20 Players from the 2019 Team that Finished Third in the Western Conference and Reached the Western Conference Semifinals
SANDY, Utah (Thursday, November 21, 2019) – Real Salt Lake today announced several roster updates ahead of the 2020 season. Real Salt Lake exercised the contract options on 11 players from its 2019 roster. With nine other players already under contract for the 2020 season, the announcement gives RSL 20 players on its current roster.
Real Salt Lake exercised the options of goalkeeper Andrew Putna; defenders Justen Glad and Erik Holt; midfielders Everton Luiz, Nick Besler and Justin Portillo; and forwards Corey Baird, Jefferson Savarino, Brooks Lennon, Douglas Martinez and Tate Schmitt.
After 13 seasons with the club and 20 in Major League Soccer, goalkeeper Nick Rimando announced his retirement prior to the 2019 season. Defender Tony Beltran, who spent all 12 of his MLS seasons with Real Salt Lake, also announced his retirement, as did goalkeeper Alex Horwath and forward Jordan Allen.
In addition, RSL announced that it has declined the contract options of defenders Marcelo Silva and Danilo Acosta; midfielder Luke Mulholland and forward Joao Plata. Defender Donny Toia, midfielders Kyle Beckerman and Kelyn Rowe and forward Sebastian Saucedo are out of contract. Conversations about returning to the roster in 2020 are ongoing with a number of players.
Real Salt Lake advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals after finishing third in the West with a record of 16-13-5 (53 points) that included a 12-4-1 record at Rio Tinto Stadium, good for the second-most home wins in MLS in 2019. Over the final 19 matches of the season – starting with the conclusion of the Gold Cup break in mid-June – RSL had the top defense in MLS, going 10-5-4 with nine shutouts and a 0.74 goals against average, finishing the season with the third-fewest goals allowed in MLS.
The End-of-Year Waivers is scheduled for Monday, November 25 at 1:00 p.m. MT, with Free Agency also beginning at that time. Additionally, the MLS Re-Entry Process begins with Stage 1 on Tuesday, November 26 at 1:00 p.m. MT, while Stage 2 of the Re-Entry Process is set to take place on Tuesday, December 3 at 1:00 p.m. ET. A full MLS list of players eligible for Free Agency, End-of-Year Waivers and the Re-Entry Process will be announced by the League in the near future.
Real Salt Lake's current roster headed into 2020, listed alphabetically by position, is below:
Goalkeepers (2): David Ochoa, Andrew Putna
Defenders (4): Justen Glad, Aaron Herrera, Erik Holt, Nedum Onuoha
Midfielders (7): Luis Arriaga, Nick Besler, Damir Kreilach, Everton Luiz, Justin Portillo, Pablo Ruiz, Albert Rusnák
Forwards (7): Corey Baird, Sam Johnson, Brooks Lennon, Douglas Martinez, Jefferson Savarino, Tate Schmitt, Julian Vazquez
