Real Salt Lake hopes to take advantage of slumping Galaxy (Sep 30, 2017)
The last time Real Salt Lake visited the L.A. Galaxy, it called the Western Conference basement home.
But then it routed the Los Angeles club and has been rolling ever since -- right into a playoff position.
Now fifth in the conference, Real Salt Lake aims to keep the momentum going on Saturday when it visits Los Angeles.
Back on July 4, an early-season coaching change wasn't producing the results on the field. But then there was the 6-2 triumph over the Galaxy at the halfway point of the season, which spurred a 7-2-3 run since.
"I think (it was) just believing in us and sticking with his guns," goalkeeper Nick Rimando told the Salt Lake Tribune of how new coach Mike Petke was able to get his team afloat.
Real Salt Lake (12-14-5, 41 points) is tied with FC Dallas in points and sits one and two points up on Houston and San Jose, respectively, both of whom sit on the outside looking in and will also hit the pitch on Saturday.
The latest matchup against L.A. is a stark contrast to Real Salt Lake's last outing. The Sounders were riding a 13-game unbeaten streak; the Galaxy are hovering around the basement of the MLS standings. Yet despite its most recent win, Salt Lake isn't taking anything for granted.
"Our consistent motto that we've had this year is keep trying to improve," Kyle Beckerman told the Salt Lake Tribune. "No matter if you win or lose or tie you've got to try to improve."
The Galaxy, meanwhile are in unfamiliar territory. After Wednesday's loss to Houston, the club (7-17-7, 28 points) ranks second-to-last overall and saw its eight-year playoff streak snapped.
"It's going to be a difficult game for us, because obviously they didn't play midweek so they're going to go into the game rested with pace up front," Galaxy head coach Sigi Schmid told the team's website after the loss. "We have a couple of guys who came off the bench, so we have to see how guys recover from (Wednesday) and we'll see what we can put on the field on Saturday."
While Los Angeles will be at home, StubHub Center has been anything but comfortable for the team this season, where it has posted a 2-9-4 record -- the worst in MLS.
And although their disappointing season will come to a close in a few weeks, there still is motivation for the final matches.
"I think as a team, closing out matches, getting points in games, and keeping our heads up from minute one to minute 95," forward Bradford Jamieson IV told the team's website. "I think that's a big thing for finishing this season and starting next season, the unity for our team. We have a lot of great guys, so as a team I just want us to solidify our trust in each other."
