Real Salt Lake will close out the regular season on the road against Vancouver, here’s what you need to know ahead of the match:
1. Real Salt Lake is coming off a 2-1 home win against Houston Dynamo, which secured the team a playoff spot. Corey Baird scored in the 1st minute of the match, the quickest goal in MLS this season and the club’s quickest goal at Rio Tinto Stadium, but Houston equalized in the 32nd minute and it was 1-1 at the break. It was a tense second half of play before Jefferson Savarino scored another game-winner at the RioT.
Albert Rusnak leads the team with ten goals and five assists, Sam Johnson has nine goals, Savarino has eight goals and five assists, Damir Kreilach has five goals and five assists, and Baird has five goals and three assists.
2. With the win Real Salt Lake remained in 5th place in the western conference with a record of 15-13-5 and 50 points. A win against Vancouver on Decision Day would put RSL in position to claim a home match in the first round of the MLS Playoffs, depending on other results. RSL is 3-9-4 on the road this season but just 1-8-1 all-time at Vancouver, their last road win at BC Place came in 2013.
3. Vancouver Whitecaps sit in last place in the western conference with a record of 8-15-10 and 34 points but the club is coming off a 3-4 road win against 4th place L.A. Galaxy last weekend. Midfielder Inbeom Hwang had two assists in their road win bringing his season total to three goals and five assists, Fredy Montero leads the team with eight goals and three assists, Jordy Reyna has seven goals and one assist, and Ali Adnan has one goal and five assists. Vancouver is 5-6-5 at home this season with wins against LAFC, Portland, and D.C. United.
Our coverage of Real Salt Lake at Vancouver Whitecaps begins on Sunday, October 6 at 1:30 PM, kick-off at 2:25 PM.
