Behind Enemy Lines: Scouting Real Salt Lake 🔎
Behind Enemy Lines: Scouting Real Salt Lake 🔎
Can FC Dallas pull an upset on the road to stay in the playoff hunt?
After a weekend off, FC Dallas will return to the field this week for a midweek road match against Real Salt Lake on Wednesday night.
RSL played last night in league play against the Houston Dynamo and came away with a blowout loss on the road, losing 4-1. Their lone goal in the match was also an own goal. RSL will look to rebound when they host Dallas. Let’s dive into our midweek opposition with our scouting report.
Key Player: Anderson Julio
With Cristian Arango suspended with a yellow card accumulation after RSL’s loss to Houston, Julio is going to have to pick up the slack a bit and help add to his seven goals on the season.
Key Matchup: Diogo Gonçalves vs Asier Illarramendi
RSL made a big summer splash to get Gonçalves from FC Copenhagen. He’s looked decent in a few matches for his new side but has yet to really connect with Arango. If Illarramendi can limit his time on the ball in the attacking third, it could help go a long way in helping secure points for FC Dallas.
Availability Report1:
Suspended: Cristian Arango, Alex Katranis
Out: Kevin Bonilla (knee), Pablo Ruiz (knee)
Questionable: Nelson Palacio (knee), Brayan Vera (neck)
On Loan: Jude Welling, Rubio Ruben, Ilijah Paul, Matthew Bell, Delentz Pierre, Kevon Lambert, Bertin Jacquesson
International duty: none
Quick Notes:
Previous meeting with Dallas: After going down by three goals early in the second half, RSL came from behind to pick up a valuable road draw.
Last year at home against Dallas: Dallas picked up two straight wins over RSL last season, including a 3-1 win in Utah.
Recent form: After Saturday’s loss to Houston, RSL has one win in their last six games dating back to early July. Like FC Dallas, RSL also stumbled out of the Leagues Cup tournament in the group stage.
Potential Lineup:
Head coach Pablo Mastroeni has mostly used a 4-2-3-1 look this season that targets teams along the wings. He will have to make some changes with Katranis and Arango unavailable.
Beavers; Brown, Glad, Vera, Brody; Oieda, Eneli; Brooks, Gonçalves, Luna; Julio
Keys To Three Points over RSL
Play with more passion: The last road match in Vancouver showed a much more passive FC Dallas squad that looked like they were playing more for a draw than anything else. While they achieved a shutout on the road, they cannot continue to just play the bare minimum while they are in a playoff hunt. We need to see more aggression and passion on the field to push for a playoff spot.
Play to the counter: We saw from the first RSL game this season that chances will be there on the counter attack if FC Dallas is willing to take them. If the width can be used on the field with Ruan, Sam Junqua or Paul Arriola, it could go a long way in pulling RSL out defensively from their natural defensive block, too.
Keep feeding Musa: Just like with the first point on aggressive and passion, FC Dallas has to continue to find ways to get Petar Musa involved and active from the jump in this one. The club will always look better when they find ways to have him involved early in a match.
Note: Major League Soccer has introduced a new injury report deadline that will be effective the day before each game.