Kansas City Wizards » Real Salt Lake

A win is badly needed

travis — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 13:57:25 +0000

Back at the CAB this weekend, with a winnable game on the schedule. Real Salt Lake is coming to KC, bringing their not-so-impressive road record of 1-5 into this game. What’s misleading about is the fact that RSL hasn’t lost in five games – including a 0-0 draw three weeks ago against KC. And while the Wizards haven’t won in the league in what seems like forever (last win on April 20), there will be no better time than this. Real has struggled on the road, conceding plenty of goals while only mustering four. Robbie Findley (fact that I didn’t know – Findley has a cap with the USMNT) and Javier Morales have raised their level of play in the past few weeks, while Kyle Beckerman has maintained his workman-like play in the midfield. As bad as they have been, they are a team that cannot be overlooked.

For the Wizards, the defensive side of the ball has been pretty consistent – while showing their youth sometimes, veterans Jimmy Conrad and Kevin Hartman have done well to lead the team to five shutouts. The focus is on the strikers. Claudio Lopez and Ivan Trujillo, two players signed during the offseason with as much hype as you can get for the Wizards have been quiet, with just four goals amongst them – three of which belong to El Piojo. It’s a bad indicator when one of your central defenders (Conrad) is tied for the team lead in goals. Earth to Scott Sealy, where are you?

If the Wizards can’t get three points this week, it’s going to raise some eyebrows. Yes Salt Lake is on a bit of a run, but away from home they seem to be out of their element. Playing on a real grass surface instead of the horrid turf of Rice Eccles throws them off a bit. They did beat Chivas a couple of weeks ago for their first win on the road, but I’m expecting the Wizards to really but some pressure on Nick Rimando today. Things are getting so desperate Josh Wolff may be brought back into the fold. Is he the answer to their scoring woes?

As far as predictions go, KC shutout Real just three weeks ago at Rice Eccles. They should be primed to pull that off ago, but this time I can see Lopez stepping up to the challenge and bringing the Wizards a much needed 1-0 win.

In case you’re in the area, Selena Gomez, star of “Wizards of Waverly Place” is making an appearance at the stadium. Not sure why it’s relevant, but I guess they are really appealing to the soccer mom crowd. What’s peculiar about it is that I have no idea who she is. And it would be funny to see how her appearance will mesh with the soccer die-hards.

Fallin’ into last place

travis — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 09:56:02 +0000

Thank goodness that’s over. Six straight games on the road, and at the very end of it, we’re in last place. The draw combined with DC’s surprising win over the Fire, and it’s down into seventh for us. Still early in the season, but that isn’t much of an excuse anymore. More thoughts tomorrow after I’ve watched the game.

Wizards-Real Salt Lake preview

travis — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:56:30 +0000

Finally, the end is in sight. After today’s game, the Wizards will get to return to the confines of the CAB next weekend. They haven’t played at home since April 12th. What’s worse is they’ve failed to win since April 12th at Chicago. While RSL hasn’t been the most dominant side so far, they’ve yet to lose at Rice Eccles Stadium on their lovely astroturf.

It’s vital to get some points today. With the way things are going in the East, any more points dropped would mean falling further off the pace. The only team that KC sits in front of at the moment is the struggling DC United. A win today would only keep them one point behind New York. Falling four points behind New York would make catching up much more difficult.

There’s bad news today with playmaker Carlos Marinelli listed as doubtful. A shame that the player with the ability to pull strings in the midfield can’t get out. It’s especially critical for late season success, as Carlos and Claudio have showed flashes of excellent play together. Lance Watson (who has yet to play all season) and Roger Espinoza will also miss today’s game through ankle injuries. Espinoza has yet to feature after red card against Columbus. Hopefully he can get himself back on track once he returns from injury.

Winning today would be huge. As I’ve noted before, the playoffs remain far out of reach right now – although there is still a lot of soccer to play this year. I’m picking Real to score one and maintain their impressive home record. Hopefully, a return to the CAB next weekend will spark a turn around. Or a win today would be even better.