REAL SALT LAKE
Justin Meram Header Gives RSL Two-Goal Advantage Over Rival
SANDY, Utah – Real Salt Lake forward Justin Meram had a perfectly timed header to give RSL a 2-0 lead over Rocky Mountain rival Colorado on Saturday.
The goal for Justin Meram came in the 51st minute when RSL had a great free kick opportunity. Pablo Ruiz fired the ball in but it hit the top bar of the goal. The Colorado goalkeeper thought the ball was going to hit the top corner, which left the front of the goal open. After the ball deflected off the top bar, Meram got his head on the ball and into the back of the net.
It’s Meram’s third goal this season, which is tied with Jefferson Savarino, Bobby Wood, Justen Glad and Sergio Cordova for the most on the team. Savarino scored the first goal of the match in the third minute of stoppage time in the first half.
Remember when they said they were "the true side of the Rocky Mountains" pic.twitter.com/WgzaPTsklo
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) July 10, 2022
Real Salt Lake currently finds itself in the third position in the Western Conference and five points shy of second-place Austin F.C. While Colorado sits in the 12th position just two points clear of the bottom of the conference.
Since losing in the final minute to Vancouver on June 4, Real Salt Lake has failed to string performances together. After the Vancouver loss, Real Salt Lake beat San Jose before struggling at home the following week against Columbus. Last week’s 3-2 loss on the road against Minnesota added pressure onto manager Pablo Mastroeni for a bounce-back result this weekend against Colorado.
The disappointing four-game stretch has the playing group and the coaching staff on edge entering the final clash between Real Salt Lake and Colorado this year. On April 2nd, RSL and Colorado played to a 1-1 draw in suburban Denver after a Pablo Ruiz penalty was canceled by a Lalas Abubakar equalizer.
As always, the clash between Real Salt Lake and Colorado is expected to be a fiery affair. Both teams are in desperate need of a result.
Manager Pablo Mastroeni, who played for Colorado for 11 seasons before coaching them for three and a half years, enters this week’s fixture with an added emotional attachment to the game. In 2021, Mastroeni’s number 25 was retired by the Rapids, becoming the first number to ever be retired by the organization.
