Real Salt Lake To Host Minnesota United In Midweek Clash

SALT LAKE CITY – Real Salt Lake returns home to host Minnesota United in a midweek fixture that will likely have serious playoff implications.

As it currently stands, RSL only has seven league fixtures remaining. Of those seven, two will be played against Eastern Conference teams and the remaining five Western Conference fixtures will occur against teams either above them in the standings or right below them.

Essentially, every game moving forward against a Western Conference opponent will likely act as a playoff game.

It all starts on Wednesday evening when Minnesota United is welcomed to Rio Tinto Stadium. Minnesota currently sits five points clear of Real Salt Lake in the third position in the West. A win against The Loons will greatly aid RSL in their quest to solidify a home playoff fixture.

Nevertheless, both Minnesota United and RSL will enter the midweek affair with very little rest having both played three days ago. United prevailed 2-1 at home against Houston Dynamo following an 84th-minute winner by Luis Amarilla while RSL settled for a 1-1 draw on the road against FC Dallas despite dominating the second half of the fixture.

The boys return home for Kick Childhood Cancer night. #RSLvMIN | #RSL

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 30, 2022

“Everything looked really bright today,” Mastroeni told KSL Sports following training on Tuesday. “We will do our final checks afterward when they come in to make sure everyone is good to go but the session looked really bright.”

It appears as though that RSL is not dealing with any injury concerns following the fixture in the humidity of Texas. However, with another road test looming at Banc of California Stadium this upcoming Sunday it remains unknown if manager Pablo Mastroeni will opt to utilize new faces against Minnesota.

The game plan for RSL is reasonably simple on paper but incredibly difficult to execute. Stop Emanuel Reynoso, was the message from Mastroeni following training on Tuesday morning.

“He [Reynoso] is the key. Even talking to Adrian [Heath] and he was like how he goes, we go,” Mastroeni said. “That is evident given how influential he has been in every goal, every assist that Minnesota has created. So for us, it is really neutralizing him, their outside backs like to get high much like we do, at times they are susceptible on the counter but really for us I think it is about doing what we have been doing which is making the field big creating overloads in the wide areas and then making good decisions in the final third.”

Match Info

Real Salt Lake and Minnesota United will kick off at 7:30 p.m. from Rio Tinto Stadium on Wednesday, August 31.

It will be available to stream for free via the KSL Sports and KSL 5 TV apps or on KSL Sports dot com.

The club is encouraging fans to bring a teddy bear with them into the stadium. The evening will be dedicated to “Kick Childhood Cancer” and if RSL scores in the first half fans are encouraged to throw teddy bears onto the pitch. If RSL does not score in the opening half, fans will be encouraged to throw the teddy bears onto the pitch at the half-time whistle.

The teddy bears will then be donated to local charities fighting to end childhood cancer.

If the club is fined for its stunt by the league, the ownership group has vowed to match the fine with a donation towards 5 For The Fight charity.

In honor of our Kick Childhood Cancer match tomorrow Tate and Justen visited our KCC Kid Captain, Cullen and other patients at the children's hospital 💛

Thanks for letting us visit!

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 30, 2022