When he came in ... it was in my mind. That guy’s gonna score now? – Real Salt Lake midfielder Javier Morales
SANDY — On a night Real Salt Lake celebrated several firsts, Alvaro Saborio delivered one of the most memorable moments in stadium history — an occasion that perhaps only a cup final goal could trump.
In fact, chants of “Saborio, Saborio” can still be heard echoing throughout Rio Tinto Stadium.
With his first touch in 118 days, and less than 100 days since having surgery to repair a broken bone in his left foot, Saborio headed home the game-winner against FC Dallas just seconds after entering the match as a substitute in the 76th minute.
His seventh goal of the season secured a 2-1 victory over FC Dallas, which looked poised to perhaps steal a point after a second-half equalizer.
Luis Gil and Saborio both entered the match in the 76th minute as Javier Morales waited to take a corner kick. Saborio trotted on and with one touch changed the entire complexion of the rest of the 2014 season for RSL.
“When he came in ... it was in my mind, 'That guy’s gonna score now?'” said Morales, who said he did his best to put the ball in the spot he knows Saborio likes it.
Saborio’s header sailed just over Dallas 'keeper Raul Fernandez and under the crossbar, sending the sellout crowd of 20,545 into delirium. Saborio was grinning from ear to ear running at Morales, who said, “I was laughing, I couldn’t believe it.”
A tie would’ve realistically eliminated RSL from Supporters’ Shield conversation, but thanks to Saborio’s heroics there’s still hope — even though it appears slim.
With the victory, RSL improved to 46 points in the standings, one point behind D.C. United for third in the Shield race. Surging Los Angeles occupies second with 49 points followed by Seattle with 51 points — with both having a game in hand.
Real Salt Lake travels to Seattle next Friday, a massive match if there’s any hope of catching the Sounders.
“The Supporters’ Shield is going to happen by us taking care of business. We have a huge game coming up against Seattle. If we have a really good result up there we can really start putting us in the mix for that,” said Cassar. “But I really want to keep these guys focused on one game at a time and taking care of business and not trying to look too far ahead.”
Saborio’s moment three months in the making wasn’t the only thing to celebrate at Rio Tinto Stadium. Robbie Findley scored his first goal of the 2014 season while new Argentine striker Sebastian Jaime made his much-anticipated debut as a 67th-minute substitute.
RSL came out on the front foot early, and Findley finally capitalized on all that possession in the 31st minute.
In RSL’s disheartening 2-1 loss at Dallas two weeks ago, Cassar said Findley had an excellent opportunity to bury an early goal but took too many touches and didn’t get a shot off.
When a fortuitous bounce fell Findley’s way in the 31st minute Saturday night, this time he didn’t waste the opportunity. After defender Zach Loyd redirected a shot right in Findley’s path, he clinically slotted a shot past Dallas’ 'keeper from 10 yards out for the 1-0 lead.
Incredibly, the goal was the first of the season for Findley, who’s struggled with consistency and has only made five starts since returning from offseason knee surgery.
“He’s been sniffing around it now. This was arguably one of his best weeks of training, scoring a lot in practice, which is great,” said Cassar.
With Saborio coming back from injury and Jaime ready to make an impact, the timing of Findley’s first goal of the season was extremely important with playing time likely becoming more and more difficult in the coming weeks.
Two minutes before Findley’s moment, RSL defender Chris Wingert came up with the clutch defensive moment of the game. After a corner kick was redirected to the feet of Matt Hedges just 6 yards from goal, Wingert lunged in and blocked the shot, keeping the game scoreless.
Despite the 1-0 deficit, Dallas continued plodding away and bagged an equalizer in the 62nd minute on a Michel driven 25-yard free kick that left Nick Rimando flat-footed.
Five minutes later Cassar inserted Jaime into the match, and 14 minutes later Gil and Saborio trotted onto the field — all to provide a much-needed spark.
“We felt it was something that needed to be done, especially at that time of the game, especially for our fans. It brought an energy to the stadium, a buzz and got everyone back into the game after they scored their goal,” said Cassar.