This one is a little bit on me. We were playing great before the penalty. If we score the goal, maybe we continue to play that way and win the game. – Javier Morales
FRISCO, Texas — Real Salt Lake may have put the final nail in its own coffin with a frustrating performance at FC Dallas.
RSL missed a penalty kick and collected four yellow cards en route to a 2-0 loss to FC Dallas. The defeat, coupled with a Colorado Rapids win over Sporting K.C., dropped RSL to last place in the Western Conference with just 32 points.
“It was choppy game,” said coach Jeff Cassar. “Obviously there was I-don’t-know-how-many yellow cards in this game. There was a lot of stoppage. But it was a game of momentum.”
Following a scoreless first half, Dallas scored the first goal on a penalty kick by Tesho Akindele in the 51st minute following a foul in the box by RSL’s Demar Phillips.
After controlling play for much of the second half, Real Salt Lake picked up a penalty of its own in the 78th minute after newly acquired designated player Juan Manuel Martinez drew a foul. But as Javier Morales approached the ball, he hesitated before firing right and hit the post. The rebound was launched into the crowd and the chance was over.
One minute later, Dallas created an opportunity of its own as Fabian Castillo was left open on the right side, placing a shot past RSL keeper Nick Rimando to give FC Dallas a 2-0 lead. RSL couldn’t recover from the deflating goal.
Morales put blame on himself following the loss.
“This one is a little bit on me,” Morales said. “We were playing great before the penalty. If we score the goal, maybe we continue to play that way and win the game.”
Casser felt the missed penalty’s effect on his team.
“Obviously we missed the PK and that takes a little bit of steam out of the game,” Cassar said. “But I liked the guys' response, and on a different night we come out of here with a result and maybe even three points.”
RSL has now lost its last nine games on the road with only one win away from Rio Tinto Stadium this season.
After a rough first half, Real Salt Lake was lucky to get to the break with a scoreless draw.
A first-minute shot from FC Dallas forward David Texeira set the tone and put RSL on its heels. Minutes later, a poor clearance gave Dallas another chance for Texeira that was saved by Rimando.
That triggered a long sequence in which misplays and poor clearances put FCD in prime scoring position. Dallas attempted five shots before hitting the nine-minute mark and finished the night with 21. Most chances were the result of defensive errors, but the group made up for it by getting in front of the ball before it could reach Rimando behind them on almost every occasion.
Kyle Beckerman picked up two blocks in succession during a sequence in the 33rd minute, and the team finished the first half with seven blocks on nine FCD attempts. RSL recorded 12 blocks total, a team record since MLS began tracking blocks five years ago.
Momentum turned for Salt Lake after the break. Martinez made his MLS debut in the 65th minute as a substitute, immediately raising the energy on a hot night.
Chances began to flow, eventually resulting in the penalty drawn by the newcomer, but the sequence that followed was too much to overcome.
RSL now faces an even tougher path to the postseason with just seven matches to play, but the team is still confident.
“It doesn’t make it easier,” Cassar said of Saturday’s loss. “We can only control what we can control. Obviously we’re going to have to get points and we’re going to have to get points on the road and points at home.”
Beckerman believes they need five wins in the final seven games to make the postseason.
“We can still do that,” Beckerman said. “We just have to get back to work and give it our best the next game and see if we can get a win there and work on the next one after that. But nothing’s changed. We’ve got to keep working harder and keep trying to get better.”