Today was draw day for the CONCACAF Champions League and I believe Real Salt Lake has a draw that will allow them a fairly easy path (OK as easy as we could have hoped for) to the finals.
Here is the official information from CONCACAF:
Quarterfinal 1: Deportivo Toluca (Mex) vs. CF Monterrey (Mex)
Quarterfinal 2: CDSC Cruz Azul (Mex) vs. Santos Laguna (Mex)
Quarterfinal 3: Columbus Crew (USA) vs. Real Salt Lake (USA)
Quarterfinal 4: Deportivo Saprissa (CR) vs. CD Olimpia (HOU)
Quarterfinal Dates 1st Leg- Feb 22-24 2nd Leg- March 1-3
Semifinal 1: Real Salt Lake/ Columbus Crew vs. CD Olimpia/ Deportivo Saprissa
Semifinal 2: CF Monterrey/ Deportivo Toluca vs. Santos Laguna/ Cruz Azul
Semifinal Dates 1st Leg- March 15-17 2nd Leg- April 5-7
Finals: Winner of Semifinal 2 vs. Winner of Semifinal 1
Final dates 1st Leg- April 19-21 2nd Leg April 26-28
So we know that a team from MLS will make it to the Semifinals, we know that only one team from Mexico will be in the final, and we know that the odds of all 4 Mexican teams being drawn into the same bracket is almost impossible without human intervention.
All of this works out to provide Real Salt Lake with a real path to the CCL finals, we know that in a home and away that we can match up well against any of the teams we are going to face on our way to claiming the trophy.
OFF MY SOAPBOX