Match Preview: Absences put RSL, Seattle in precarious positions

Who's out

Sometimes, I worry that my match reports are little more than lists of players who, for one reason or another, are out of contention. This, I suppose, is one of those days. But the list isn't so bad, really:

Luis Gil is 100 percent definitely out, as he's currently in Turkey for the U-20 World Cup. He scored a screamer of a goal yesterday while there, too. Like, a fantastic one.

Chris Schuler is out with foot issues; we should know in a couple of weeks whether he'll be able to heal up quickly or not. Let's hope so.

Kwame Watson-Siriboe is out, too, as he's out for the rest of the season with an ACL/miniscus tear and rupture. Big blow, that.

Who's in

Alvaro Saborio should be available, though I suspect I'd be surprised to see him from the outset, what with his only just coming back from international duty with Costa Rica and having gone there injured.

Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman should both be available, despite having just come back from international duty as well. Of course, they didn't play, so there's that.

Carlos Salcedo, as a result, will likely step into the back line after recovering from a throat infection. Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune wrote about the academy graduate getting minutes - some good quotes in this one. http://m.sltrib.com/sltrib/mobile3/56495006-219/rsl-salcedo-carlos-team.html.csp

Predicted Lineup

Rimando; Beltran, Borchers, Salcedo, Wingert; Beckerman, Grabavoy, Velasquez, Morales; Findley, Plata

The enemy: Seattle Sounders

Let's just put it this way: They'll be missing Osvaldo Alonso, the guy that really makes their midfield work. That won't help them. It also won't make things easy for us. In fact, Sounder at Heart wrote about that very issue. http://www.sounderatheart.com/2013/6/21/4454022/osvaldo-alonso-injury-update-real-salt-lake-sounders

What must be done

In order to capture the win tonight, we'll have to maintain our attacking verve as usual, but we'll also need to be aware of counterattacking Seattle options. I mean, yeah, they've been a little more poor throughout the season than we might have expected, but they've picked things up well - that attacking play is part of it. We'll have to maintain a bit of caution - but balance is, as ever, key. What will be particularly interesting is to see Salcedo's response - we will, it would seem, be relying on him for a bit.