Waibel calls out RSL veterans after 4-0 loss

Real Salt Lake’s recent plummet in form has had plenty of effects, but GM Craig Waibel calling out his team’s veterans was not something we expected to see.

But in an interview broadcast on Monday on ESPN700 during the club’s OnFrame podcast, Waibel did just that,

“On the weekend, we saw veterans not grasp (leadership), not take control of that lineup that’s on the field,” he said. “What we saw on the weekend was obviously a New England team that was very good in the first half at finishing their chances ... but at the same time, we donated those chances. When the leadership didn’t follow through and help those young kids believe in themselves, we got lost. There’s always learning to do.”

The bottom line is, when a team is struggling, every player’s ready to walk into the office. when you get your chance, you better live up to your own words.

“You told me you wanted a chance ... you got the chance, and you didn’t take it, and you didn’t show me what you said you were.”

That’s when you get disappointed and frustrated.

Recently, we’ve seen some guys step up, but we haven’t seen the entire group step up as a whole. Some of those performances were first-time performances, and some of them weren’t.

What I won’t get too far into is where my concerns really lie in the weekend, but I can promise you it’s not on guys getting their first match.

One of Waibel’s final offerings on the night was perhaps the most damning.

“The first thing we need to see is we need to see the veterans be veterans,” he said. “Veterans have to be leaders, and part of their value is what they do (on the field), and part of their value is how they lead.”