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Sebastian “Bofo” Saucedo had a good season with marked improvement over his past years as a professional.
The Real Salt Lake Academy product from Park City doubled his minutes this season over 2017. Each year he’s been with RSL he’s progressed: in 2015 he played a total of 168 minutes for the first team (no goals, no assists), after his loan to Veracruz he returned for the 2017 season and upped his minutes to 573, but still no goals or assists. That’s what makes 2018 such a highlight – he scored 3 goals, had 5 assists, and played over a thousand minutes.
Bofo played on the wing and is a part of the Real’s expanding homegrown contingent that includes Glad, Baird, Lennon, Acosta, Herrera, and others. The understanding between those players is obvious when they’re on the field together. Saucedo is yet another example of RSL’s successful youth movement, but the player wants more:
Sebastian Saucedo shares this thoughts on the front office potentially bringing in new players in the offseason and his struggles to stay patient. #RSL pic.twitter.com/jGbgqkINld
— Alex Vejar (@AlexVReporting) November 17, 2018
Bofo expressed some frustration that young players aren’t seeing more time or may lose minutes to new signings in the upcoming season. That’s the kind of hunger you want to see from a young player, however RSL was tied for most minutes given to homegrown players in 2018. One of his biggest strengths is that hunger. He works hard on the field and stays after practice to work on his shooting. He’s not a perfect player, but he’s putting in the effort to get there.
A realistic ideal 2019 for Saucedo would be more minutes and vying for a starting spot. There have been rumors (which have persisted for years) that Plata could go to Liga MX. If that’s the case, it would be a perfect opportunity for Sebastian to step into the role of a full-time starter. That being said, the wings are a bit overcrowded. Rusnak often plays on the wing for his national team. The long-injured Jordan Allen is fully healthy, although RSL general manager Craig Waibel said there are no expectations for him this season at this point. Brooks Lennon could be moved back to the wing with the return of Tony Beltran. There could be a lot of movement, and it’s unclear where Bofo will land in all of that.