Kreilach, Herrera show versatility in 3-1 win over Vancouver Whitecaps

Very rarely do we see Real Salt Lake on the right side of a late-game winning goal. Even more rarely do we see that late-game goal turn into two and a 3-1 win instead of a 1-1 draw or 2-1 loss. Tonight, though, was the night.

There were a lot of standout performances in this match. Anderson Julio played a solid 68 minutes with two shots, one on target. Rubio Rubin played 89 minutes with a shot on target of his own. But the player who stood out in this one: the brace-scorer Damir Kreilach.

Kreilach had the two goals on the night, sure. And they were beautiful, particularly the opener with the stunning no-look assist from Albert Rusnak.

But what Kreilach had wasn’t just a 100% success rate on his shots by going two for two, but he showed the hard work you ask for from your midfield. He wasn't just heavily involved in the attack but was clean defensively as well.

We saw a handful of defensive errors in this one, particularly right out of the halftime break. RSL nearly conceded twice in the opening ten minutes of the second half. But Kreilach kept a level head and helped get Salt Lake back into their game plan. And it may have taken until stoppage time, but ultimately Kreilach’s leadership once again helped his team to a win.

Another honorable mention here is Aaron Herrera. I feel like a lot of times, he just silently plays good, clean games. He didn’t play a perfect match, but he was and is consistent on the backline.

His pairing with Glad is proving strong this season, and it’s a joy to see. Not to mention his assist on the Holt goal was the game-changer in this one. His involvement both offensively and defensively is key to the overall success of RSL right now.

Another honorable mention here goes to Holt, for his first ever MLS goal, too.