Another stellar defensive effort by Real Salt Lake helped the Western Conference leaders earn a road point out of a 0-0 draw against the Chicago Fire in front of 19,578 fans tonight at Toyota Park. RSL GK Nick Rimando made two big saves in the second half to preserve his MLS-best seventh clean sheet of the season, which also marked the Utah side's sixth shutout in its last eight League matches.
With the three other MLS results today ending in draws, Real Salt Lake maintained its lead atop the West standings, now sitting a single point above the LA Galaxy. Real Salt Lake will have the week off from MLS play, next returning to action this Wednesday, July 23, in an international exhibition against Costa Rican powerhouse Deportivo Saprissa. Kick-off at Rice-Eccles Stadium is set for 8:00 p.m. for the annual Pioneer Day event, with a fireworks show set to follow 15 minutes after the contest.
For the full MLSnet.com recap of tonight's contest, click here.
Real Salt Lake (6-6-6) vs. Chicago Fire (7-5-4)
July 19, 2008 -- Toyota Park
Scoring Summary:
None
Real Salt Lake -- Nick Rimando, Chris Wingert, Nat Borchers, Jamison Olave, Ian Joy, Andy Williams (Tony Beltran 89), Dema Kovalenko, Javier Morales, Kyle Beckerman, Yura Movsisyan (Kenny Deuchar 67), Tino Nunez (Robbie Findley 46).
Substitutes Not Used: Kenny Cutler, Matias Mantilla, Alex Nimo, Chris Seitz
Chicago Fire -- Jon Busch, Brandon Prideaux, Wilman Conde, Bakary Soumare, Daniel Woolard, Logan Pause, Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Stephen King (Mike Banner 62), Justin Mapp, Chris Rolfe (Patrick Nyarko 85), Chad Barrett (Tomasz Frankowski 74).
Substitutes Not Used: C.J. Brown, Diego Gutierrez, Peter Lowry, Nick Noble
Chicago Fire |
Real Salt Lake |
|
|---|---|---|
total shots: |
12 (Chad Barrett 3, Justin Mapp 3) |
11 (Yura Movsisyan 3) |
shots on goal: |
2 (Justin Mapp 2) |
2 (Yura Movsisyan 1, Robbie Findley 1) |
fouls: |
8 (Wilman Conde 2, Brandon Prideaux 2) |
11 (Dema Kovalenko 4) |
offsides: |
1 (Chris Rolfe 1) |
3 (3 tied with 1) |
corner kicks: |
14 (Cuauhtemoc Blanco 8) |
6 (Javier Morales 6) |
saves: |
2 (Jon Busch 2) |
2 (Nick Rimando 2) |
Misconduct Summary:
CHI -- Brandon Prideaux (caution; Professional Foul) 56
RSL -- Ian Joy (caution; Persistent Infringement) 60
RSL -- Dema Kovalenko (caution; Persistent Infringement) 75
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referee's Assistants: Greg Barkey; Nate Clement
4th official: Michael Kennedy
Time of game: 1:51
Attendance: 19,578
Weather: Partly Cloudy -and- 79 degrees
All statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
Chicago Head Coach Denis Hamlett
On the game being a must-win:
"It was disappointing. It's starting to get old that we're creating some good looks and we don't get a goal but we'll take the point and continue to be positive and work for it. We wanted 6 points out of these two games and we got 4 so you move on.
On the problems with the team's play:
I don't think its hesitance. Chad had a good look and he took it at the post. Rolfe got by but on that one he shot early and we maybe felt he could've taken another touch. It's just having the composure in the final third, not pressing as much. You have to make that play and you sometimes have more time than you think.
On CJ Brown's red card:
As he was walking by he apologized for getting kicked out but I didn't know why he was thrown out.
On the play of Jon Busch:
The guy's an All-star. He's been doing it since day one for us this season. Tonight he made some big saves, we're very happy with him.
Fire Goalkeeper Jon Busch
On the match:
The first half I think we came out pretty slow but we have to give credit to Real Salt Lake's defense. In the second half we got into a rhythm, but when the opportunity came we didn't get the goal that we needed.
Fire Midfielder Cuauhtémoc Blanco
On the match:
It was very difficult game. We wished we could have connected on a couple but we didn't. We just have to keep working and we need to win at home for our fans.
Real Salt Lake Head Coach Jason Kreis
On the last 15 minutes:
"We definitely had to sweat it out. Mapp was outstanding, but we played hard and deservedly got a point".
Real Salt Lake Midfielder Dema Kovalenko
On the tie:
"We didn't come here to tie the game, we came here to win, but we're happy with the draw".
