It would be easy for Real Salt Lake to second guess how they executed their game plan after the latest road loss, a 1-0 setback Saturday to Toronto FC.
Should RSL have pressed and attacked more in the first half to establish a tempo that was more favorable to their playing style? Did opting for a conservative approach early take the club out of its offensive flow?
But there is little head-scratching going on with the RSL side this week. Instead, they hope to build on the positives against Toronto.
Specifically, a strong second-half defensive effort which set up plenty of chances for the offense to do its job and laid some groundwork for a potential tie.
"When we went at them in the second half, it seemed like we played better and defended better," goalkeeper Nick Rimando said. "We got some opportunities and going into D.C. that's what we're going to need. We're going to need more opportunities to win the game."
It still wasn't nearly enough to make up for an awful first half. RSL did not record a single shot through the game's first 45 minutes while the team mostly stayed in its half and bunkered down for a TFC onslaught that never came.
The Reds didn't do much with their possession advantage -- scoring only on Laurent Robert's direct free kick in the 31st minute.
Even with that goal by Robert, RSL coach Jason Kreis said it wasn't so much a result of what the Reds did right as much as what RSL did wrong.
A foul at the top of the box by Matias Mantilla set up the kick. Robert had to angle the kick past an eight-man wall, but threaded the ball into the net anyway after it bounced off the leg of defender Ian Joy.
"It's important that you figure out how the free kick happened," Kreis said. "Not so important that you look at the free kick, because that's something (where) the ball just bounces weird. If it doesn't hit Ian Joy's foot, it goes right into Nick Rimando's chest. You got to look at how that free kick happened and there was a few errors again."
That's not to say Kreis was displeased with his team's defensive effort. Aside from that one hiccup in the 31st minute, he felt like the Reds could not do much against RSL on either side of the field. And in the second half, he felt like the team's staunch defense led to scoring chances on Toronto's side of the field.
"We've got a really good understanding of how we want to defend as a team," Kreis said. "Again, it's not about the two center backs, or the back four, or the back four plus one. It's about the effort the entire team puts forth defensively."
Kreis tinkered with his formation to inject some adrenline into his second-half offense. He brought on midfielder Andy Williams for Joy during the 63rd minute -- going with a 3-5-2 formation.
RSL immediately got a pair of good scoring chances, but neither materialized into goals. Kenny Deuchar could not push a header past TFC goalkeeper Greg Sutton and Dema Kovalenko sent a volley wide of frame.
Ultimately, RSL outshot the Reds 8-4 in the second half and felt good about the way it attacked even if there was nothing to show for it on the scoreboard.
"We responded well," midfielder Kyle Beckerman said. "We didn't get the goal, but we responded well. We showed some good soccer which we can do. If we can just do that right from the start, we'll be all right."
Beckerman admits he and his teammates initally felt disappointed they didn't leave Canada with at least one point. But a loss might prove better for the team than a tie in the long run. Beckerman said ties might feel better than losses, but one point is not an effective substitute for three points.
"We need wins," Beckerman said. "Ties aren't going to get you very far. It would have felt nice not to lose, and (we) felt like we deserved a tie, but we need wins here. Those are what's going to get us going."
John Coon is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
