With a chance to reclaim the top spot in the Eastern Conference, after losing it to D.C. United last week in a 2-1 loss at RFK Stadium, the Kansas City Wizards couldn't close out a result Saturday against Real Salt Lake on the road at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
"We're in a result kind of business, but we've got to look beyond that," said Kansas City head coach Bob Gansler.
The Wizards arrived in Salt Lake with a 2-2 record on the road, the league's best. For most of the game it looked as though the boys in blue would improve upon that record, hanging on to a one-goal lead after an early goal from Generation adidas player Ryan Pore, filling in for the absent Josh Wolff and Eddie Johnson, away with the U.S. national team preparing for the World Cup.
Although it felt great to get his first goal of the year, the second-year professional out of the University of Tulsa felt that the Wizards breakdown began with front line, who lacked in creating scoring opportunities.
"I don't think we created as many chances as we needed to, especially in the second half," said Pore. "We put the pressure on them in the first half, and in the second half we kind of let them off. I think that was the turning point in the game."
Lack of goal-scoring production is something that Gansler has been concerned with for several games now.
"The last six games in a row we've scored only one goal, regardless of Ryan Pore or a national team player," said Gansler.
The Wizards coach, along with most of the team, felt that it was a game of two halves. Although the first half went well something happened at the intermission that set the wrong tone.
"I thought the first half, our quality was fine," said Gansler. "In the second half, I thought we came out in a sloppy manner and set a lesser tone for ourselves."
The sloppiness couldn't have been more evident then a reckless Nick Garcia foul on Mehdi Ballouchy less than a minute into the half, resulting in a yellow card caution for Garcia.
Veteran midfielder Sasha Victorine saw the deterimental change in his team during the second half.
"In the second half we didn't bring the energy and the intelligence," said Victorine. "It was probably the worst half we played all year.
"I think it was a lack of attitude - desire."
Garcia agreed that it was attitude that resulted in Kansas City's third loss on the year. It was a problem that couldn't be pinned on any single player, but a team-wide let down.
"We lost the game," said Garcia. "It wasn't one individual or two individuals; we had the game well within our grasp and we let it slip."
Scott McAllister is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
