Real Salt Lake vs. Minnesota United FC | 2017 MLS Match Preview

Matthew Doyle

Real Salt Lake vs. Minnesota United FC
2017 MLS Regular Season - Week 16
Rio Tinto Stadium - Sandy, Utah
Saturday, June 17 – 10 pm ET
WATCH: MLS LIVE

Two teams lingering below the red line in the Western Conference badly need to start picking up points as soon as possible. For Real Salt Lake, that means protecting their home turf. For Minnesota United, it means becoming road warriors – and perhaps picking up their first away win in MLS in the process.

Following a 4-1 loss against Sacramento in a midweek US Open Cup trip to California, the Claret-and-Cobalt return home looking to reverse a slide that saw head coach Mike Petke give one of the quotes of the season two weeks ago.

"They are going to be fighting like dogs for positions because it's not good enough," Petke said after back-to-back humiliations in Texas.

The Loons, meanwhile, have achieved respectability but not yet consistency, and are now mired in a 2-4-0 run over their last six games. That includes a 3-0 loss at Sporting KC in their most recent league outing, followed by a 4-0 loss in a second straight trip to KC for Wednesday's Open Cup encounter.

MNUFC have picked up just two away points all year, and have been outscored 22-9 on the road.

The good news for the Loons? Their best performance of the season came against RSL in a 4-2 win back in April, the club's first MLS victory.

Real Salt Lake

Petke's outburst came after a 6-2 loss at FC Dallas two weeks back, which came just three days after a 5-1 loss at Houston. Texas has never been kind to RSL, but the 11-3 aggregate score across two games send the coach around the bend.

"I've never been through something like this," Petke said. "It's blowing my mind."

He also hinted at major lineup changes, and it's a fair bet that at least two veterans of the recently completed US U-20 run to the quarterfinals of the Under-20 World Cup – center back Justen Glad and winger Brooks Lennon – will find themselves in the starting lineup. Left back Danilo Acosta could as well, and other lineup changes are almost guaranteed given how comprehensive the defensive dysfunction was the last time out for this team.

If Glad does play, it'll be his first MLS minutes of the year. Midfielder Jordan Allen, who entered the year as a starter and is just now getting fit after an injury, could also play for the first time in months.

The bigger questions may be surrounding DPs Joao Plata and Yura Movsisyan, both of whom have drastically underachieved this season. Petke has a glut of young wingers to choose from in Plata's stead should he wish it, and while there's less depth at center forward, Movsisyan's subpar fitness entering the season and injuries since then have made him something less than a lock as the starting center forward.

Suspended:None
International duty: Albert Rusnak (Slovakia U-21s)
Injury Report: OUT: F - Chad Barrett (knee surgery, 4-6 months); D - David Horst (knee surgery, 6-8 weeks); QUESTIONABLE: M - Jordan Allen (right quad strain) QUESTIONABLE: D - Demar Phillips (hamstring injury)

Projected Starting XI (4-2-3-1, left to right): Nick Rimando – Danilo Acosta, Justen Glad, Aaron Maund, Tony Beltran — Kyle Beckerman, Sunday Stephen — Jeferson Savarino, Luke Mulholland, Brooks Lennon – Yura Movsisyan

Notes: RSL are dead last in MLS at 0.88 points per game, and are the only team under 1.0 PPG. The last time they finished a season under 1.0 PPG was back in 2007, when they collected 27 points in 30 games, finishing dead last in the West.

Minnesota United FC

The Loons have not been as adrift recently as their foes on Saturday, but things haven't been great. They've proved to be paper-thin thanks to some ill-advised offseason signings, and now with injuries and away dates both mounting, it feels like this is a team on the verge of a rapid decline in their fortunes.

Getting their regulars healthy again will help, of course, and the weekend off will have gone a long way in that regard. Getting their internationals back will also be a huge boost, especially since both Kevin Molino and Francisco Calvo netted for their respective countries this weekend (against one another, coincidentally).

Still, a road win is a big ask for a team with so many question marks outside their starting XI. Local beat writers out in the Twin Cities have suggested that the team's braintrust are planning a number of moves when the summer transfer window opens in a few weeks, and so many of the players on the current roster will be – to borrow a line from Petke – fighting like dogs for their jobs.

Suspended:None
International duty:None
Injury Report: OUT: M - Bernardo Anor (left lower leg injury); M/D - Thomas de Villardi (left Achilles injury); D - Vadim Demidov (left knee injury)

Projected Starting XI (4-4-2, left to right): Bobby Shuttleworth – Marc Burch, Francisco Calvo, Brent Kallman, Jerome Thiesson – Miguel Ibarra, Ibson, Sam Cronin, Kevin Molino – Abu Danladi, Christian Ramirez

Notes: With eight non-PK goals, Ramirez is in a three-way tie for second in MLS in that category.