SANDY, UTAH -- Yura Movsisyan owes Mike Petke an “I told you so.”
After a month of spotty playing time, Movsisyan netted the game-winner for Real Salt Lake in Saturday's 1-0 victory over Minnesota United FC.
“To his credit, in the conversation I had with Yura about not starting today, I told him there’s nothing more that I would want than for you to come off the bench and score and for you to come into the office the next day and tell me ‘Go you-know-what-yourself. I told you so.’ I would want nothing more,” Petke said.
“I hope he comes in tomorrow, slams the door, and tells me.”
Between midweek games and the once-depleted roster now (mostly) recovered from injury and international absences, Yura wasn’t starting as often as expected. He has come off the bench in four of his past seven appearances and has twice been subbed at half in his three starts.
Petke’s hope is that the RSL striker can find his form and force himself into the starting XI.
Salt Lake found 28 ways not to score on their other shots, but Movsisyan was in the right place at the right time when the ball squirted away from Minnesota keeper Bobby Shuttleworth.
There was some confusion on the field, and even Petke didn’t see the goal -- thinking a foul had been called and wanting to tell the fourth official his thoughts.
Having watched his team’s other 28 attempts at goal, Petke thought the Movsisyan game winner was a golden ticket for three points on Saturday.
“Kind of like Willy Wonka, you go out and buy 100,000 candy bars, no wrapper, and you casually buy one when you think all the tickets are found, and lo and behold, there’s one there,” Petke said. “We had countless opportunities. You start thinking alright here we go. We’re not bleeding goals, but we were finding ways not to score, and then the unlikeliest goal has it.”
The goal is Movsisyan’s team-leading fifth of the year and his first since a penalty kick against Colorado in April.
The result, though, didn’t change Petke’s thinking about his lineup selection and substitutions on the night.
“It doesn’t justify anything," Petke said. "It doesn’t mean anything. We’re all very happy for him,”
