Real Salt Lake nearly stole a point Saturday night at Arrowhead Stadium before finally succumbing in a 3-2 loss to the Kansas City Wizards.
Real Salt Lake has only one draw in 10 MLS games away from home and are stuck on 13 points. Real Salt Lake also fell another point out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference as Colorado, with 18 points, drew with the MetroStars.
The Wizards seemed intent on scoring the fastest goal in Major League Soccer history. Preki dribbled up the middle of the field and passed to Chris Klein on his right. Klein sailed a cross to the far post and only Real Salt Lake defender Nelson Akwari's header over the goal line prevented Davy Arnaud from tapping the ball in for a goal just 11 seconds into the game.
The Wizards struck for the game's first goal in the eighth minute. Scott Sealy scored after defender Brian Roberts' shot from the right side of the penalty area beat D.J. Countess in the Real goal, but came back off the base of the right post. It deflected right to Sealy who had the simplest of finishes.
Real Salt Lake almost tied the game a minute later. Seth Trembly hit a shot from about 25 yards from the left just outside the penalty area but the ball scooted just wide of the right post. The shot was not hard, but well-placed, rolling less than a yard outside the post.
Yet Real did pull level in the 10th minute when Chris Brown capitalized on a defensive mistake by Jose Burciaga Jr. and scored his first goal of the season. Burciaga tried to clear a long ball but missed. Brown latched onto the ball, cut left past Wizards defender Shavar Thomas and had only a helpless goalkeeper Bo Oshoniyi to beat.
The Wizards kept pressing the attack. In the 16th minute, Sasha Victorine headed a cross off the crossbar. Sealy received another rebound at his feet, but RSL goalkeeper Countess dived to deflect the ball away from a corner kick.
Kansas City took a 2-1 lead in the 18th minute on an own goal by Countess, under pressure from a host of Wizards attackers, deflected a corner kick across the goal line before two teammates could clear it. The goal was set up when Real Salt Lake defender Michael Lookingland made a poor first touch off his chest under very little pressure that resulted in the corner kick.
Preki set up the Wizards' third goal with a great effort that Sealy finished for his second goal of the game. The ageless K.C. midfielder advanced the ball through the middle of the field through shoulder-to-shoulder confrontations with Real Salt Lake's Kenny Cutler, Lookingland and finally Brian Dunseth. After getting past Dunseth, Preki tapped the ball to Sealy, who had a lane through to goal and shot past Countess.
The Wizards had four more great opportunities to score before the end of the first half, but it was Real Salt Lake that scored just before halftime.
Luke Kreamalmeyer, who came on as a 34th-minute substitute for Brian Kamler, fed a cross to Jordan Cila, and he sent a looping header back across goal and inside the far post in the 44th minute.
The second half looked a lot like the first -- lots of great scoring chances for the Wizards, few for Real Salt Lake.
In the 67th minute, Victorine hit a left-footed shot from nearly 30 yards that hit the outside of the left post. In the 76th minute, Real Salt Lake's Jamie Watson, a second-half substitute, got a clear shot from about 25 yards, but it went directly at Oshoniyi.
But as the game entered the final 10 minutes, the scoring chances that were plentiful in the first half became scarce, and the home side held on for victory to extend Real's heartache.
MLSnet.com Man of the Match: Scott Sealy (Kansas City Wizards)
Robert Whitman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
Real Salt Lake (3-11-4) vs. Kansas City Wizards (7-4-7)
July 16, 2005 -- Arrowhead Stadium
Scoring Summary:
KC -- Scott Sealy 3 (unassisted) 8
RSL -- Chris Brown 1 (Jason Kreis 2) 10
KC -- own goal (D.J. Countess) 18
KC -- Scott Sealy 4 (Preki 1) 27
RSL -- Jordan Cila 1 (Luke Kreamalmeyer 1) 44
Real Salt Lake -- D.J. Countess, Michael Lookingland, Brian Dunseth, Brian Kamler (Luke Kreamalmeyer 34), Nelson Akwari, Seth Trembly, Kenny Cutler, Jason Kreis, Chris Brown, Clint Mathis (Jamie Watson 56), Jordan Cila (Paul Broome 73).
Substitutes Not Used: Leslie Fitzpatrick, Jay Nolly.
TOTAL SHOTS: 8 (Seth Trembly 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 5 (5 tied with 1); FOULS: 14 (Kenny Cutler 4); OFFSIDES: 1 (Jordan Cila 1); CORNER KICKS: 4 (Luke Kreamalmeyer 2, Clint Mathis 2); SAVES: 7 (D.J. Countess 7)
Kansas City Wizards -- Bo Oshoniyi, Shavar Thomas, Nick Garcia, Brian Roberts (Ryan Raybould 79), Jose Burciaga Jr., Chris Klein, Sasha Victorine, Kerry Zavagnin, Preki (Jack Jewsbury 46), Scott Sealy, Davy Arnaud (Ryan Pore 68).
Substitutes Not Used: Dustin Branan, Daniel Dobson, Will Hesmer, Douglas Lascody, Pat McGinnis, John Minagawa-Webster.
TOTAL SHOTS: 22 (Davy Arnaud 6); SHOTS ON GOAL: 9 (Davy Arnaud 3, Scott Sealy 3); FOULS: 12 (Kerry Zavagnin 3); OFFSIDES: 1 (Davy Arnaud 1); CORNER KICKS: 6 (Jose Burciaga Jr. 4); SAVES: 3 (Bo Oshoniyi 3)
Misconduct Summary:
KC -- Brian Roberts (caution; Pushing, Holding) 74
RSL -- Paul Broome (caution; Dissent) 75
RSL -- Brian Dunseth (caution; Professional Foul) 80
KC -- Jose Burciaga Jr. (caution; Reckless Foul) 83
RSL -- Kenny Cutler (caution; Reckless Foul) 89
Referee: Ricardo Salazar
Referee's Assistants: Robert Fereday; C.J. Morgante
4th Official: Brent Sorg
Attendance: 16,816
Time of Game: 1:51
Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-92-degrees
All Statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial.
