SANDY, Utah – New Real Salt Lake head coach Mike Petke knows he’ll be under a microscope when he makes his return to the touchline on Saturday.
He wouldn't have it any other way.
“I’m a coach. I enjoy being on the sideline,” Petke said. “The pressure is all on me. It’s not on the players. I enjoy that and that’s the way I want it.”
Petke went 34-25-23 at the helm of the New York Red Bulls from 2013-2015 while helping them to their first major trophy – the 2013 Supporters' Shield. Now, his tenure with RSL starts against the Vancouver Whitecaps (9:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE in the US, TSN4 in Canada) after spending the last week focusing on team unity and cohesion.
“This week was about getting organized for me,” Petke said. “It was about our starting points and ending points. We pinpointed the exact moments where we wanted to be a bit more aggressive, then we touched on building out of the back.
“You don’t just walk into the room and change everything. It’s building blocks for me, and this week it’s being higher up the field.”
Petke believes the process might go quicker than he first expected. It helps that he knew almost everyone from his time with the first team during the preseason when he served as boss of RSL’s Real Monarchs USL side.
“To get on the same page all in one week, it’s gone better than I thought it would,” Petke said. “They know what’s expected of them and now it’s all about tomorrow night.”
Expectations need to be met in a hurry. Salt Lake sit at the bottom of the Western Conference after not having won in their first five games. Petke is trying to get his club to put their most recent outing, last weekend’s 4-2 loss to Minnesota United, behind them.
“That’s in the rear view mirror, just like after this weekend’s game, win, lose, or draw it will be in the rear view mirror,” Petke said. “The way I take life, it’s one game at a time. We concentrate on that game, focus on that game, and then we move on.”
Petke will judge Saturday by what he sees on the field and how aggressive and focused the players are.
“The tactical aspects I’m not so worried about,” Petke said. “There’s still things we have to improve, but I like where they’re at mentally and physically right now.”
