It certainly wasn't the beautiful game that Real Salt Lake Jason Kreis has said he aspires his teams to play to, but a 1-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes is still three points on the road, no matter how it looked. RSL was outplayed for much of the match, but withstood a late surge from the Quakes and pulled out the victory on the strength of Kyle Beckerman's 64th minute goal from about 21 yards out.
San Jose Earthquakes Vs. Real Salt Lake: RSL Holds On For 1-0 Victory
The Earthquakes, who lost their home opener against RSL 3-0 last year, held a 10-3 shots advantage and put six of those shots on target. But each time, RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando was up to the task. He didn't always make the saves cleanly, and mishandled several balls in the rain-soaked conditions, but ultimately held up when he needed to.
Overall, the conditions made for a sloppy match. Rain was coming down heavily throughout and the wind made long passes almost impossible. Players were slipping and sliding all over the pitch, and actually contributed to several scoring opportunities, but helped short-circuit several others.
See More:
