SALT LAKE, UTAH – There are two things that Toronto FC will not be used when they face Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium on Sunday. One they were expecting, one they probably weren’t.
The altitude is a known factor. It’s not as severe as Denver, but at 4,300 feet it is something to overcome.
The other factor is the weather, which nobody will complain about. It has been the second driest and warmest winter on record in Salt Lake and conditions at kickoff will reflect that. The forecast calls for a temperature of 18-20 degrees Celsius.
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The pitch at Rio Tinto is in magnificent condition and the home team is expecting a sellout, which has become a common occurrence for this franchise. Yes, there has been some consternation over the fact they’re playing this match on a Sunday, a rarity here and the fact is some are protesting on religious grounds.
The club was expecting some sort of backlash, but the league said “look, you’re a marquee franchise and this match will be televised nationally in the U.S. You have to expect it.” And so here we are.
With two draws this season, and coming off a bye week, Real Salt Lake are facing some of the same personnel issues as the visitors. International call-ups and injuries have forced RSL coach Jeff Cassar to make some changes, much like Toronto counterpart Greg Vanney.
Cassar has an interesting background. A former goalkeeper, he was once a teammate of current No. 1 Nick Rimando, who actually displaced him as the main goalkeeper with the Miami Fusion once upon a time in another life. He was also Vanney’s roommate in college. It’s a small world, this MLS fraternity.
The Reds’ roster complications have been well documented. Apart from the international call-ups, which included both Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley, Toronto also didn’t bring Steven Caldwell, Mark Bloom and Eric Zavaleta due to injury. Throw the suspended Justin Morrow into the mix and it was a thin looking squad that trained at Rio Tinto on Saturday evening.
New signing Clement Simonin, who was drafted out of college in January, looked right at home when training with the team on Saturday. Vanney will have some tough lineup decisions to make, or maybe not. His options are so limited it might be obvious to him.
Toronto actually won a game here in another era. It was in the Reds’ first season in 2007 over at Rice-Eccles Stadium, a university ground on July 4 when Moe Johnston’s team beat RSL 3-1 with Collin Samuel, Alecko Eskandarian and Jeff Cunningham scoring the goals. There are some names out of the past for you.
Since then, not a single point in this city for TFC. The odds seemed stack this time around, as well.