This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Javier Morales is getting pretty good at these last-minute heroics.
Just a week after helping win a league game by knocking a free kick off the post in the dying minutes, the veteran midfielder scored a stunning equalizer in the 89th minute that delivered Real Salt Lake to the doorstep of the CONCACAF Champions League title with a 2-2 draw against Monterrey in Mexico on Wednesday night.
"All for all, this is a great result for us," goalkeeper Nick Rimando said. "Right now our heads are high" heading back to Rio Tinto Stadium for the second leg of the two-game series April 27.
Darn right heads are high.
Not only did RSL become just the fourth team from Major League Soccer to avoid losing in Mexico — previous teams were a combined 0-21-3 — but it did so by battling back twice in the draining 90 degree heat at Estadio Tecnologico in Monterrey.
"In the end, it shows a huge thing for our team mentality and their maturity," coach Jason Kreis said. "I'm extremely pleased for the guys."
Now, the team is just one very reasonable step away from an historic achievement.
Riding a 37-game unbeaten streak at home in all competitions, RSL needs only a win or a low-scoring draw in front of what's sure to be a sold-out stadium to hoist the tournament trophy and qualify for the prestigious FIFA Club World Cup in Japan later this year.
If the teams draw 2-2 after 90 minutes, they will play an overtime period and then go to penalty kicks, if necessary. If Monterrey wins or draws at 3-3 or more, Los Rayados will claim the championship by virtue of having score more away goals.
"We feel like it's halfway there," RSL's Kyle Beckerman said. "We know we still have a lot to do at home. … But guys are really excited about the result and the two away goals."
Obviously, that second one was most important.
Monterrey's Humberto Suazo had given his team a 2-1 lead with a penalty kick in the 63rd minute — RSL's Jamison Olave was whistled for a questionable handball in the box — and RSL had strained to fend off the steady pressure Monterrey was applying, in search of an even bigger lead.
"We just ran out of gas," Beckerman said.
But Rimando stood tall throughout the game, and Morales struck just when nobody expected it.
Taking a pass from Arturo Alvarez on the right side, he deftly cut back against a defender near the top corner of the box, then fired home to the far post for one of the biggest goals in team history — and one that Morales said was the biggest of his career so far.
"Simply fantastic," Kreis said. "Our guys held on and made special plays at the end."
Defender Nat Borchers already had pulled RSL back once, heading home a Will Johnson free kick in the 35th minute to negate the opening goal by Monterrey's Aldo de Nigris in the 18th minute.
De Nigris had pounced on a loose ball at the edge of the box and fired past defenders scrambling to get back into position. He and captain Luis Perez were subbed out just minutes later, seemingly due to injury; both were spotted later with ice packs on their legs.
But the unusual timing led to questions about whether coach Victor Manuel Vucetich was aiming to preserve his players and protect his early lead.
"We didn't know if it was disrespect … or the guys were injured," Beckerman said. "But yeah, it was strange."
The only downside for RSL is that Beckerman will miss the return leg serving a suspension for caution accumluation, after picking up a yellow card in the second half. De Nigris will miss the game, too, after he was booked for pulling his shirt up to his head while celebrating his goal.
Storylines
R IN SHORT • RSL pulls out a 2-2 draw at Monterrey in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League finals.
KEY STAT • Teams from MLS are now 0-21-4 all-time in Mexico.
KEY MOMENT • Javier Morales scores the equalizer in the 89th minute to send RSL home happy.