This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Sandy • Inside the quiet Real Salt Lake locker room Saturday night, one of the club's most tested postseason veterans stewed. The league's worst team — at the time — had just flustered RSL for 90 minutes, handing the team its first regular-season home loss of 2016. Tony Beltran watched other teams chasing RSL in the Western Conference standings secure three points to keep pace with the pack.
RSL didn't. The Houston Dynamo escaped Rio Tinto Stadium with a 1-0 win, leaving RSL winless in its last three matches as the West playoff race tightened further. And Beltran didn't mince words or search for silver linings, because there were none to be found.
"I think everybody needs to grasp the severity of the situation here," Beltran said. "We have an opportunity in front of us, an opportunity that we worked all year for, and that is to be in the postseason."
Beltran then referenced 2015, which Saturday night was definitely a throwback to. Not much offensive creativity, not much rhythm and missed opportunities at home. RSL's seven-year postseason streak was snapped a year ago. Every player who was there last year still remembers how it felt to miss out, he said.
"Maybe if we're a little tired and feeling off our rhythm, it's no excuse," Beltran said. "We have to find the energy. We have to fight, because we only get one shot at this."
RSL enters the final month of the regular season suddenly scrambling. After beating the top two teams in the league at home in late August, the club had won three of four and talked of a Supporters' Shield run. How quickly things change in MLS. RSL has a single point from its last three outings and has been shutout in back-to-back matches.
"All of these home games going in to the playoffs is where we really want to pick up points and cement our spot," midfielder Jordan Allen said. "We want to gain momentum going to the playoffs. It's huge thing."
For the time being, RSL is going backward.
Another defensive mistake, what coach Jeff Cassar described post game as "a mental error" haunted RSL for the rest of the night. The first-half goal conceded translated into another shot at a shutout circling the drain. In 30 regular-season matches this year, RSL has just four clean sheets. To compound that, the RSL attack has been held in check the last week.
"You need someone to step up in that game," Cassar said. "You can't have anyone be average. Someone needs to step up and take that game by the scruff and make a play."
That someone might've been in jeans and a jacket Saturday night. Midfielder Javier Morales, who missed the match due to a quadriceps strain, was sorely missed in the loss to Houston. The connectivity he has with RSL's three-pronged attacking group is an underrated part of the club's success in 2016.
Morales may not have numbers similar to those in recent seasons, but it remains evident the club needs its aging playmaker in order to build any momentum toward the postseason.
RSL remains in fourth place out West with two remaining home matches left on the schedule. Next up? The best team in the league, FC Dallas, who returns to Sandy a month after RSL's dramatic 1-0 win. Wiggling out of this late-season funk is one thing, but seeing teams below RSL close the gap this weekend served as a harsh reminder.
"That red line is not that far away," Beltran said. "That adds to the disappointment."
Twitter: @chriskamrani —
FC Dallas at Real Salt Lake
P Saturday, 7:30 p.m.
TV • KMYU