Real Salt Lake All Grown Up Under New Control, Menéndez Continues Form Slump
Mar 7, 2022, 10:22 AM
Real Salt Lake midfielder Jonathan Menendez (10) gets taken down by Austin FC midfielder Alexander Ring (8) as Real Salt Lake and Austin FC play at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021. RSL won 1-0. (Courtesy of Deseret News)
(Courtesy of Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY – A lot has changed at Real Salt Lake over the past seven weeks as new ownership, management, and club direction has taken a turn for the better.
Different RioT
Over the weekend, Real Salt Lake defeated Seattle Sounders in front of a full capacity crowd at Rio Tinto Stadium that included David Blitzer, Ryan Smith, and Scott Krase from the ownership group. According to sources close to Real Salt Lake, all members of ownership were blown away and very impressed with the work that has been done to the Stadium in such a short amount of time.
Can't beat these vibes pic.twitter.com/aGxUL2BYQ2
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) March 7, 2022
Furthermore, the team, despite very few additions over a shortened offseason, is performing admirably under the guidance and expertise of Pablo Mastroeni. Players such as Zac MacMath, Scott Caldwell, and Andrew Brody have been in superb form throughout the opening two games.
As it currently stands, Real Salt Lake sits fifth in the Western Conference and is only one of five teams that is yet to concede in 2022.
Mastroeni is working with a number of different formations in an effort to keep his team unpredictable and diverse.
Menéndez Continues Struggle
Almost every player on the roster that was expected to play a role in 2022 is having an impact except for Jonathan Menéndez. The Argentinian winger has never found his feet at Real Salt Lake since being bought last summer. The 2022 season was expected to be a coming-out party for Menéndez in front of the Real Salt Lake faithful, but thus far, his presence has not been felt.
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A big reason why Menéndez has struggled in Utah is due to the formation of the team. When Mastroeni took over shortly after Menéndez arrived he transitioned from a 4-2-3-1 to a 3-5-2. Menéndez is a creative winger who thrives in attacking defenders one on one. He is not overly comfortable playing in a central or defensive position.
Fortunately, it appears that Mastroeni will implement the 3-4-3 a lot more often in 2022 following the positive performance against the Sounders this past weekend. The 3-4-3 suits Menéndez and will provide him with an opportunity to cement a starting role with the club.
Next Match
Real Salt Lake will travel across the country for a date with Bruce Arena and the New England Revolution with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on March 12.
The match will be available to stream via the KSL Sports & KSL 5 TV apps or on KSL Sports dot com.
