Real Salt Lake played against the Houston Dynamo Thursday night, but the game ended in a last-minute goal to end the game 1-0 against RSL.
The game was tied until the 93rd minute, when RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando went outside the box for a save and collided with Houston Forward Mac Kandji giving the Dynamo team a free penalty kick. Houston forward Colin Clark took the shoot and sent the ball flying straight down the middle of the net, giving Houston their first goal of the night.
This was an unfortunate end to a great night for Rimando. The goalie had several remarkable saves as Houston attempted numerous times to obtain a goal. A penalty kick, called earlier in the game, gave an opportunity for Houston forward Brad Davis to gain a point, but the attempt was stopped by Rimando’s great coverage.
Both teams struggled to gain control of the ball due to missing players to international games. Real Salt Lake players Kyle Beckerman from the United States, Alvaro Saborio from Costa Rica, and Will Johnson from Canada, all missed the game because of World Cup qualifying matches for their respective countries.
Chris Wingert was also absent because of a suspension from too many yellow cards accumulated over the season.
With these key players missing, RSL failed to gain momentum in the first half and, as the game progressed in the second half, made only a few shots on goal.
While RSL hoped this game would break their Texas losing streak and put them ahead in the Western Conference. RSL has never won a game in Texas and they left the BBVA Compass Stadium with a loss again.
Real Salt Lake will have a week to recover as they prepare to take on the Portland Timbers in the Rio Tinto Stadium on September 22, at 6:00 p.m.
