REAL SALT LAKE v CD CHIVAS USA SATURDAY MARCH 24 2012
1
LALO FERNANDEZ
7:00PM MT RIO TINTO STADIUM
GOALKEEPER
2
SANDY, UT
TONY BELTRAN
DEFENDER
HEIGHT: 6-3 WEIGHT: 170 DOB: 12/16/92 HOMETOWN: El Paso, TX ACQUIRED: Signed as Home Grown Player, 1/11/12 LAST CLUB: C.A. Penarol (Uruguay) PRONOUNCIATION: LAW-lo LAST GAME: yet to appear in an RSL league or reserve match
HEIGHT: 5-8 WEIGHT: 150 DOB: 10/11/87 HOMETOWN: Claremont, CA ACQUIRED: PRONOUNCIATION: BELL - trann LAST SEASON: Played 28 games (23 starts) in all competitions, scoring one goal, adding one assist LAST MLS GOAL: yet to score in 80 career MLS games LAST MLS ASSIST: 03/19/11 @ SJ (64’) - 22 games ago LAST GAME: 03/17/12 - start/90’ in 2-0 W v NY
Real Salt Lake’s eye towards the future was bolstered in February with the signing of promising goalkeeper Lalo Fernandez as the club’s third-ever Homegrown Player. The addition of Fernandez marks the second dip into the Homegrown Player well by Real Salt Lake in less than a year, following on the heels of fellow RSL-Arizona Academy product Nico Muñiz (Sept. 2011) and Donny Toia (May 2011).
After playing the second-most minutes of his career in 2011, Tony Beltran again showed why he belongs in the discussion with the best outside backs in Major League Soccer. For the second time in his career the 24-year-old made more than 20 starts and helped solidify a back line that was depleted by injuries all season long – until he unfortunately suffered one of his own, limiting his minutes in the final two months of the season.
The 19-year-old Fernandez has kept busy over the last year-and-a-half, helping the RSL-Arizona Under-18 squad begin its first season in U.S. Soccer Development Academy in October 2010 and going 5-3-3 (1.00 GAA, 4 shutouts) in 11 appearances through the spring of 2011. After initially agreeing to play collegiately at the University of Wisconsin, Fernandez tacked course and tested the international waters, first spending a training stint with Mexican first division side Atlas – based in his birthplace of Guadalajara – before signing with Uruguayan power C.A. Peñarol last August.
While his staunch 1-v-1 defending continued to be rock solid, the cerebral and supremely fit Beltran has also provided more consistency when jumping into the attack, his flying runs up either flank ending with dangerous service into the area more often than during his previous two seasons of play. It can’t be long until Beltran sheds the status of one of the most underrated outside defenders in Major League Soccer, but, until then, the RSL braintrust will be more than happy to unleash the mature-beyond-his-years winger upon opponents that may underestimate the UCLA product’s considerable talent and tenacity.
The 6-foot-3, 165-pound Fernandez has been involved in the Youth National Team set-ups of both the United States and Mexico, playing for the Mexican Under-17s and training with the U.S. Under-20s last November. The El Paso, Texas, native’s goalkeeping skills run in the family, as his father, enjoyed a career as a professional netminder in Mexico.
3
DIOGO DE ALMEIDA
DEFENDER
HEIGHT: 6-0 WEIGHT: 175 DOB: 1/2/89 HOMETOWN: Piricicaba, Brazil ACQUIRED: 2012 MLS SuperDraft PRONOUNCIATION: dee - OH -go DAY al - MAY - duh LAST SEASON: Played 22 games (all starts) in goal for D.C. United, registering five shutouts and a 1.68 goals-against average LAST GAME: 03/20/12 - start/90’ in 1-1 T v KC (reserves)
4
JAMISON OLAVE
DEFENDER
HEIGHT: 6-3 WEIGHT: 210 DOB: 4/21/81 HOMETOWN: Medellin, Colombia ACQUIRED: March, 2008 PRONOUNCIATION: HAW-miss-son oh-LAW-vay LAST SEASON: Played 31 games (all starts) in all competitions, scoring 3 goals, adding 1 assist and named MLS Best XI LAST MLS GOAL: 07/23/11 v SJ (83’) - 10 games ago LAST MLS ASSIST: 7/4/11 v NE (83’) - 12 games ago LAST MLS GAME: 03/17/12 - start/90’ in 2-0 W v NY
Real Salt Lake’s search for a naturally left-footed fit on its back line may very well have come to an end with its selection of SMU product Diogo de Almeida back in January. Other outside back options were on the board towards the start of the second round, RSL was enamored with the athletic de Almeida’s size and speed, not to mention his technical ability, which was no surprise after his progression from forward to midfielder to defender during his first three years with the Mustangs. While RSL will not expect the 23-year-old to fill in minutes right away, the Brazilian’s progress throughout the year will prove vital to the planned wing-back rotation system that could prove crucial to the Utah side’s late-season success.
It seemed to take a couple of years for MLS fans and pundits to fully appreciate the depth of talent that RSL center back Jamison Olave possessed. However, now that he’s a known commodity, the RSL center back can’t seem to stop the plaudits coming his way, the ultra-athletic center back garnering spots on the MLS Best XI and MLS All-Star teams for a second consecutive season in 2011. He began the year by not only displaying his usual defensive prowess, but also securing himself an even bigger spot in RSL lore courtesy of some offense, as it was his goal at Deportivo Saprissa that would swing the CONCACAF Champions League Semifinal series the Utah side’s way. While RSL fans loved seeing “The Verb” represent the Claret-and-Cobalt against Manchester United in the All-Star Game once again, they were also left holding their collective breath after a sliding tackle sidelined him with an MCL sprain in his left knee. Success, it appeared, might come at a price. However, Olave would return after missing only a month, using his unique blend of size and closing speed – in addition to a growing sense of comfort with the ball at his feet – to keep opposing forwards on lockdown. Olave would again suffer from injury, this time a quadriceps strain, during the 2011 postseason, but the 2012 preseason sees the Colombian fit as a fiddle and ready to lead the RSL backline to more impressive and historic numbers – more specifically the ones in the “W” and “SO” columns. And, speaking of numbers, the 30-year-old Olave will hit a nice round one the next time he sees the field, as his next appearance on the fiels will mark his 100th in MLS regular season play.