Real Salt Lake to test mettle against defending champs
If you had wagered back in March that Real Salt Lake would be even with the Houston Dynamo in the Western Conference standings halfway through the 2008 season, you would have received the longest of odds. After all, RSL had done little to distinguish itself in three barren seasons, while Houston was (and still is) the two-time defending MLS champion.
Yet 15 games into the current campaign, Real does indeed find itself on level terms with the Dynamo. Coach Jason Kreis’ outfit, while still short of MLS Cup quality, has undergone a considerable overhaul and has stepped into what is, for them, the rarified air of a playoff contender. Houston, meanwhile, has struggled a bit more this season with the bull’s-eye that comes with being the defending champion and has been unable to get on the kind of roll that characterizes championship teams.
So is the balance of power shifting in the Western Conference? While not quite giving a definitive answer, this week’s “MLS Primetime Thursday” matchup between RSL and Houston should be revealing, with sole possession of first place in the conference going to the winner.