Going into Sunday afternoon’s game, Real Salt Lake were coming off a string of painful home losses. Had they won against a beatable San Jose Earthquakes or the Portland Timbers, the team would have secured their playoff place and even had a chance at a home playoff game. The team lost both of those games and it put Real’s post-season hopes in jeopardy. Though they were below the playoff line, things lined up so that if they won on the road to Sporting Kansas City, they would be in the playoffs.
And that’s exactly what they did.
It was a dramatic game that saw RSL change from their 3-5-2 formation back to the more familiar 4-2-3-1 employed under former head coach Freddy Juarez.