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SANDY — Officially, Real Salt Lake opened the 2015 season last week with a scoreless draw at Portland.
But Saturday’s home opener against Philadelphia has the emotions of a season starter.
RSL (0-0-1) will host the Union in a game both teams will desperately want to see a result, after Philadelphia also opened with a scoreless draw against Colorado a week ago. The match is scheduled to kickoff at 7 p.m. MT at Rio Tinto Stadium.
In the previous 10 home openers, RSL is 4-0-6, and Jeff Cassar is looking forward to opening his second home campaign as head coach. The club is 3-0-3 in home openers since moving into its current Sandy abode in 2008.
“We went on the road our first game, dug in and got a good result,” Cassar said. “Now we get to come home and play in front of our fans.”
Despite an offseason of immense change, RSL returns eight starters and 19 players from last year’s roster — while also adding promising talent like midfielder Pecka and bringing back central defender Jamison Olave.
The Salt Lake side is 86-18-33 at home since the opening of Rio Tinto Stadium and has outscored its opponents 253-99 in the past six years.
RSL is also 2-0-5 all-time against the Union (0-0-1), including a 2-0-1 mark in the Beehive State. The Union are one of four MLS sides to have never won on the Wasatch Front.
Cassar expects another sellout crowd in Sandy for this weekend’s game.
“They give us energy, they really propel us,” he added. “Hopefully we can put on a performance that gets everyone excited and helps us start off our season at home on the right foot.”
