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SANDY — With head coach Jeff Cassar up in the booth and leading striker Sebastian Jaime suspended, Javier Morales and Joao Plata each had a goal and an assist to lead Real Salt Lake to a 2-0 win over the Houston Dynamo in front of 20,174 fans on Saturday night at Rio Tinto Stadium.
Morales put the home side ahead in the 36th minute, volleying a shot from 20 yards out that kissed off the far post and into the back of the net past an outstretched Dynamo goalkeeper Tyler Deric.
Houston's Kofi Sarkodie was shown a red card early in the second half, receiving the ejection from head official Robert Sibiga for a wreckless challenge on Abdoulie Mansally in the 51st minute.
Plata scored his first goal of the season in the 65th minute to double RSL's advantage. The Ecuadorian striker came around the front of the box on a give-and-go with Morales, then calmly buried the ball past Deric before pointing to his wrist as if to say "it's about time."
Here are a few quick observations on Saturday night's much-needed three points in league play.
The 35-year-old Argentine midfielder was back to his attacking ways, scoring the lone goal of the first half while putting up four of his team's seven shots against the Dynamo. Morales had two shots on target in the first half, finished with six chances created, and had the most touches of any player on the field with 94.
He's playing a lot of minutes, but Morales isn't slowing down to age or injury. With a team-high four goals and six assists on the season, the dangerous attacking midfielder has been involved in 10 of his squad's 18 goals in 2015.
"He doesn't surprise me. He's taking care of his body excellently right now," said Cassar, who was banned from the sideline after receiving a postgame red card at Colorado. "He shows no signs of slowing down at all. I think he's hungry, and he wants this team to do well."
His assist on Plata's goal in the second half also led to the first goal of the 2015 season for the Ecuadorian.
For the seventh time in 2015, the head official flashed a red card — this time against the Sandy-based team's opponent with Sarkodie's hard tackle on Mansally early in the second half. Deserved or not, Sarkodie joins a list that includes Orlando City's Kaka as recipients of a red card at Rio Tinto Stadium.
The last time RSL had an 11-on-10 advantage through the second half, the club rallied for a 1-1 draw with Orlando. In the team's outings with a red card, RSL has been down a man five times — and been reduced to nine players twice.
This time, RSL kept pressing for more goals after the 1-0 lead with a man-advantage — and they were rewarded with Plata's first MLS goal in 2015.
"For me, our forwards have to score," Morales said. "We have to keep their confidence high.
"I'm happy because I think the last two games, he's played great. Tonight he deserved that one."
Justen Glad earned the start in defense in place of the recently-rehabilitated Chris Schuler, with Elias Vasquez backing him up on the bench after just finishing Gold Cup duty with Guatemala.
The teenage central defender came to the rescue to prevent a goal in the 68th minute, gliding into the six-yard box to pushed aside a shot on frame from Brad Davis that saw Attinella lung the wrong direction. The red-haired RSL-Arizona Academy product nearly had his first goal in MLS play earlier, but his well-struck header in the early moments of the first half glanced off the crossbar and out of play.
"I couldn't be more happy than when people get more opportunities and seize them," said Cassar, who didn't sit Vasquez for any particular reason. "Justen doesn't surprise me, either. I think when you think of solid, you think of Justen."
While his former teammates with the RSL U-18 academy team were playing for a national developmental academy championship in California, Glad — just months removed from his high school graduation — was putting in a full 90-minute shift at center back for the Utah side's first team. His shot off the post aside, Glad finished the evening with 44 touches and a 93 percent pass-completion rate.
