Real Salt Lake heads into uncertain offseason, but core players excited about potential in 2020

Real Salt Lake forward Jefferson Savarino (7) celebrates his game-winning goal in the 88th minute with midfielder Luiz Everton (25) and forward Joao Plata (10) during the second half of a Major League Soccer playoff game at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019. | Colter Peterson, Deseret News

Real Salt Lake must hire a new coach and general manager as it looks to build upon the success of a third-place finish in the Western Conference in 2019

HERRIMAN — Even though Real Salt Lake’s season ended in the same round of the playoffs as last year, as the players addressed the media Monday following their exit interviews with the coaching staff, the overall sentiment was nothing but positive.

After all, RSL finished with four more points than a year ago, finished three places higher in the Western Conference standings and had a positive goal differential for the first time since 2014.

“Progressing throughout the season, we got better with every game and by the end we were one of the best teams in the league, our standings showed that. It obviously ended earlier than we wanted but at the end of the year we look back at it as a positive season,” said defender Aaron Herrera.

A third-place finish in the Western Conference after firing coach Mike Petke midseason was an impressive accomplishment, one the players were quick to credit interim coach Freddy Juarez for.

“I think we’ve proven with this group we can be a very successful team. It’s just about finding that consistency and doing it on a week-to-week basis,” said forward Corey Baird. “I’d be excited to see what Freddy could do with a full preseason.”

Added Nedum Onuoha, “I think Freddy did very well and he did that with the coaching staff as well. He’s a good guy which people are very, very happy to play for and not because he was soft or anything like that because he gives you confidence.”

Whether the organization decides to remove the interim tag from Juarez’s job title or take the coaching search another direction is one of the big questions this offseason — along with hiring a new general manager.

Of the six players who talked to the media on Monday, all gave endorsements to Juarez after their experiences over the second half of the season.

Most believe RSL’s core is strong enough to take the next step in 2020, but Albert Rusnak said additional “top quality players” need to be added.

He acknowledged that a striker who scores at least 15 goals would be a huge asset. He said Damir Kreilach did well in that spot even though it’s not his natural position, and added that injuries probably prevented Sam Johnson from winning the job permanently.

Onuoha said it’s easy to point to the front line for the 17 goal decrease from last season, but said he and the rest of the defenders have to take some of the blame.

“You can talk about bringing in people up front but it’s a team game isn’t it, I should’ve scored more; so should’ve other people. It only takes five or six more goals in a year to be in a different situation,” said Onuoha.

RSL’s defenders scored four goals this season, but more troubling was the fact that RSL’s two holding midfielders, Kyle Beckerman and Everton Luiz, never scored. They made contributions to RSL’s elite defense the second half of the season but finding the balance between the two could be the key to the 2020 season.

In RSL’s playoff ouster at Seattle the defense along with Nick Rimando did well to deny the Sounders’ talented attacking players throughout most of the match, but it was defensive midfielder Gustav Svensson who scored the game’s decisive goal on a corner kick — his first goal in a year.

Had RSL had a similarly unlikely goal, maybe it would be playing in Tuesday’s Western Conference final instead of Seattle.

At the end of the day, Rusnak said the team did what was expected this season, but he wants more.

“As a club, if we want to be recognized around the league a little bit better and maybe treated a little bit better then we’re going to have to take that next step and go to the conference finals,” said Rusnak.

It will begin working toward that goal in 2 1/2 months when the team reconvenes for the 2020 preseason this January.

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