Less energy, same result: another defeat for RSL

ORLANDO, Fla. — Twenty-four hours after Real Salt Lake's first unit played unseasonably well against Columbus, virtually the same group of starters lacked the commitment and tenacity necessary to duplicate the performance Friday night.

"We had some difficulties and some troubles tonight, to be fair," said Real captain Jason Kreis. "With the game last night I think that took it's toll on the starters, but having said that it wasn't so bad, we were just having a hard time covering that last extra yard. It seemed last night we had the energy and the will to do it, and tonight we didn't."

In many respects, Friday's 2-1 loss to Chicago at the Disney Wide World of Sports was the complete opposite of Thursday's 2-1 loss to Columbus.

On Thursday, the starters played well only to see the second unit give it away. The following night, it was the first unit that trailed 1-0 at the break, with Real's second unit battling back to tie it before surrendering a 90th-minute goal on a corner kick.

"Even though it's preseason, when you give it away in the 90th minute, you're never too happy about those situations," said Real coach John Ellinger. "That kind of leaves a foul taste in your mouth."

After trailing at the half, RSL equalized on an 83rd minute Chris Brown penalty kick, but Chicago defender Jeff Curtin — the younger brother of the more well known Chicago defender Jim Curtin — pushed the Fire back in front in the closing seconds by knocking in a weakly cleared corner.

According to Ellinger, the bigger issue was the first unit's lethargy. He believes Chicago's first-half dominance in possession never would have occurred if his players were a little more committed to pressuring the ball, or basically doing the "dirty work," as Ellinger said.

Even as the second half got under way with 11 different RSL players, Ellinger was still in the locker room chatting with his players about what he believed was a lack of commitment.

In the bigger picture, however, the coach and the players alike agreed it was a subtle step in the right direction.

"We were still fairly organized, we were still attacking with some flair and had some decent chances," said Kreis.