Notebook: Real Salt Lake has midfielder void to fill

LEHI — Will Johnson is away with the Canadian National Team this week, and the midfielder's absence opens up a spot in Real Salt Lake's starting 11 for this weekend's match at Chivas USA.

RSL coach Jason Kreis said there are three quality options to fill the void.

Ned Grabavoy, Nelson Gonzalez and Collen Warner are all up for consideration to start in RSL's diamond midfield along with Kyle Beckerman, Andy Williams and Javier Morales.

"We have some choices, which is nice finally to have to make some difficult decisions, not only in the starting line-up but the 18 as well," said Kreis.

Grabavoy hasn't played a league game since injuring his knee back on April 10. He did, however, play 28 minutes in RSL's reserve game against the Mexico Under-21 National Team on Saturday and is fit enough to start if Kreis gives him the nod.

Gonzalez made one start filling in for Grabavoy earlier this year, while Warner made two starts in a similar role.

All three bring a different dimension to the field, and the coaching staff must determine who is the best fit against a Chivas squad that tries playing a similar attacking style as Real Salt Lake.

CONCACAF DRAW: Real Salt Lake will find out today the teams it has been grouped with in the 2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League.

RSL will play all three teams in its group twice (home and away). The match dates are Aug. 17-19, Aug. 24-26, Sept. 14-16, Sept. 21-23, Sept. 28-30 and Oct. 19-21. The exact dates and locations won't be announced for a few more weeks.

RSL will likely be grouped with a team from Mexico, a team from Central America and then a preliminary round winner.

Real Salt Lake qualified for the 24-team regional competition by winning last year's MLS Cup. Other MLS teams that qualified are Columbus, Los Angeles and Seattle.

RSL (MLS Cup) and Columbus (Supporters' Shield) have automatically qualified for group play, whereas Los Angeles and Seattle begin the competition in the preliminary round — a two-game, home-and-away series.

A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY: Before leaving RSL for the week to prepare for Canada's international friendly down in Argentina, Johnson talked about the type of match he expects.