Bruce Arena expects tough Real Salt Lake line-up including Jamison Olave and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Nat-Borchers-c27368 – MLS News
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Los-Angeles-Galaxy-c39818 head coach Bruce Arena expects a strong Real Salt Lake line-up in the Western Conference final on Sunday, November 6, at The Home Depot Center.
Both Nat Borchers and Jamison Olave were taken off in the home leg of the conference semi-final due to their respective left knee and right quad injuries. The centre-backs failed to sport RSL jerseys in the second leg, owing to their condition.
However, Arena has laid out a plan for the final against the Royals and expects the defender to feature at the Home Depot.
“I’ll be honest with you – I’m expecting them to play. We’re planning on them playing,” the LA Galaxy coach told reporters in a conference call.
Whether the defensive duo will appear in the game is anybody’s guess as the RSL management has refused to address the issue. However, their absence in the starting line-up will certainly be missed in the conference finale.
The away leg of the Western Conference semi-final included http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Chris-Wingert-c9037 and Chris Schuler in the centre-back positions. The 2-0 defeat to the Rave Green made it clear that the RSL do not have a replacement for star duo.
Arena, however, has not scratched out the possibility of Borchers and Olave appearing in the back-four. He expects a tough competition on Sunday and hopes that both defenders sport the Claret and Cobalt jerseys in the game.
“Naturally, I want to see the best players on the field and I’m hopeful that Olave and Borchers do get back on the field," he said. "That would be terrific for Salt Lake and certainly it will make for a great game. It’s going to be a great game whether they’re
playing or not because I think we’re playing a very fine team."
RSL and LA Galaxy won their respective home games against each other this season. The Galaxy lost 3-0 at Rio Tinto but extracted revenge at home.
As much as Arena wants the same result in the final game, the RSL are not the same team anymore. The return of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Javier-Morales-c18076 in the attacking mid has instilled a new life into the 2009 MLS Cup champions who were in the bottom-half of the league table until
mid-season.
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