Real Salt Lake forward Joao Plata suffered a hamstring injury during Saturday’s 1-1 draw against the LA Galaxy at Rio Tinto Stadium. According to Plata’s personal twitter account, he will be out for three weeks. This means that he will miss matches against Toronto FC, Philadelphia Union, and a crucial match at Sporting Kansas City. Depending on how quickly he is able to return to play, he may also miss a home match against the Portland Timbers.
This season, Salt Lake has leaned heavily on Plata’s production, as he is currently fourth in the league in goals and third in assists with two each. He also leads MLS in shots on goal with seven. It will be no small feat to make up for that production in the coming games, as RSL tries to find a way to steal a point in Toronto against the Eastern Conference leading duo of Jermain Defoe and Michael Bradley. An especially tough match against Sporting KC also waits. The last time that RSL was in Kansas City, they lost the MLS Cup Championship in a penalty kick shootout. Trying to get points there without Plata will be a challenge.
Under normal circumstances, losing Plata for three weeks stings. Unfortunately for RSL, their front line is already riddled with injury as Robbie Findley and Devon Sandoval are out. Findley had surgery on his patellar tendon during the offseason and is not expected back for several weeks. Sandoval also had offseason surgery to repair a broken bone in his foot, and has been working his way back to playing time.
These front line injuries leave RSL Head Coach Jeff Cassar with the options of Alvaro Saborio, Olmes Garcia, and Benji Lopez as the only forwards on the roster. Barring any formation changes, it is expected that Garcia would get the starting spot opposite Saborio until Plata is back. In the meantime, RSL can only hope that Plata heals completely and that the roster comes to full strength soon.
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