Real Salt Lake at Colorado Rapids: Final 2018 Rocky Mountain Cup Preview

RSL come into this weekend very much in the driver’s seat. In the opening game of the derby this year, they got a 3-0 win at home after Tim Howard was given a red card for a handball outside the box. The teams later played to a 2-2 draw in a game that featured a lightning delay. RSL will retain the trophy with a draw, win, or a loss by three goals or fewer.

On the other side, the Colorado Rapids are fighting for their playoff lives. They’re sitting 13 points below the red line and they need all the points they can get. If nothing else, the Rapids are looking to win their first Rocky Mountain Cup since 2015 and avoid claiming the Wooden Spoon.

They need a win by four goals or more to win the 2018 Rocky Mountain Cup.

Salt Lake had a good weekend, getting a dramatic 2-1 win at Houston Dynamo that required two goals in stoppage time. The Claret & Cobalt did outplay the Dynamo in the first half to be fair. Joao Plata and Albert Rusnak are on a good run of form and Mike Petke’s ranting has seemed to lit a fire under this team. They’re in for a dogfight sitting fourth in the Western Conference with several teams nipping at their heels.

The Rapids are a very different team from the one that went down 2-0 to RSL in the first half at Rio Tinto Stadium. Since that lightning delay, they’ve switched to a 4-4-2 diamond. Kellyn Acosta has joined the club and locked down the midfield. Edgar Castillo continues to ball out as the left back/left wing back.

They’re dealing with some question marks this week. Sam Nicholson and Axel Sjoberg are still dealing with injuries and they still haven’t found a goalscorer since Dominique Badji was traded. It will take one of their best efforts of the season to get a win tomorrow night.

It will take hands down their best result of the year to win by four goals and walk out with the Rocky Mountain Cup.