RSL: Roster Analysis Heading Into The Offseason – Defenders

Real Salt Lakes’s defense came together at the end of the season, but what changes need to be had to prepare for next year?

Defender Pool (Minutes)

Justen Glad (1620), Marcelo Silva (650), David Horst (880), Chris Schuler (1069), Chris Wingert (1755), Justin Schmidt (676), Demar Phillips (961), Tony Beltran (1820), Danny Acosta (1411), Reagan Dunk (174).

Real Monarchs (USL Minutes)

Taylor Peay (1737), Kyle Curinga (2001), James Moberg (2527), Emilio Orozco (984), Michael Gallagher (1036), Max Lachowecki (2679).

2017 Recap and 2018 Outlook

Thanks to injuries, call-ups, and suspensions, no other position grouping saw as much game to game turnover as the backline. While some of the growing pains were frustrating, it also provided plenty of insight into the player pool. Justen Glad and Marcelo Silva definitely established themselves as the center back pairing to build around for the future, while David Horst showed he is still capable of filling in at a high level. Utility player, Chris Wingert, racked up minutes at all four of the positions along the defense, but showed signs of a long career, while youngster Danny Acosta proved to be a solid starter with plenty of potential. Tony Beltran had his best season yet with RSL, while Demar Phillips battled injuries through most of the year.

Things didn’t go quite as well for the other half of the roster. Chris Schuler struggled once again to stay healthy, then also struggled on the field. As a free agent, this should probably be the end of his time with RSL. The same can be said about Wingert. Moving on from the veterans opens the door to move potential Monarchs standouts to the first team. Taylor Peay, Kyle Curinga, James Moberg, and Max Lachowecki regularly manned one of the best defenses in USL.

Taylor Peay offers similar versatility as Wingert while being almost ten years younger and more athletic. Center back Emilio Orozco is the last remaining player from the Monarchs debut season in 2015, and now at age 25, his development would be better served as first-team depth in place of Justin Schmidt or Schuler. Curinga and Moberg are in a similar boat, but could also be used for another season with the Monarchs, this time along with Schmidt and Reagan Dunk, who may need more experience before being asked to contribute at the first team level.

Hopeful Prediction

Health is the biggest nemesis of the defender pool. Glad and Silva is an MLS-Best caliber pairing. Tony Beltran is in the discussion for best right back in MLS. Demar Phillips can still contribute at a high level, while Danny Acosta has proven he is already capable of being a week to week starter. If the core can stay relatively healthy, the outlook for the defense is bright. However, health has alluded to player pool over the last few seasons. Something that could help that outlook is moving on from a few of the veteran pieces with an injury history who have been relied on for depth, but injuries aren’t something you can predict.

Outside of injuries, another potential shakeup for the club and especially for the defense, would be a formation change. The Monarchs shifted to a three-man backline toward the end of their season, while RSL used a similar formation late in games. Moving to such a formation would require the team to look for defenders with more versatility moving forward.

Next: USL Playoff Tracker

Regardless, the defender pool has become one of the most clear positions ahead of the offseason, without having major needs and only needing smaller modifications.

Check out our other posts on the RSL roster here:

Goalkeepers.