The tide has turned here of late for Real Salt Lake, who will be trying to avoid a fourth straight defeat this weekend. Will Real Salt Lake be able to find the back of the net in this weekend's matchup against the Portland Timbers?
Firstly, we need to take a look at the soccer odds for this
weekend's game.
There's no questioning who the favorite is here as RSL is
priced at -156 at Bookmaker to win, while Portland is a staggering +482 at the
same book. A draw would also get you a handsome profit at +310, signaling that
oddsmakers really think Salt Lake is the play.
That's interesting considering this is a team that hasn't
won in four straight matches.
Lost that winning feeling
The Royals had lost three in a row entering a July 4
showdown with the Seattle Sounders. A win would have put even more pressure on
San Jose at the top, but in the end the final score was 0-0, a dull draw.
It was a tight defensive 90 minutes of action despite there
being plenty of playmakers out on the field. RSL had the clear advantage in
possession and three more shots, but on the whole chances were few and far
between.
RSL now hasn't won since June 16, a 3-0 victory on the road
over Chivas USA.
Perhaps they can get it done this weekend at home to the
Portland Timbers, who are coming off a tremendous 2-1 win over the
league-leading Earthquakes during the week.
Goals from forward Danny Mwanga and midfielder Jack Jewsbury
carried the Timbers to the win, reinforcing the great disparity between
Portland's home and away form.
At Jeld-Wen Field, the Timbers have a rock-solid 5-2-2
record with 14 goals scored and 10 goals against. Now, let's compare that to
their record away from Portland, where they're 0-5-2 with two goals for and 11
against.
That in itself could explain why RSL is so heavily favored
for Saturday's match. Sportsbooks are aware of Portland's horrible away form.
Time to regroup
We were indeed impressed by the Timbers' win over San Jose
this week, but we feel the Hoops are the right side with our soccer picks.
It's been a rough spell here lately, sure, but there are
signs that this team may be starting to turn it around. They battled hard with
an excellent Sounders team and their losses came to formidable opponents in the
Galaxy, Earthquakes and Crew.
We really like what RSL's striker partnership of Alvaro
Saborio and Fabian Espindola is doing. The pair have 13 goals between them,
while Espindola has added in three assists thus far on the season.
The Hoops also have a nice mix in the midfield, with
experienced players like Javier Morales and Kyle Beckerman, a solid performer
in Will Johnson and a young starlet in Luis Gil.
It's been boom or bust for RSL at home this season. In nine
matches, they've won six and lost three. If they can settle down defensively,
like they did against a dangerous attacking them like the Sounders, they'll be
in great position to win this weekend.
And a win is what we think the Hoops will get. The odds may
not be offering up too much sports betting value, but everything is set up for RSL to finally
get back to their winning ways.
As they can't afford to fall any further behind the
Earthquakes in the standings, we're taking Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
FREE Pick: Real Salt Lake 2 Portland 0