Real Salt Lake player ratings on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being best:

Rimando: 6 – He was left out to dry by Borchers on the Wizards only goal and produced another solid outing. He calmly collected some rockets at goal throughout the match and has yet to be truly tested all season.

Wingert: 5 – Hard to assess Wingert’s output as he left at half with an injury and didn’t really have much involvement in the first half.

Borchers: 3.5 – It was a pretty difficult night for Nat as he was caught out of position on countless occasions and was responsible for the Wizards only goal thanks to some lackadaisical possession in the back. He just didn’t seem to have his head in the match and was surprisingly shaky.

Olave: 6.5 – Olave delivered crunching tackle after crunching tackle all match long and did a nice job with Alexandre to stifle the Wizards attack before they could really get into dangerous positions.

Beltran: 7.5 – One of the best matches I’ve seen from Beltran in an RSL uniform. He was everywhere defensively and caused problems on both wings all night. Even more surprising was some of the nifty skill he showed on offense while contributing to distribution in the middle of the pitch.

Morales: 8 – Stellar performance from Javi who seems to have shrugged off his poor play from a season ago and has been excellent this year. His ability to create offensive chances for Espy & Sabo has directly led to the offense output from RSL’s forwards over the past couple of weeks.

Alexandre: 6.5 – Jean will never be a technically skilled player with the same style or flair as Beckerman. However, he showed me on Saturday that he could be a physical presence in the midfield while making smart, simple passes. It was a nice all-around performance for the young midfielder.

Williams: 6 – You have to give Williams credit for not taking the shot for the opening goal and instead opting to provide the perfect opportunity for Espy. RSL fans have to hope his injury won’t keep him out of play long.

Johnson: 6.5 – Another great performance for a player who often lacks tangible production. Will was solid all match long at supporting Alexandre while linking up with Morales and Espy on the left. Let’s see where this positive performance takes Will over the next couple of weeks with a number of RSL’s midfielders being injured.

Saborío: 7.5 – What more can be said about Sabo? His quality is easily recognizable and stellar. He probably could have had a hat-trick if not for a scuffed shot and a header that glanced off the woodwork in the second half. His skill and guile on the ball is a perfect balance for Espy’s speed and power.

Espíndola: 8.5 – It was Espy’s first start in over a month and he repaid the RSL faithful with an all-around brilliant display. His energy tormented the Wizards backline all evening and flustered even the usually stoic Jimmy Conrad. With Robbie Findley away with the USMNT over the next couple of months, Espy will continue to lead the attack with Sabo as they build one of the most formidable striking partnerships in the league.

SUBSTITUTES:
Russell: 7 – It was a nice match for Russell both offensively and defensively. He was available on countless occasions to provide coverage in the back when RSL was caught pushing up too far and deservedly earned his first tally late in the match.

Grabavoy: 6.5 – I questioned Alexandre getting the start in holding mid over Grabavoy as Ned definitely has an edge in leadership. Unfortunately Ned saw the pitch much sooner than most expected thanks to the injury to Williams. He put in a productive second half performance with his goal late being particularly beautiful in large part due to his amazing speed to get by Besler coupled with his cool finish past Nielsen.

Campos: N/A – Not much to assess in limited minutes.