By FRANCO PANIZO
Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman have called Real Salt Lake home since 2007, and they will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
Real Salt Lake owner Dell Loy Hansen revealed to radio station ESPN700 on Tuesday night that Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman are close to signing three-year contract extensions with the club. Rimando, 35, and Beckerman, 32, have both become engrained in the club’s culture since arriving eight seasons ago and helped lead RSL to its first MLS Cup title back in 2009.
The two veterans, who partook in their first World Cup with the U.S. Men’s National Team this past summer, are coming off strong seasons at Salt Lake. Rimando posted seven shutouts and made 71 saves in 24 appearances while Beckerman scored three goals and assisted on three others in 28 games. They each started in all the matches they played in.
Additionally, Hansen also said Tuesday night that the club has purchased the rights to Joao Plata in full. Plata, a 22-year-old Ecuadorian international, is close to agreeing to a new five-year contract.
The diminutive attacker enjoyed his strongest campaign in his four years in MLS in 2014. He scored a career- and team-high 13 goals and added six assists while starting in 24 of the 26 regular-season games he appeared in.
Plata joined Real Salt Lake in 2013 after spending his first two MLS seasons at Toronto FC. In four seasons, he has accumulated 20 goals and 19 assists.
—–
What do you think of Beckerman and Rimando being close to finalizing extensions with RSL? Good move by the club to lock them up long-term? Like that Plata is getting a five-year deal?
Share your thoughts below.
As our boss would say: You are paying for what they have already done. Does anyone think either has many more useful years left?
I do rimando was just 3rd best keeper in the US, and you kow Gk can play well in to early forties. And as a deep central midfielder beckerman still has some good years in him. He’s a poor man’s pirlo imo. The MLS version
These two will bridge the gap between Kreis/Lagerway Era to something new that we hope is even better. Plata needs to be a part of that and that means plenty of attacking options that will force defenses to choose who to key on. Hansen needs to spend on a outside back to replace Wingert until one of the young kids develops.