
2020 Year in Review: Top On-Field Moments
December 17, 2020 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Colorado Rapids News Release
The 2020 season was unexpected, to say the least. Between the stops and starts, the MLS is Back Tournament, canceled games and oftentimes unconventional training styles - it felt like nothing went as planned.
But the team still found plenty of moments on the field that were well worth celebrating. From historic club milestones to rivalry wins and much more, this season became one we will never forget, for more than just its twists and turns.
Here are our five favorite moments on the field from the 2020 campaign.
1,000th Goal Milestone
This year marked the 25th MLS season, and what better way to celebrate that history than by hitting the 1,000-goal milestone as a club?
On July 22 against Minnesota United FC, 19 minutes in, Nicolas Benezet played a through ball to Kei Kamara, who slotted it home at the near post to open up scoring in the match. This historic moment on such a unique stage like the MLS is Back Tournament was a perfect encapsulation of this memorable year. The goal allowed the club to celebrate one of its greatest moments since becoming a team in 1996, and we look forward to the many, many more goals to come.
Fraser Makes Club History
Through his first 25 games, Fraser has led Colorado to 13 wins, 43 points and 47 goals - the most by any Rapids manager through his first 25 games since the introduction of draws to MLS in 2000. Fraser also became the first Rapids manager to lead his team to the playoffs in his first full season since Fernando Clavijo in 2005.
In addition, Fraser's on-field accomplishments were celebrated. He made the club's All-Time Best XI roster and was named one of The 25 Greatest by MLS.
Reclaiming the Rocky Mountain Cup
Undoubtably one of the most memorable moments of 2020 was the 5-0 win over Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium that brought the Rocky Mountain Cup back to Colorado. Going into the second leg, the odds were stacked against the Rapids. The team had lost the first leg 4-1, meaning they needed to score at least four goals to have a chance to bring it home. This historic win marked not only the club's first win at Rio Tinto Stadium, but it was also the worst-ever defeat suffered by RSL inside their home building. The win was the first of three in a stretch of four games, kickstarting Colorado's push for the playoffs.
Thanks for the hardware @realsaltlake ðŸÂâ pic.twitter.com/nQAHNPMWXn
- Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) September 13, 2020
Youngest Lineup in MLS Leads to a Victory
In the final game of the regular season, the Rapids fielded the second-youngest starting XI in MLS over the course of the regular season, with an average age of 23.6 years old. This lineup worked in their favor as they earned the 2-1 victory over Houston.
You're looking at the youngest lineup in @MLS this season. pic.twitter.com/wUKE4WFfsE
- Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) November 9, 2020
Over the course of the season, the Rapids led the league with half the team's goals coming from players aged 23 or younger at 50 percent (16 out of 32), just ahead of LAFC at 48.9 percent. This comes as little surprise - as Jonathan Lewis (23 years old) and Cole Bassett (19) were both instrumental to the team's success this season and tied for the team lead in goals scored, both with five.
Pushing for the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs
During this challenging year, the resiliency of this team shined during the last few weeks of the season. The Rapids came out firing in their final home match of 2020, defeating defending champion Seattle, 3-1, and putting themselves in the driver's seat for a playoff push. Next up, on the road against one of the best teams in the Western Conference in Portland, Kellyn Acosta scored the lone goal of the game in the final minutes to secure a 1-0 victory and a spot in the playoffs. But the team didn't stop there. In the last game of the regular season, the Rapids defeated Houston, 2-1, to earn a fifth seed in the playoffs on points per game. The win also meant Colorado would have secured a playoff spot on total points, despite playing at least three fewer games than every other team in the league.
While the first-round match against Minnesota didn't go the way they hoped, the heart that the Rapids showed down the stretch and the strides they made through this playoff experience should prove impactful for years to come.
Major League Soccer Stories from December 17, 2020
- Sounders FC Announces Gunbir Gill as Club's Official eMLS Gamer for 2021 Season - Seattle Sounders FC
- LAFC Selects Midfielder Raheem Edwards in Stage 1 of 2020 Re-Entry Process - Los Angeles FC
- Columbus Crew SC Announces Winner of Supporter-Designed New Nordecke Patch Contest - Columbus Crew SC
- Atlanta United, LAFC and Sporting Kansas City Acquire Players in Stage 1 of Re-Entry Process - MLS
- Timbers Acquire Defender Claudio Bravo - Portland Timbers
- Sporting KC Acquires Goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh - Sporting Kansas City
- Atlanta Selects Andrew Gutman with No. 1 Pick in Re-Entry Draft - Atlanta United FC
- Austin FC Acquires Finnish International and NYCFC Captain Alex Ring Ahead of Inaugural MLS Season - Austin FC
- New York City FCÃÂ AcquiresÃÂ Up to $1.25M in General Allocation MoneyÃÂ from Austin FC ForÃÂ Alex Ring - New York City FC
- FC Cincinnati Acquire $75,000 in General Allocation Money from Atlanta United FC - FC Cincinnati
- Atlanta acquires No. 1 pick in Thursday's Re-Entry Draft - Atlanta United FC
- Colorado Rapids Sign Forward Jonathan Lewis to New Contract - Colorado Rapids
- FC Dallas Trades Fafa Picault to Houston Dynamo FC - FC Dallas
- Houston Dynamo FC Acquire Fafa Picault from FC Dallas - Houston Dynamo FC
- 2020 Year in Review: Top On-Field Moments - Colorado Rapids
- Zlatan Ibrahimovic Stunner Voted Greatest Goal Presented by AT&T - MLS
- Impact Acquires Midfielder Djordje Mihailovic from Chicago Fire - Club de Foot Montreal
- Chicago Fire FC Acquires up to $1,000,000 in General Allocation Money from Montreal Impact in Exchange for Midfielder Djordje Mihailovic - Chicago Fire FC
- Philadelphia Union Announce Danny Higginbotham as Primary Broadcast Color Analyst - Philadelphia Union
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
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