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MLS Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake Acquires Selolwane, Whitfield from Chicago Fire

December 30, 2004 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Thursday, December 30, 2004) – Real Salt Lake General Manager Steve Pastorino and Head Coach John Ellinger today announced the acquisition of forward Dipsy Selolwane and defender Evan Whitfield from the Chicago Fire in exchange for two MLS SuperDraft picks (a third-round 2005 selection and a second-round 2006 pick). The 2005 MLS SuperDraft will be held Friday, January 14 in Baltimore.

"These two MLS veterans bring depth and experience to the Real Salt Lake roster," Pastorino said. "Selolwane is a proven finisher who has scored goals at every level. Whitfield is a player who can play several positions. His speed and overlapping runs will bolster our right side."

"I have followed both of these players since their collegiate days and I know they can both be standout players in Major League Soccer," Ellinger said. "The addition of both improves the depth of our roster and strengthens the competition for each spot in the starting 11, every time we take the field."

Selolwane, a Botswanan international who currently leads the African continent in scoring during World Cup Qualifying, forged his reputation in 2004 as a clutch contributor for the Chicago Fire, almost single-handedly lifting the Fire to its fourth Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final appearance. Selolwane notched game-winning goals in 1-0 Fire victories during both the quarterfinal and semifinal stages.

The Fire "super-sub" scored four points in League play in 2004, starting five games and making 19 appearances for the 2003 Eastern Conference Champions. Selolwane has 24 caps with Botswana's National Team since 1998 and has scored nine goals, including the game-winner in a 2-1 victory over Kenya in World Cup Qualifying on October 9, 2004. He played one year at St. Louis University in 2001, blistering NCAA opponents with 25 goals in as many games.

Whitfield appeared in 23 of the Fire's 30 regular-season 2004 contests and became just the seventh player in Chicago history to appear in 100 Fire games on September 25. Whitfield, who attended Duke University from 1995-1998, has played five MLS seasons, appearing in 103 games (starting 78), registering 18 points on three goals and 12 assists since making his debut with Chicago on March 25, 2000. The staunch outside defender contributed to the Fire's 2000 and 2003 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Championships and division titles in 2000, 2001 and 2003, as well as the club's first-ever MLS Supporters Shield in 2003.

Whitfield registered 17 points on one goal and 15 assists at Duke, before spending the second half of the 1998-99 European season with KAA Gent (Belgium). The 5'11", 155-lb. defender played for Ellinger as part of the U.S. Olympic team in Sydney, Australia in 2000, appearing in 11 matches for the U.S. U-23 National Team. The 27-year old was also a key player for the U.S. Under-20 teams at the 1997 World Championships in Malaysia and at the World University Games in Italy in 1997.

Prior to selecting Jamaican playmaker Andy Williams with the team's first pick in the November 19 MLS Expansion Draft, Real Salt Lake introduced Major League Soccer's all-time leading scorer Jason Kreis as the team's first-ever player. Real Salt Lake then acquired former Colorado Rapids defender Jeff Stewart from CD Chivas USA. With Kreis, Selolwane, Stewart, Whitfield and the 10 players selected in the Expansion Draft, Real Salt Lake has filled 14 of an available 28 roster spots for its inaugural season.

The remaining 14 players will join RSL in the form of trades, allocations, MLS SuperDraft picks (January 14, 2005) and discovery options. The League's 10th season will open with First Kick 2005 on Saturday, April 2, and the highly anticipated first game in the history of Real Salt Lake, which travels to New York to face the MetroStars at Giants Stadium at 5:00 p.m. MT.

RSL Acquires Selolwane, Whitfield from Chicago Fire – Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2004

Page Two

REAL SALT LAKE ROSTER – Thursday, December 30, 2004

Player Pos Birthdate Exp / Notes:

Nelson Akwari DF 02-04-1982 3 Project-40 graduate in 2004, started regularly and helped solidify the Crew's defense in 19 games

Kevin Ara MF 02-08-1982 1 Harvard product saw action in six contests during his rookie campaign in MLS, including one start

Matt Behncke DF 02-04-1982 3 Princeton product in and out of the starting lineup, scoring once in 17 games

Pablo Brenes DF 08-04-1982 1 Promising left-sided def/mid, Costa Rican Olympian played 14 games for MetroStars

Chris Brown M/F 03-10-1977 6 Brown recorded goal, two assists in limited duty for San Jose after early-season trade with Revs

D.J. Countess GK 01-09-1982 3 Young 'keeper limited to two appearances for Chicago after offseason trade from Dallas

Brian Kamler MF 02-12-1972 9 MLS original who played in 22 games this season for the Revs, on the left of midfield or defense

Jason Kreis FW 12-29-1972 9 All-Time MLS leading goal scorer (91) and game-winning goal scorer (28)

Rusty Pierce DF 07-24-1979 3 Rugged center back returned from serious thigh injury shore up Revolution defense

Erick Scott FW 05-21-1981 1 Costa Rican int'l saw only six games in his first MLS season, away often on international duty

Dipsy Selolwane FW 01-27-1978 2 Botswanan striker has registered numerous game-winning goals in Open Cup, WCQ

Jeff Stewart DF 06-02-1980 3 Started 27 of 31 matches in first two MLS seasons before knee injury erased 2004 campaign

Evan Whitfield DF 06-23-1977 5 Phoenix native one of only 7 Fire players to appear in 100+ games

Andy Williams MF 09-23-1977 7 Jamaican int'l was 2nd-leading scorer for Chicago, registering 17 points on four goals, nine assists

TWO DAYS REMAIN FOR TRYOUT NOMINATIONS: The Real Salt Lake technical staff has received several dozen inquiries from local and regional league presidents for players to participate in Real Salt Lake's invitation-only tryout, to be held on January 22, 2005.

Presidents or leaders of several prominent soccer groups have been asked to submit nominations, including Utah Youth Soccer Association, Utah Soccer Association, Liga de Futbol Mexico-Utah, Organizacion Civil Deportivo Utah, Liga Latinoamericana, Utah Blitzz (USL) and Brigham Young University. Players who are not affiliated with one of these organizations may submit nominations directly to Real Salt Lake, but priority for the limited number of tryout spots will go to affiliated players.

Further details for the January 22nd tryout will be announced shortly – but it will consist of 20-30 players and take place in the Salt Lake City area. Should a player perform at a high-caliber level at the tryout, he will earn the opportunity to join Real Salt Lake for the team's preseason training beginning on February 1, 2005.

In order for a player to be nominated, he must have been born no earlier than April 1, 1982. Foreign players must provide proof of Division 1, National Team or U-23 National Team experience. Foreign players should also have permanent residency in the USA, or a valid work visa. Nomination forms can be downloaded currently at www.RealSaltLake.com and will be accepted by mail until 5:00 p.m. MT on December 31, 2004, with invitations to the tryout being extended no later than Friday, January 7, 2005.

Preparations continue for the inaugural season of Real Salt Lake, kicking off in April, 2005. More information on the club can be found on the team's official website at www.RealSaltLake.com or by calling 1-866-9-SOCCER.

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