Real Salt Lake have begun discussing new contracts with club legends Kyle Beckerman and Nick Rimando, a source told MLSsoccer.com.
Both Beckerman and Rimando are in the final year of their current contracts. The source said that discussions with both players are in their preliminary phases and that nothing is expected to be decided before the end of the season. Both Beckerman and Rimando will be eligible to sign with any MLS team as a free agent this winter.
According to the MLS Players’ Union, Beckerman is set to make $825,000 this year while Rimando will pull in $470,000. RSL used Targeted Allocation Money to buy Beckerman’s 2017 budget charge under the Designated Player threshold.
Perhaps the two people most synonymous with Real Salt Lake, Beckerman and Rimando have both been with the club since 2007. They led RSL to the MLS Cup title in 2009 and helped the club to appearances in the finals of the 2011 CONCACAF Champions League, 2013 US Open Cup and 2013 MLS Cup. They rank first and second in MLS history in regular season appearances, with Rimando atop the charts with 450 games played and Beckerman not far behind with 430.
The 38-year-old Rimando has eight shutouts in 26 regular season appearances this season and is currently with the US national team for their World Cup qualifiers against Panama on Friday and at Trinidad & Tobago next Tuesday.
Beckerman, 35, has four goals in 24 regular season games in 2017, scoring on the final kick of the game to give Salt Lake a 1-1 draw at LA in Week 30.
RSL are currently in sixth-place in the Western Conference with two regular season games remaining. They’ll continue their playoff push with matches at Colorado in Week 32 and at home against Sporting KC on Decision Day.
