RSL rookie Jesus Barea has chance to be The Guy in historic Real Monarchs postseason
RSL rookie Jesus Barea's run with the second team may be just as crucial to the first team down the line.
Jesus Barea had a choice to make, if not all year at least recently.
The 23-year-old striker and No. 19 overall pick in last year’s MLS SuperDraft by Real Salt Lake had spent much of the season with Real Monarchs, and was no entering the fringes of first-team selection — a move that could lead to more full-time selection with the club in 2026.
But Barea was among the leaders of the Monarchs, Salt Lake’s second team that has clinched a playoff spot in MLS NEXT Pro for the first time since the squad entered the third-division competition in 2022.
Barea is the first player with a double-figure scoring campaign since Real Monarchs left the second-division USL Championship as a result of the fracture between MLS and United Soccer League play, cementing the status with a brace in a 4-2 road win over North Texas SC last week.
Now with playoffs secured and one final home match against Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 at Zions Bank Stadium on Sunday (2 p.m. MT, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV), Barea had a discussion with RSL manager Pablo Mastroeni, who has been following his campaign closely.
“He’s done a fantastic job. I don’t think we’ve had a double-digit scorer with the Monarchs in a few years,” said Mastroeni of the first double-figure goal scorer with the Monarchs since Douglas Martinez notched 16 in 2019, according to FBRef.com. “He trained with us just last week.
“I could bring him into the group, and there was a possibility he might play with us at the weekend — maybe a slim possibility. Or you can continue the run of form you’re on, continue to build that with the Monarchs, and understand whenever their season ends and carry on with us but also think more into 2026. It feels really comforting for myself and the front office to know we can count on this guy heading into next year.”
With all the talk of winning through development on which Salt Lake tries to focus, the winning has taken a back seat to development in recent years.
The club has still developed, sending players on to the first team as recently as starting right back Noel Caliskan. But Barea’s opportunity with the Monarchs is something different: the chance to be The Guy, especially with striker Marcos Zambrano accompanying RSL first-team breakout Zavier Gozo and the U.S. U-20 national team at the World Cup in Chile.
“It’s more art than science,” Mastroeni admits. “But I think in this moment, what he’s doing is building this belief and confidence within himself, and we feel that when he comes up to the first team. We don’t want to keep him with us just to maybe play 15 minutes, where he could establish himself, make a run with the Monarchs, and hopefully compete to win the whole thing.”
With a postseason bid secured, the Monarchs’ 48 points currently has the club guaranteed a top-four finish in the Western Conference.
They can climb higher with any number of a better result on MLS Decision Day than Colorado Rapids 2, which plays seventh-place Ventura County at the same time Salt Lake faces fifth-place Vancouver.
You can watch the Monarchs’ regular-season finale here, or get to Zions Bank Stadium by the 2 p.m. MT kickoff to see the club in person.