Real Salt Lake announced the re-signing of Chris Schuler on Thursday, bringing the veteran defender back to Major League Soccer after a brief stint in the USL with Real Monarchs SLC.
After suffering a foot injury last season with RSL, Schuler signed with the Monarchs on March 18 and played nine matches with the USL side during his rehab process. In six of his starts, he played the full 90 minutes, proving to RSL's coaching staff that he is fit and ready to contribute again at the MLS level.
“We are excited to bring Chris back to RSL. It's been great having him involved with the organization while with the Monarchs and we've kept a close eye on him throughout the year and we are satisfied that he is healthy and ready to contribute to the first team,” RSL GM Craig Waibel said in a club statement.
“A veteran presence like his is valuable on the field and in the locker room and he will be a good addition to our group.”
Schuler, 28, played six seasons with Salt Lake after being selected in the third round of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. He played 80 matches in six years, highlighted by his career-best 25 appearances in 2014. However, a rash of injuries in 2015 limited him to just five league appearances.
“It's been a crazy 18 months,” Schuler said in the RSL release. “I had a knee surgery, a foot surgery, was unemployed, signed with the Monarchs and yesterday finally earned another RSL contract. None of this would have been possible without the support of my family, friends, teammates and the entire Real Salt Lake organization.
“I'm so thankful for an environment in which I could regain my health and have the opportunity to be successful and achieve my goals; especially here in the community that I've grown to love.”
After missing out on the playoffs last year for the first time since 2007, RSL currently sit in third place in the Western Conference with a 10-7-7 record. They visit the Seattle Sounders on Sunday (7 pm ET; FS1 in US, MLS LIVE in Canada).
