Real Salt Lake won 2-1 over MLS newcomer Austin FC in a wild match on Saturday, May 14, at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah. RSL now moves to a 4–3-4 record in the regular season and tied with LA Galaxy for fourth in the Western Conference with 19 points.
RSL forward Bobby Wood had a great look in the seventh minute, trying to connect up top, but Austin goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell made the save.
Austin responded aggressively and tried to connect with a few corners and a missed header by Austin defender Julio Cascante in the 13th minute. However, midfielder Alexander Ring scored in the 24th minute, connecting into the bottom-right corner to give Austin an early 1-0 lead.
RSL forward Sergio Córdova attempted to answer in the 34th but Tarbell made the save. Defender Marcelo Silva followed with another shot after a corner, but it was just high. Austin forward Sebastián Driussi and defender Hector Jimenez picked up yellow cards during the last minutes of the half.
The second half started with a game-altering red card called on Austin defender Daniel Pereira in the 47th. RSL immediately applied the pressure with a few blocked shots and shots by Wood and Maikel Chang, respectively, that Tarbell saved. Fortunately for RSL, Chang scored the equalizer in the bottom right corner in the 55th to tie the game 1-1.
Austin tried to respond in the 61st and 62nd minutes with attempts by defender Zan Kolmanic and Driussi, but both were off-target.
RSL forward Anderson Julio and midfielder Everton Luiz tried to connect in the 77th and 83rd, respectively, but Tarbell made the saves. However, defender Andrew Brody stung the top-right corner in the 88th to put RSL up 2-1.
Driussi tried to keep Austin in the game with shots in the 90th and 90th + 7th minutes, but RSL goalkeeper Zac MacMath saved the attempts.
Despite RSL being out possessed by Austin 54.5% to 45.5%, RSL pulled off with the win outshooting Austin 14 to nine. The win comes with RSL out fouling Austin 10 to six as well. RSL also remains unbeaten at home.
Real Salt Lake now heads to Montréal, Québec in Canada to take on the Eastern Conference-leading CF Montréal on Sunday, May 22, at Stade Olympique. The match will kick off at 2 p.m. MT and can be streamed on ESPN+.
Featured image via Sportsnaut
