Real Salt Lake 0 vs. Portland Timbers 0
April 23, 2022; Providence Park, Portland, Oregon
Real Salt Lake (3-2-4, 13 points); Portland Timbers (2-2-5, 11 points)
Man of the Match: In his first start of the season, midfielder Everton Luiz helped lead Real Salt Lake’s defensive effort, keeping Portland out of the net to secure a hard-fought point on the road. Luiz led all players with seven clearances, while also being second in both tackles with 2 and interceptions with 1. His clearances were crucial to the team’s ability to earn a point on the road, blocking several opportunities within the 18-yard-box from Portland.Â
Telling Stat: This draw marks the first points Real Salt Lake has earned at Providence Park since August of 2020 when RSL and the Timbers played to a 4-4 draw after a 90th minute goal from Giuseppi Rossi and a stoppage-time goal from Sam Johnson. Since then, RSL has gone 0-0-4 across all competitions at Providence Park, including a 2-0 defeat in the Western Conference Final and in the 2022 preseason tournament.Â
What You Missed: Real Salt Lake earned a point on the road in a 0-0 draw with the Portland Timbers. Homegrown Justen Glad returned to the starting lineup after missing the past four MLS matches due to injury. Goalkeeper Zac MacMath made five saves to earn his third clean sheet of the season and second on the road. With his performance in this match, MacMath now leads the league in saves with 36.Â
What’s Next: Real Salt Lake returns to the RioT to face LA Galaxy on Saturday, April 30 at 1:30 p.m. MT for Star Wars day. The University Of Utah Health Plaza on the East side of the stadium opens at 11:30 a.m. MT, with gates opening at 12:00 p.m. MT.
