Real Salt Lake 0 vs. 3 Austin FC
September 14, 2022; Q2 Stadium, Austin, Texas
Real Salt Lake (11-10-10, 43 points); Austin FC (16-9-6, 54 points)
Man of the Match: Midfielder Diego Luna played a solid match in his second career MLS start, leading the attack for Real Salt Lake in the loss. Luna led the Club in shots with four and nearly opened the scoring in the match when he split through the Austin defense and tried slotting a ball to the far post but was barely saved by Julio Cascante. The young midfielder created multiple opportunities for RSL, consistently setting up his teammates and peppering shots himself.
Telling Stat: With tonight’s loss, Real Salt Lake extended its scoreless streak to three matches, the longest time the Club has gone without a goal since 2017. The last time RSL went three straight matches without a goal was May 2017 when the Club dropped three consecutive matches to Kansas City, FC Dallas and New England Revolution. Prior to this scoreless drought, Real Salt Lake had scored in each of the six previous matches, led by forward Sergio Cordova who netted four goals in the month of August.
What You Missed: In its final midweek match of the 2022 season, Real Salt Lake fell 1-0 to Austin FC on the road behind a hattrick from second-half substitute Moussa Djitte. New signing Braian Ojeda became the 26th player to start for RSL this season while defender Bryan Oviedo and midfielder Diego Luna made their second starts of the season. RSL led in almost every offensive category tonight, controlling possession, shots, shots on target and corners despite not finding the back of the net.
What’s Next: Real Salt Lake returns to America First Field on Saturday, September 17 at 7:30 p.m. MT to host FC Cincinnati as part of Hispanic Heritage Night. The University Of Utah Health Plaza on the east side of the stadium opens at 5:30 p.m. MT, with gates opening for the crucial match at 6:00 p.m. MT. Limited tickets are available at www.rsl.com/tickets.
