Real Salt Lake Midfielder Braian Ojeda Called by Paraguay to Set up Duel against Teammate Diego Luna
MLS Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake Midfielder Braian Ojeda Called by Paraguay to Set up Duel against Teammate Diego Luna

Published on November 7, 2025 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


HERRIMAN, Utah - Real Salt Lake midfielder Braian Ojeda has once again been selected to represent his home country of Paraguay for upcoming international friendly matches, the 25-year-old Ojeda recalled to the Albirroja selection for the third time in the last few months after being left out of senior national team duties since October, 2023.

Ojeda and his Paraguay squad next face off against the United States and RSL teammate Diego Luna on Sat., Nov. 15 in Chester, Penn., before traveling to San Antonio, Tex., to face off against Mexico on Tues., Nov. 18.

Ojeda - second on RSL this year with five goals scored across all competitions, trailing only Luna (10) - again looks to contribute to a new era for Paraguay, which saw him make five of his 11 all-time senior team caps during qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The two-way RSL midfielder played 91 minutes in October's Far East trip against Korea and Japan, on the heels of just 16 minutes in early September after last appearing for Paraguay in October, 2023, on the heels of 16 appearances for various Albirroja youth national teams.

A goal-scoring hero for RSL, the immense Ojeda rewarded a dynamic first half in the late September 3-1 win over Austin with his 45th-minute score. Ojeda also scored the game-winning goal in two RSL midsummer victories: the latest on Aug. 6 against Queretaro in Leagues Cup action, just four days after providing his first-ever professional brace against Atlético San Luis in the same tournament. Just one week earlier, Ojeda scored his first-ever MLS game-winner in the 81st minute back on July 26 against San Jose, giving him four goals in four games, after just two in his previous 75 with RSL.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup hopeful Ojeda has now made 123 appearances across all competitions for RSL since his September 2022 arrival, a midfield staple with extensive ground coverage, incisive passing forward and an endless engine. Ojeda led RSL in minutes during the record-setting 2024 campaign, and was consistently one of RSL's top performers in the 2025 season across multiple competitions.

Earlier this week, Real Salt Lake Sporting Director Kurt Schmid announced various end-of-season roster moves, returning 28 players - including eight from the Club's Academy/Monarchs homegrown pipeline - from the ninth-seeded 2025 squad. RSL returns to Herriman to kick off its 22nd Major League Soccer preseason on January 10, 2026.

Those announcements arrive two-plus weeks after Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni's team saw its West-best fifth consecutive MLS Cup Playoff run end with a 3-1 loss in Portland in the Wild Card Match, as RSL advanced to the postseason for the seventh time in the last eight years, and for the 15th occasion in the last 18 years overall.

As of Nov. 5, 2025, Real Salt Lake's current roster headed into 2026, listed alphabetically by position, is as follows:

Goalkeepers (3): Rafael Cabral, Max Kerkvliet, Mason Stajduhar

Defenders (5): Justen Glad, Alex Katranis, Philip Quinton, Luis Rivera, Brayan Vera

Midfielders (11): Owen Anderson, Noel Caliskan, Emeka Eneli, Diogo Gonçalves, Diego Luna, Omar Marquez, Luca Moisa, Braian Ojeda, Nelson Palacio, Pablo Ruiz, Juan Gio Villa

Forwards (9): Jesus Barea, Rwan Cruz, Zavier Gozo, Aiden Hezarkhani, Dominik Marczuk, Victor Olatunji, Ari Piol, Tyler Wolff, Marcos Zambrano

Ongoing discussions TBD - DF Javain Brown, DF Kobi Henry, DF Sam Junqua

Key 2025/26 MLS Offseason Dates & Roster Mechanisms:

(Dates, Times [MT] - Subject to Change)

Wed., Nov. 26 - Deadline to exercise options / extend bona fide offers (11a MT)

Sat., Dec. 6 - MLS Cup 2025

Wed., Dec. 10 - MLS Free Agency period opens (11a MT)

Wed., Dec. 10 - Sat., Dec. 13 - MLS College Showcase, Mesa, AZ

Thurs., Dec. 11 - Re-Entry Process, Stage 1 (11a MT); End of Year Waivers (3p MT)

Wed., Dec. 17 - Re-Entry Process, Stage 2 (3p MT)

Thu., Dec. 18 - 2026 MLS SuperDraft (TBD)

Sat - Mon., Jan. 10-12 - 2026 RSL / MLS Preseason Begins

Sat., Feb. 21 - 2026 MLS Regular Season // RSL Season #22 Kicks Off

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