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MLS Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake Travels to Face LAFC Sunday

September 29, 2023 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release


HERRIMAN, Utah - Real Salt Lake (12-11-7, 43 pts., t-4th West) continues its 2023 season Sunday night in Southern California at Los Angeles Football Club (12-9-9, 45 pts., t-2nd West). Sunday's kickoff at LAFC starts at 6:00p MT on FS1 w/ Kevin Egan and Brian Dunseth (ENG) and Jorge Perez-Navarro and Marcelo Balboa (SPN). For local coverage, tune in at 5:00p MT for KSL Radio pre-game w/ David James & Jay Nolly via www.KSLSports.com / 1280 AM / 97.5 FM and www.KSLNewsRadio.com / 1160 AM).

Real Salt Lake @ Los Angeles FC - MLS Matchday 35

BMO Stadium - Los Angeles, Calif.

Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023 - 6:00p MT

2023 Records: Real Salt Lake (12-11-7, 43 pts, t-4th West); LAFC (12-9-9, 45 pts., t-2nd West)

With 43 points accumulated through 30 games of the 2023 MLS campaign, Real Salt Lake enters the final month of the season as part of a 10-team glut from 2nd to 11th place in the Western Conference separated by just eight points in the race for the 2023 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs (top nine teams), with RSL seeking its first home postseason match since 2019.

RSL Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni's side arrives at the final four games of the season tied on 43 points with Houston, two points shy of both Seattle and LAFC (45 points) as Conference runners-up behind leader St. Louis. The Utah side is one point ahead of both Portland and Vancouver (42 points), two ahead of San Jose (41 points) and four or more points ahead of Dallas (39 points), Kansas City (38 points) and Minnesota (37 points).

LAFC HISTORY: RSL dropped an 0-4 Leagues Cup decision at LAFC back on August 8, a game marred by a 9th-minute non-contact injury to metronomic midfielder Pablo Ruiz. LAFC won in Utah back in early May by a 3-0 scoreline, with this year's results dropping RSL's all-time, all competitions record to two wins against 12 losses in the six-year series. The highlight of the series for RSL is the 2018 postseason win in LA - secured by RSL Captain Damir Kreilach's "Karate Kick" goal - with RSL also winning a reg. season match in 2020.

LAST TIME OUT: RSL rebounded from back-to-back losses to capture the full three points at home with a 2-1 victory over Vancouver, as second-half goals from Brayan Vera and Justen Glad reversed an 0-1 halftime deficit. Vera's equalizer was his second goal scored during his first season at RSL, both coming as direct free kicks, both at home in September. Glad's game-winner was his fifth of the season, the Homegrown centerback getting his head on an Andrés Gómez cross. The assist was Gómez sixth of the season, with five of the six proving to be game-winners.

DECISION DAY DRAMA: Real Salt Lake has finished each of the last two seasons in dramatic fashion, booking its place in the MLS Cup Playoffs on Decision Day with scintillating wins in both 2021 (1-0 at Kansas City) and 2022 (3-1 against Portland), advancing to the postseason in 12 of the last 15 campaigns.

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