Real Salt Lake is once again on the road for the second time in a row this week. They travel further east this time to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to face off against the last undefeated team in the MLS, the Philadelphia Union, where they’ll battle it out at Subaru Park. The last time these two teams faced off was July 13, 2019, where Real Salt Lake dominated the Union 4-0 at Rio Tinto. To put it into perspective, Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman were still playing then. The top goalscorers in this fixture are Javier Morales and Kyle Beckerman, both having 3 goals.
This matchup should prove to be a memorable battle as two of the top MLS sides this year are set to face off.
Real Salt Lake:
Pablo Masteroni’s starting eleven: Zac MacMath as the goalkeeper, Bode Hidalgo and Alexandros Katranis as the outside backs, Brayan Vera and Justen Glad return as the center backs, Emeka Eneli and Braian Ojeda are the starting midfielders, Fidel Barajas and Andres Gomez as the wingers, Matt Crooks is the attacking midfielder, and Captain Chicho Arango is the lone striker.
Bench: Gavin Beavers, Philip Quinton, Bryan Oviedo, Andrew Brody, Nelson Palacio, Maikel Chang, Bertin Jacquesson, and Anderson Julio.
Head Coach Pablo Masteroni continues to run with his successful formation 4-2-3-1 after switching from a 4-4-2 that he used last season. Notably, Justen Glad and Brayan Vera are back in the lineup after missing the last game due to injury, which means Salt Lake doesn’t have to line up with outside backs as center backs.
Philadelphia Union:
Jim Curtin’s starting eleven: Andre Blake as the goalkeeper, Nathan Harriel and Kai Wagner are the outside backs, Jakob Glesnes and Jack Elliot the center back pairing, Jose Andres Martinez, Jack McGlynn, Alejandro Bedoya, and Daniel Gazdag are the midfielders. Lastly, Quinn Sullivan and Julian Carranza are the striker duo.
Bench: Oliver Semmle, Jeremy Rafanello, Leon Flach, Olivier Mbaizo, Tai Baribo, Mikael Uhre, Jesus Bueno, and Chris Donovan.
Head Coach Jim Curtin has his team lined up in a 4-1-2-1-2, which has kept the Union undefeated this 2024 MLS campaign. Curtin only makes one change to his lineup with Jack Elliot coming in for Damion Lowe.
The Game:
The first half was very slow as neither team could get something going early in the match. Both teams were creating chances and letting shots fly from left to right. The Philadelphia Union worked very hard to try and get on the board with notable U.S. youth international Quinn Sullivan leading the way for them, but Jim Curtin’s side just couldn’t get past goalkeeper Zac MacMath. However, after 34 minutes of both teams battling it out, Real Salt Lake finally found some luck. Salt Lake was the first on the scoresheet with none other than Chicho Arango being involved in a goal once again. But it all started with Fidel Barajas playing a simple ball to Chicho in the middle of the field. Arango picked up the ball and charged forward, beating center back Jack Elliot to a 50/50 challenge. Chicho continued to drive forward where eventually he laid off
the ball to right winger Andres Gomez. Gomez struck a hard shot inside the 18-yard box right at goalkeeper Andre Blake. Blake didn’t handle the shot and saw the ball deflect off of him right into his own goal. Blake’s poor handling of the ball put Real Salt Lake up 1-0 over the Union. Goal by Andres Gomez, assisted by Chicho Arango. Nothing notable happened after that, but Chicho Arango did get himself a yellow card after arguing with the ref over a foul that was called on him in the 39th minute. Arango showed his frustrations as more than 15 fouls were called in the first half, with referee Malik Badawi making countless inconsistent calls. Other than that, both teams headed into the locker rooms after the halftime whistle, and Salt Lake was up 1-0 over Eastern Conference giants Philadelphia Union.
The second half got off to a quick start with action happening right away. It only took two minutes for Nathan Harriel and Alexandros Katranis to collide, with Katranis being at fault and picking up a yellow card in the 47th minute. But shortly after the foul, the Union caught Salt Lake’s defense sleeping as Daniel Gazdag flicked the ball into an empty net. Quinn Sullivan played a wonderful ball to set up Gazdag. The Union were finally on the board, leveling the match at 1-1 in the 50th minute. In the next 28 minutes, 4 yellow cards were given out, and the game was starting to become more aggressive as both teams weren’t backing down. Real Salt Lake players Brayan Vera, Andres Gomez, and Matt Crooks all saw themselves cautioned, as well as Philadelphia Union player Julian Carranza. Lastly, in the 88th minute of the game, Real Salt Lake were given a free kick from far out with substitute Maikel Chang as the taker. Chang lobbed in the free kick, not connecting with any teammates, but the ball found its way to Alexandros Katranis' feet, where he let a shot rip off the volley from outside the 18-yard box. The ball knuckled its way into the far side of Andre Blake's goal, giving Real Salt Lake a 2-1 lead with minutes left in the game! Alexandros Katranis' out-of-this-world effort helped Salt Lake secure all three points at Subaru Park, ruining the Union's perfect record.
Real Salt Lake fan and co-host of the Royal Riot Pod, Mattey Casey, had this to say about Alexandros Katranis' goal, “Like a cheesesteak through their hearts.”
Player Spotlight:
Alexandros Katranis - The new signing from Greece has now played 7 matches for the Claret and Cobalt. Through those 7 matches, he has 4 G/A contributions, with notably 2 of his goals being absolutely world-class strikes. Katranis seems to be settling into Salt Lake pretty well, and it hasn’t taken him long at all to get comfortable within the team. He showed exactly why he was bought by Pablo Masteroni last night. Katranis likes to point out that he plays like a modern-day fullback because he enjoys being involved in the attack and also willing to defend. I’m looking forward to seeing how Katranis pans out for the rest of the season, and hopefully he keeps up the fantastic form he is in.
What’s Next For Real Salt Lake:
Real Salt Lake have a busy schedule heading their way as they return home on May 4, 2024, to face off against rivals Sporting Kansas City. Kansas City currently sits 10th place in the West
while Real Salt Lake sits 1st. After that match on Saturday, Salt Lake will open up their 2024 U.S. Open Cup campaign versus USL Championship side New Mexico United in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on May 8, 2024. Real Salt Lake is 1 out of 8 MLS sides participating in the Open Cup, and there is no doubt that Salt Lake wants to win the cup in 2024 after losing in the semi-finals versus the Houston Dynamo in 2023.
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