SANDY, Utah (Sat., Mar. 1, 2025) – Real Salt Lake (1-1-0, 3 pts., 7th West MLS) won its 2025 MLS home opener Saturday afternoon by a 2-0 scoreline before 18,853 at America First Field over the visiting Seattle Sounders. The win snaps a three-game winless run for the Utah side across multiple competitions, with RSL bouncing back from both Wednesday’s home elimination in CONCACAF Champions Cup, on the heels of last weekend’s season-opening MLS loss at San Jose.
RSL Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni made seven personnel changes today from the 2-1 home loss in the midweek continental setback against CS Herediano. The matinee saw the first-ever start and first MLS and Club minutes for Australian striker Ari Piol, the sixth Club member to make his debut in the four games played over the last 10 days.
Brazilian goalkeeper Rafael Cabral is the lone player to have started each of the four games so far this season, recording his second clean sheet of the year. Five players also made their third starts of the four-game campaign so far, including Captain Emeka Eneli, Alex Katranis, Dominik Marczuk and Diogo Gonçalves.
Wednesday's lineup also included Homegrown poster boy Justen Glad - now third overall in all-time minutes played for RSL, trailing only Club legends Nick Rimando and Kyle Beckerman - who played today’s full 90 minutes. Along with Glad, another Homegrown defender Bode Hidalgo earned minutes off the bench late in the second half.
After keeping Seattle at bay and in their defensive end for a majority of the game, RSL was able to clinch the win with a goal from newcomer Forster Ajago in the 79th minute. The Ghanaian striker’s second goal in as many games this week marked the perfect way to shut the door on the Sounders’ collective comeback hopes.
Real Salt Lake remains at home this week, welcoming expansion side San Diego FC next Saturday, March 8,
to America First Field for a 7:30p MT kickoff. Tickets are available at www.RSL.com/tickets, with the match available via MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+.
RSL 2 : 0 SEA
GOALSCORING SUMMARY
RSL: Own Goal (Nouhou) 8’ : A beautiful cross from Alex Katranis down the left side leaves the Seattle Sounders defense in confusion, causing Nouhou to head the ball into the back of their net, ignoring Stefan Frei’s instruction
RSL: Forster Ajago (Diogo Gonçalves) 79’ : Ajago fielded the ball and passed off to Gonçalves for a transitional give-and-go at midfield, whose beautiful touch sprang Forster Ajago for a perfectly-timed central run. Gonçalves timed his pass perfectly and Ajago was able to beat his defender and sneak the ball to the left of a diving Frei.
NOTES FROM RSL 2 : 0 SEA
- Forward Forster Ajago has now scored goals in back-to-back games, opening his RSL account in the 26th minute Wednesday against Herediano
- With today’s victory, RSL improved to 10 wins and nine draws against just two losses in its 21 all-time MLS home openers
- RSL also improved to 13 wins and four draws in MLS regular-season contests in Utah soil against Seattle, which has won in Sandy only once ever, the last Sounders victory coming in 2011 (Seattle did win a playoff elimination game in Utah in the Clubs’ 2012 series)
- For the third time in four matches, RSL’s Captain was Emeka Eneli, the third-year player from Cornell who was called into the U.S. National Team’s January camp, alongside RSL starlet and reigning MLS Young Player of the Year Diego Luna
- Today’s win enabled RSL boss Pablo Mastroeni to snap a rare occasion of back-to-back losses, something which has occurred just 10 times in the 143-game Pablo era
- When scoring first since Pablo took over the head coaching reins in August, 2021, RSL now boasts a record of 35 wins, 12 draws and just five losses
LINEUPS
Real Salt Lake (4-2-3-1): Rafael Cabral; Javain Brown (Kobi Henry, 81’), Phillip Quinton (Brayan Vera, 81’), Justen Glad, Alex Katranis (Sam Junqua, 68’); Emeka Eneli ©, Braian Ojeda, Dominik Marczuk (Bode Hidalgo, 68’), Diego Luna, Diogo Gonçalves; Ari Piol (Forster Ajago, 68’).
Subs not used: Mason Stajduhar, Nelson Palacio, Pablo Ruiz, Tyler Wolff
Head Coach: Pablo Mastroeni
Seattle Sounders FC : (4-2-3-1): Stefan Frei © ; Kalani Kossa-Rienzi (Jesus Ferreira Castro, 69’), Yeimar Pastor Gomez Andrade, Jonathan Bell, Nouhou Tolo (Jackson Cameron Regan,69’); Obed Vargas, Cristian Rolden; Georgi Minoungou (Pedro de la Vega,46’), Albert Rusnak, Paul Rothrock (Paul Arriola, 46’); Jordan Morris (Danny Leyva, 80’).Subs not used: Joao Paulo Mior, Daniel Musovski, Andrew Thomas, Codt Baker
Head Coach: Brian Schmetzer
Stats Summary: RSL / SEA
Shots: 10 / 12
Shots on Goal: 5 / 3
Saves: 3 / 4
Corner Kicks: 3 / 4
Fouls: 16 / 10
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:
SEA: Nouhou Tolo (Yellow Card - 25’)
RSL: Javain Brown (Yellow Card - 56’)
RSL: Forster Ajago (Yellow Card - 90 + 4’)
