Real Salt Lake were the latest team to learn how thin the line from happiness to heartbreak can be in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs.
Just moments away from advancing to the Western Conference Semifinals against Austin FC at Q2 Stadium, RSL conceded a stoppage-time penalty that allowed Sebastián Driussi to cancel out Sergio Córdova's two goals with a brace of his own, leveling the score at 2-2 and forcing the game into extra periods. Things were eventually decided in a spot-kick shootout, which the hosts easily won, 3-1, to move on and end their opponent's season.
It was a bitter pill to swallow for a team that had done almost everything right until the 52nd minute. Leading 2-1, Salt Lake suddenly found themselves down a man after Rubio Rubin was sent off with a second yellow card for an overly aggressive challenge on goalkeeper Brad Stuver.
Despite a valiant effort playing with 10 men to preserve their lead, the visitors couldn't hold on.
“That’s how soccer is,” said head coach Pablo Mastroeni post-game. “The important thing to me is how the guys fought, how they battled for each other. They never stopped chasing the result and sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t.
"We were two minutes away from seeing out the result and this hurts.”
Turning point
The mood was bright for RSL early on, jumping out to a 2-0 lead within 15 minutes thanks to Córdova's brace.
Even after Driussi pulled one back for the hosts in the 31st minute, the visitors still had things relatively under control. That all changed once Rubin earned himself an unexpected trip to the showers.
As Maestroni put it, that moment of recklessness “changed everything.”
“Honestly it hurts because we talked about it at halftime,” the manager said. “We all knew [Rubin] had a yellow card … and maybe the emotion of the game influenced his decision making [when he got the second yellow]."
Even so, RSL were able to fend off Austin's attack for some 40 minutes and looked poised to pull off a stunning upset over the West's No. 2 seed.
It all turned in the second of six minutes of second-half added time, as Emiliano Rigoni’s shot struck the hand of Scott Caldwell inside his own box, prompting referee Victor Rivas to point to the penalty spot. Up stepped Landon Donovan MLS MVP award candidate Driussi, who made no mistake against Zac MacMath.
“Being two minutes away from securing the result to move on I think is the most painful,” said Mastroeni. “But again, the commitment, the resolve, the desire to really try to right a wrong that happened in the game, as teammates, I couldn’t be more proud.
"On any other given day, the ball doesn’t bounce off Scott’s hand. Everything that the guys did tonight really speaks to the character of this group, and a really good building block to build as we continue to move forward.”
Hope for the future
While Real Salt Lake will ultimately be left disappointed they were unable to replicate their Cinderella run from last season (when they reached the Western Conference Final), 2022 marked the 12th time in the last 15 seasons they made the postseason.
They showed heart down the stretch of the regular season when the odds were stacked against them, clinching a playoff spot on Decision Day for the second straight year. And while they didn’t come away with the result Sunday, their overall performance left Mastroeni feeling optimistic about what’s to come.
“I feel really that the last three performances that we had were our three best performances of the year,” he said. “Again, that takes honesty, it takes accountability from the group and doing at times some of the things that aren’t your specialty. When you put together performances like the last three games, it shows a ton of growth, it shows togetherness, it shows an understanding and an unwavering belief to continue to improve, and I think that’s paramount for any team. … I challenged the group to continue to evolve every game and they did just that.”
As for his message to the loyal RSL fanbase?
“Our fans were a driving force in our ability to win games this season,” the former US international concluded. “They’ve stuck by our side, they’ve come out in droves, and at times, we’ve underperformed at home and didn’t come away with the result, and our fans never wavered.
"And for me, I think we’re in the process of building a fantastic group that will make them proud and will be a symbol of what they expect for this group moving forward.”
