Real Salt Lake Held Scoreless, Drops Opening Rocky Mountain Cup Clash
May 17, 2025, 10:01 PM | Updated: May 19, 2025, 9:54 am
(Photo courtesy of Real Salt Lake)
(Photo courtesy of Real Salt Lake)
COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – Real Salt Lake was bested by its rival Colorado Rapids in the first installment of the 2025 Rocky Mountain Cup on Saturday.
The match was largely contested between the boxes. Once Colorado broke the deadlock in the 70th minute, RSL couldn’t find an equalizer and fell, 1-0.
Unfortunately for Real, it was another game where the stats and end result painted different pictures. The road side led in time of possession and shots, but lack of execution in scoring moments kept the club winless this month.
Real Salt Lake will return home to host the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday, May 24.
Final #COLvRSL | @SelectHealth pic.twitter.com/8Im0I6pVLP
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 18, 2025
First Half
The first 45′ between these rivals unfolded as a back-and-forth battle of blows and responses.
Colorado took the first punch. Oliver Larraz fired a shot toward the top corner from the center of the box, forcing Rafael Cabral into an early save. The next ten minutes saw little in the way of scoring chances.
Diego Luna and Pablo Ruiz each tried their luck in the 16th and 17th minutes, but both missed the mark — Luna high, Ruiz wide right.
After a flurry of fouls, Ruiz tested Nicholas Defreitas-Hansen with a left-footed strike that was headed for the top right corner, but the Colorado keeper pushed it away. Minutes later, Luna followed with a shot on target, but Defreitas-Hansen again came up with the stop.
The half ended with a number of free kicks and missed opportunities. Real Salt Lake held the edge in possession and total shots at the break, but the score remained 0-0.
Nothing separates the sides at halftime#COLvRSL | @SeatGeek pic.twitter.com/UuDachSWGK
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 18, 2025
Second Half
After the first 15 or so minutes dragged on for RSL with little pressure applied, the club made a group sub, bringing Dominik Marczuk, Emeka Eneli, and Alexandros Katranis onto the pitch. Eneli replaced Luna.
The subs immediately brought a spark, as both Marczuk and Katranis got looks on goal. Both attempts were blocked by the Rapids.
Shortly after an injury delay, Colorado broke the seal. After a turnover in the zone, Djordje Mihailovic found the bottom left corner from the right side of the box.
Djordje Mihailovic finds the opener for Colorado! 💥
📺 #MLSSeasonPass: https://t.co/IChtZNIlbd pic.twitter.com/nTHp03ppNZ
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 18, 2025
Now with their backs against the wall, Real looked to its bench once again, bringing in Jesús Barea and Johnny Russell for Tyler Wolff and Ruiz.
Colorado’s Cole Bassett, who the previous injury delay was for, forced a somewhat routine save from Cabral in the 77th minute. Justen Glad and Sam Junqua both had their sights set on an equalizer as the 80th minute passed, but couldn’t put their attempts on target.
About five minutes later, Junqua did force a save, but Defreitas-Hansen was able to make his money in the middle of the net.
Seven minutes of stoppage time were added, but Colorado held strong down the stretch to end their losing streak and get a leg up on RSL.
How To Watch Real Salt Lake
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All Real Salt Lake English-language radio coverage for the 2024 season and beyond will be carried on various KSL radio signals. KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM) and KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) are both stations under the Bonneville International umbrella.
