Missed Chances Doom Real Salt Lake In Shutout Loss To Toronto FC
Apr 19, 2025, 10:03 PM | Updated: Apr 22, 2025, 12:37 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – Real Salt Lake dominated between the lines but couldn’t find the back of the net in a shutout loss to Toronto FC at America First Field on Saturday.
RSL controlled possession, fired 23 shots to just two from the visitors, and earned eight corner kicks. But Toronto made the most of its few chances, scoring on one of them and saving all five of Real’s shots on goal.
The frustration boiled over in the second half when Diego Luna was sent off with a red card, effectively sealing the result before the final whistle.
Real Salt Lake will now head out on a three-game road trip, beginning next weekend in San Diego.
First Half
RSL and Toronto both came out of the gates firing at AFF.
In the first five minutes, there were three offside calls as both clubs hastily looked to take the early advantage.
This aggression ended up playing out in favor of the visitors. In the 9th minute, Toronto’s Theo Corbeanu took advantage of a turnover outside of the box as he outpaced the defense and found the bottom right corner.
Theo Corbeanu scores his first MLS goal and @TorontoFC has the early lead on the road.
📺 #MLSSeasonPass: https://t.co/kfmYpdjMso pic.twitter.com/ezXUeiexYa
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 20, 2025
As the rest of the half played out, Real completely controlled the game.
They held a dominant lead in time of possession (65%), shots, and corner kicks. In fact, Toronto’s goal was the only shot attempt of the half.
Unfortunately, with nine attempts and two shots on goal, Real Salt Lake was unable to equalize.
Their best opportunity came in the 36th minute. After Luna was fouled at the top of the box, they set up for a close-range free kick. Diogo Gonçalves had back-to-back shots blocked, and a third was sent wide of the goal.
Despite having the advantage on paper, games are won with goals, and RSL was unable to break through. They trailed 1-0 at the half.
Not backing down#RSLvTOR | @SeatGeek pic.twitter.com/MUoxR38M1F
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) April 20, 2025
Second Half
The second 45′ was more of the same.
RSL continued its statistical dominance but was unable to turn that into a score. By the final whistle, they extended their time of possession advantage to almost 68 percent, more than doubled their shot attempts, and held Toronto to just two attempts.
The frustration continued to build for Real, and that became apparent as the 60th minute passed. Luna was shown a red card for some after-the-play antics and was sent off for the night.
65′ | Luna sent off with a red card #RSLvTOR | 0-1
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) April 20, 2025
Despite playing at a man disadvantage, the heat only turned up for Real.
In the 70th, Alexandros Katranis and Braian Ojeda forced two Toronto saves in about a minute of action.
The shots continued to roll in for RSL, but those back-to-back attempts were the last two that were on frame.
Nine minutes of stoppage time were added. Even with an extra tenth of a match to make something happen, the claret and cobalt couldn’t break through.
Toronto FC picked up its first win of the season in Sandy, 1-0.
How To Watch Real Salt Lake
All Major League Soccer games are broadcasted on Apple TV with MLS Season Pass.
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.
