RSL’s playoff push resumes against red-hot Philadelphia Union

SANDY — After snapping a 13-match MLS winless streak with a 3-0 victory over New England on Sept. 26, RSL returns from the international break Saturday to face one of Major League Soccer’s hottest teams.

The Philadelphia Union have won six straight and are riding a club-record 12-match unbeaten streak, scoring 18 goals in their last four matches. They defeated Orlando City 4-2 in their most recent outing, with former RSL Homegrown Milan Iloski bagging a hat trick.

RSL will look to replicate the defensive commitment of its attackers, whose willingness to battle for possession and win individual duels helped create danger against New England.

“I think it’s critical anytime you have a bye week or an extended time away from one game to the next that you end on a good note,” head coach Pablo Mastroeni said Tuesday.

“I think that excitement to get back to work, having won that last game and doing so against a really good team … the same type of grit and mentality is going to be needed against a good Philly team.”

A different way to defend

Rather than pressing high up the pitch against New England, RSL dropped its line of confrontation into a compact mid-block, occasionally retreating into a low block.

The adjustment conserved energy, limited space behind Salt Lake’s defense and invited New England forward, creating room for RSL’s attackers to exploit in transition.

Hezarkhani’s second-minute goal illustrated the importance of winning duels, with Guilavogui fighting through a challenge to win possession before launching the attack that ended with Hezarkhani scoring.

“I think maybe we dropped back a bit more in our defense and we were a bit lower on the pitch, and that gave us a lot of comfort defending,” midfielder Stijn Spierings said.

“Obviously, when we went on the counterattack, we got a lot of chances. I think we could even score a couple more, maybe.”

Forward Morgan Guilavogui said the compact positioning also helped RSL compete more effectively for the ball.

“But when we find this shape and we stay everyone together, you use less energy, and we are more ready for the duels,” Guilavogui said.

Mastroeni agreed that the adjustment benefited Guilavogui, Aiden Hezarkhani and Sergi Solans, who could attack the space behind opposing defenses.

“When you have Morgan, Aidan and Sergi working and firing on all cylinders, that space is worth gold,” Mastroeni said.

But RSL conceded 12 corners against New England, a concern against Philadelphia’s direct attack and dangerous set pieces.

“What we’ve talked about this week is: How do we become more aggressive within that block?” Mastroeni said.

“So we want to minimize the set-piece chances, we want to be more aggressive defensively in our block, and we want to continue to be a threat in transition.”

A former RSL prospect leads Philadelphia’s attack

Iloski signed a Homegrown contract with RSL in January 2020 but played just two MLS minutes before the club declined his option following the 2021 season.

He found the minutes he sought with Orange County SC, winning the USL Championship’s 2022 Golden Boot with 22 goals, before moving to Denmark and eventually returning to MLS with San Diego FC.

Now with Philadelphia, Iloski has 16 goals and six assists in 27 league appearances.

Mastroeni believes Iloski’s winding path illustrates the unpredictability of developing young players.

“There are so many variables that go into development that, from our perspective, we’d like to think that we have a great percentage of what it’s going to look like,” Mastroeni said. “But at the end of the day, life decides.”

Mastroeni, RSL’s interim manager when Iloski’s option was declined, believes the striker benefited from seeking opportunities elsewhere.

“I think he had to go and face those hurdles,” Mastroeni said. “And that’s what I’m saying about development, is sometimes people outgrow the environment that they’re in.”

“He had to go elsewhere to find it, and he found it,” Mastroeni said.

Reinforcements arriving, but limited preparation time

Luc de Fougerolles and Dušan Žagar have received their visas and are eligible for selection Saturday, while several RSL players have returned from international duty.

President of Soccer Operations Jason Kreis said Wednesday that JuanMa Sanabria, Saba Lobjanidze, Kobi Henry, Colin Guske and Luca Moisa would all be available.

De Fougerolles, the Canadian center back on loan from Fulham, is expected to join RSL directly in Philadelphia. Mastroeni cautioned that Žagar could need several weeks before being ready to contribute.

The returning internationals will have little time to train together.

“No. It’ll be matchday minus one, really,” Mastroeni said when asked whether he would have a full training session with the group.

Mastroeni confirmed Zach Booth and Ari Piol are available Saturday, while Griffin Dillon has returned to full training and is awaiting clearance. Justen Glad, Juan Arias and Lukas Engel remain sidelined.

Emeka Eneli has suffered another setback in his recovery after playing his first minutes of the season against Vancouver and his timeline for return is uncertain.

Seven games to save the season

With seven games remaining and RSL four points below the playoff line, the margin for error is shrinking.

“We’re saying to ourselves right now it’s four wins in the next seven games,” Kreis said Wednesday on the Spence Checketts Show. “We’ve got three games at home. I think those become absolute must-wins, which means that you’ve got to pick up one road win.”

Spierings acknowledged RSL’s struggles away from America First Field but believes the New England performance provides a blueprint.

“I feel like with the ball, we have enough qualities to play good against every team,” Spierings said.

“But defensively, we had to do better, and that’s what we did last game. So that’s something we have to bring with us.”

Match information

Match: Real Salt Lake at Philadelphia Union
Date: Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026
Kickoff: 5:30 p.m. MT
Venue: Subaru Park, Chester, Pennsylvania
How to watch: Apple TV