‘We shot ourselves in the foot’: Early mistakes doom RSL in 2-1 loss at San Jose

SANDY — Real Salt Lake conceded twice in the opening 17 minutes before falling 2-1 to the San Jose Earthquakes at PayPal Park.

Juan Manuel Sanabria pulled one back in the 23rd minute, but RSL couldn’t find an equalizer despite controlling much of the possession and creating chances throughout the match.

The loss snapped RSL’s three-match winning streak and left the Claret-and-Cobalt in 10th place in the Western Conference, outside the playoff positions with one match remaining.

“We shot ourselves in the foot in the first 15 minutes of the game,” RSL head coach Pablo Mastroeni said afterward.

Final

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A nightmare start

Dominik Marczuk conceded a free kick near the left corner of the penalty area in the opening minute, just a yard or so from the endline. San Jose took the restart a foot or two farther from the endline than the referee’s vanishing spray indicated, giving Ousseni Bouda a slightly better angle toward goal.

Bouda drove a low, right-footed effort toward Rafael Cabral’s near post. The RSL goalkeeper was positioned to cover the angle, but as he crouched to make the save, the ball slipped between his legs and into the net.

San Jose doubled its advantage in the 17th minute on a counterattack that left RSL appealing for a whistle rather than dealing with the danger.

Preston Judd redirected the ball toward Jamar Ricketts with his shoulder, prompting immediate handball appeals from RSL. Ricketts continued the attack, crossing for Benji Kikanović to slide home from close range.

Several RSL defenders appeared more concerned with appealing for a handball than tracking the developing attack.

A VAR check upheld the goal without sending the referee to the monitor.

“The focus when you start raising your hands in the midst of a play is your brain is not projecting what might happen thereafter,” Mastroeni said.

The coach also identified a structural problem contributing to both goals.

“Both of the goals came from our throw-ins,” he explained, noting that having an outside center back take the throw-in compromised RSL’s defensive positioning.

Sanabria gives RSL life

RSL needed just six minutes to respond, with Sanabria involved in nearly every stage of a beautifully worked goal.

Sergi Solans intercepted a San Jose pass roughly 30 yards from goal and found Sanabria, who played Saba Lobjanidze into the left side of the penalty area.

Lobjanidze’s shot struck Dave Romney’s arm as the defender turned away, but the ball rebounded to the RSL winger, who worked it wider to Sam Junqua.

Junqua rolled the ball forward before delivering an inch-perfect cross.

Sanabria, who had delayed his run after playing the initial entry pass, backed away from his defender to create space before darting forward and rising to meet the service, directing his header into the far corner.

Sanabria tucked the ball beneath his shirt in celebration, a nod to the baby he and his partner are expecting in January.

The remainder of the half was a breathless, back-and-forth affair.

Niko Tsakiris repeatedly found room to carve through RSL’s midfield, while Marczuk and Lobjanidze tested San Jose goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. at the other end.

RSL entered halftime trailing 2-1 despite holding 60% possession.

Chances, controversy and no equalizer

Mastroeni introduced Aiden Hezarkhani and Zach Booth at halftime, replacing Sam Junqua and Dominik Marczuk. Booth took over at right wingback, while Sanabria dropped into Junqua’s left wingback spot to make room for Hezarkhani in the left attacking midfield role.

RSL emerged with renewed urgency, and a 47th-minute sequence produced a contentious handball decision. Stijn Spierings fired toward goal, only for Ricketts to block the effort with his arm extended away from his body.

VAR checked the incident but allowed play to continue without an on-field review.

Ten minutes later, Lobjanidze went down inside the penalty area while attempting a give-and-go with Luc de Fougerolles. No penalty was awarded.

Despite the missed opportunities and contentious calls, Mastroeni was pleased with his team’s response.

“Even when it wasn’t going well, even when tactically it was a little bit off, or technically we were losing cheap balls, the reactions were great, and the endeavor was great,” he said.

Justen Glad, making his first start following a five-month injury absence, departed on the hour mark for Lukas Engel.

“Jay Glad has been out for five months and has played a couple 20-minute games, and then you’re expecting him to be at the same form and rhythm as everyone else,” Mastroeni said. “And that’s not realistic.”

RSL’s momentum was further disrupted when Noel Caliskan required treatment following a collision with Bouda, while Booth suffered a shoulder injury and was replaced by Alexandros Katranis in the 70th minute.

Mastroeni confirmed Booth’s shoulder had dislocated and been put back in place, but declined to offer a recovery timeline.

In the 80th minute, Cabral parried a Bouda effort with two strong hands, and RSL quickly attacked the other way. Lobjanidze switched the ball to Sanabria, whose powerful effort flew wide.

Caliskan created space with a deft cutback in the 86th minute, but his shot was deflected over for a corner.

“The chance that we had at the end where Ari plays it across is the one where we’ve gotta tap in on the back post,” Mastroeni said of a 96th-minute opportunity missed by television viewers while the broadcast showed a replay.

The coach nevertheless remained focused on the opportunity ahead, with RSL closing its regular season next Saturday at home against LA Galaxy.

“Realistically speaking, we put ourselves in a position, which is a great position, which is just to have to win at home,” Mastroeni said.