Saturday night saw Real Salt Lake fall 2-1 in a tough match on the West Coast as the second-half struggles continued. The Utah side will now have to beat the LA Galaxy at America First Field on Decision Day to secure a spot in the playoffs.
NWSL Decision Day saw Utah Royals fall 2-0 in a playoff-like atmosphere against Gotham FC. Head coach Jimmy Coenraets will now turn his attention to preparing the team for the first round of the playoffs.
"To get to the playoffs, you have to scrap, and I wanted to see that from the guys, and I did for moments. We have to make sure that we are ready for next week and how we look to compete to get into the playoffs." — RSL coach Pablo Mastroeni on his team's performance
"I think we have shown who we are against some of those top teams in the NWSL. I want to win every time we go out on the pitch and I will never go out onto the pitch thinking how will we get a foot in the game or how will we grow into the game." — Royals coach Jimmy Coenraets on his team's identity
San Jose got off to a fast start after Dominik Marczuk conceded a free kick just outside the penalty area in the third minute when Earthquakes attacker Ousseni Bouda stepped up and fired a low-driven shot that found the back of the net through the legs of Rafael Cabral to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
Real Salt Lake looked to level the game with a corner kick that ricocheted into the path of Justen Glad, who got off a shot that was blocked.
The Earthquakes doubled their lead through a clever shoulder pass over the heads of the RSL defenders and into the path of a winger, who whipped in a dangerous cross to Benji Kikanović in the center of the six-yard box. The attacker made a late run into the box, which ultimately benefited him as he got the final touch to give San Jose a 2-0 lead.
Real Salt Lake answered back in the 23rd minute, with a beautiful cross into the penalty area from Sam Junqua, finding the head of JuanMa Sanabria, who pulled one back for the Utah side.
The second half started in chaos, with an initial cross headed away by an Earthquakes defender that fell nicely to Glad, whose strike forced the West Coast goalkeeper into a quick save to his left. From there, San Jose was able to slow the momentum and regain control of the game until the final minutes.
The Royals match saw action in the ninth minute as Midge Purce drove down the right side against Nuria Rábano before cutting the ball back into the six-yard box. A couple of fortunate ricochets sent the ball into the path of an onrushing Guro Reiten, who scored a tap-in at the back post to give Gotham FC the early lead.
Utah Royals responded after the goal with a ball over the top from Rábano that found Miyabi in the penalty area. After settling the ball, Miyabi unleashed a half-volley that forced Ann-Katrin Berger into a diving save to her right. Moments later, the New York side counterattacked quickly, resulting in a dangerous shot from a Gotham attacker that required Mandy McGlynn to make a smart save.
The second half of the match between the Royals and Gotham saw very few chances between the two sides, as neither could find the back of the net. Gotham nearly doubled its lead as Paige Cronin stepped up to close down space for Reiten, who cleverly skipped past the Utah captain before beating Kate Del Fava in a one-on-one and sending a cross toward Jaedyn Shaw. Shaw dragged her shot wide of the post to the relief of the Royals, with McGlynn rooted to the ground.
In the 81st minute, Pudge was able to beat Kaleigh Riehl before sending a cross into Shaw, who doubled the lead for Gotham FC.
Utah Royals responded immediately as Brecken Mozingo was tripped inside the penalty area by Tierna Davidson, prompting the Utah side to call for a penalty kick. After a VAR review, the video referee decided not to send the center referee to the monitor for a second look.
Utah Royals FC face off against San Diego Wave on Friday, Nov. 6, in the club's first playoff game streaming on Prime at 8 p.m. MDT. Real Salt Lake will return to America First Field to host the LA Galaxy on MLS Decision Day with kickoff set for 5 p.m. MDT.
JuanMa Sanabria (8) celebrating his header goal in the 23rd minute. | RSL
