Real Salt Lake is the latest side to be eliminated from the MLS Cup playoffs.
Despite a solid first half effort, earning the lead with two strikes by Sergio Cordova, Austin FC proved too much for their opponent. The second 45 saw a frustrated RSL make costly mistakes, including a red card to Rubio Rubin that left the visiting team down to 10 men.
Though the visitors managed well, they conceded a stoppage-time penalty that allowed Sebastian Driussi to drag the match to extra time. Ultimately the 2-2 draw forced penalties, that saw Brad Struver rise to the occasion and lift the Texas team to a 3-1 victory.
“That’s how soccer is,” said head coach Pablo Mastroeni post-game.
“The important thing to me is how the guys fought, how they battled for each other. They never stopped chasing the result and sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. We were two minutes away from seeing out the result and this hurts.”
The head coach admitted Rubio’s moment of recklessness “changed everything.”
“Honestly it hurts because we talked about it at halftime,” the manager said. “We all knew [Rubin] had a yellow card … and maybe the emotion of the game influenced his decision making [when he got the second yellow].”
But despite the score, Mastroeni hailed his team’s determination and overall 2022 campaign.
“Being two minutes away from securing the result to move on I think is the most painful. But again, the commitment, the resolve, the desire to really try to right a wrong that happened in the game, as teammates, I couldn’t be more proud. On any other given day, the ball doesn’t bounce off Scott’s hand. Everything that the guys did tonight really speaks to the character of this group, and a really good building block to build as we continue to move forward.”
The team is now headed into the offseason, with months ahead to prepare before the 2023 MLS season kicks off in late February.
