SALT LAKE CITY – Forward Sergio Córdova buried a header into the back of the goal to give Real Salt Lake an early lead in the club’s postseason opener against Austin FC.
Austin hosted RSL at Q2 Stadium in Texas’ capital city on Sunday, October 16.
During the third minute of action, Andrew Brody sent a ball into the box for a streaking Córdova, who connected the crown of his to the ball and sent it flying into the far left corner of the goal.
Cordova’s header gave Real Salt Lake a 1-0 lead.
Golazo! Sergio Cordova makes it 1-0 inside of 4 minutes in Austin! #RSL pic.twitter.com/Oew9B4tnYY
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 16, 2022
Córdova entered the match with nine goals, two assists, 59 shots, and 31 shots on target in 33 matches this season.
And so it begins…Sergio Córdova buries the opening goal of the #RSL playoff adventure 3 minutes into its existence.
3′ #RSL 1 – 0 #ATX #MLSCupPlayoffs
— Tom Hackett (@TomCantHackett) October 16, 2022
RSL’s match against Austin is televised on ABC.
Real Salt Lake vs Austin FC
Real Salt Lake is headed for Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas, for their MLS playoff opening round fixture against Austin FC.
The event will mark the first playoff game in the history of Austin FC, following their introduction to Major League Soccer in 2021. Last year, they failed to qualify for the postseason.
Real Salt Lake, on the other hand, has qualified for the playoffs in four of its previous five seasons. It is the second consecutive year that RSL cemented its playoff position on the final day of the regular season.
Much like last year, if RSL is to advance to the Western Conference Final, they will be tasked with playing every playoff game on the road due and it will start in Austin.
Q2 Stadium has quickly transformed into one of the most hostile environments in MLS. The fanbase is loud, and the city takes great pride in supporting its local soccer club.
It’s very impressive 👏#ATXvRSL #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/PQWYevu4MU
— Tom Hackett (@TomCantHackett) October 16, 2022
Interestingly, it was not long ago that Real Salt Lake last visited Q2 Stadium. On September 14, RSL lost 3-0 to Austin following a second-half hat-trick to substitute Moussa Djitté. Prior to the introduction of Djitté, RSL dominated the contest but failed to capitalize on opportunities created in front of goal.
Furthermore, Djitté has only scored a total of 4 goals from his 17 appearances in 2022.
Real Salt Lake enters the game in promising form following a 1-1 draw on the road against LA Galaxy before dominating Portland in the final game of the season at hand in a game that manager Pablo Mastroeni described as the “most complete team performance of the year to date.”
Austin, on the other hand, has not won a game since RSL last visited Q2 Stadium on September 14. They drew to Colorado and Nashville and home and lost 2-0 on the road against Vancouver.
Real Salt Lake will be without their captain Damir Kreilach who has returned to training for the first time since undergoing back surgery in June. Unfortunately, Kreilach will not be available to play against Austin as he continues to gain strength and trust in his body.
Aaron Herrera will also likely not be available following a knock to his calf against the Galaxy two weeks ago. Herrera then suffered another knock to the same calf in the lead-up to the fixture against Portland and has not been available since. He has not trained with the group at all this week.
Bobby Wood remains out following abductor surgery months ago. Wood will likely not return to the pitch this season.
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