RSL gives up 2 stoppage time goals in 3-1 home loss to San Diego FC

SANDY — The newest MLS team brought the fight to America First Field on Saturday.

San Diego FC got its second win in its first three MLS games thanks to two stoppage-time goals in a 3-1 win over Real Salt Lake.

"Their (midfielders) do an unbelievable job of controlling the game, which made it difficult to defend," head coach Pablo Mastroeni said of San Diego. "It just felt like tonight there were two teams that were egging the other team to come on and press, and anytime there was a break there was a chance on goal."

Speaking of chances on goal, RSL left more than its fair share of opportunities on the field against San Diego, including six shots on goal with just a single goal to show for it. Ari Piol, Dominik Marczuk and Diogo Goncalves all had one-on-one opportunities on goal and sent their shots wide.

The lone goal from RSL on the night came in the 17th minute from Piol on a well-executed build-up from Diego Luna to Marczuk on the edge of the box. Marczuk found Piol into the box for his first MLS goal and first goal in an RSL uniform.

"Scoring goals is very difficult," Mastroeni said of his team's chances. "But we've got to take those chances. They have to hit the back of the net if you want to win."

Franco Negri scored the first goal for San Diego on a header in the 43rd minute to tie the match heading into halftime. The teams remained in a stalemate until the 91st minute when Anders Dreyer got to a rebounded ball in the RSL box and slotted home his third goal in three games.

Marcus Ingvartsen slammed the door shut five minutes later on another lapse by the RSL backline to give San Diego two wins and a draw in its inaugural season so far.

"We just gotta hold ourselves to a higher standard, not only as a collective but make it an individual responsibility," captain Emeka Eneli said. "I think we just got to have that switch from an individual standpoint, that, 'I know there's only five minutes left, it's extra time, I'm not gonna let a goal happen. I'm gonna be tied to my man. I'm not gonna let my man get to the ball first.'"

Mastroeni extended the call for accountability and reflection to the coaching staff, questioning whether they made the right adjustments after San Diego brought some different formations and tactics they had not seen when studying the film from the first two matches.

Despite the three goals conceded, RSL goalkeeper Rafael Cabral was a standout player against San Diego and the scoreline could have ended up even more lopsided if not for five impressive saves on the day.

The rest of the defensive performance was lacking, and RSL was forced to rotate multiple players on the backline despite Mastroeni saying that ideally, the only backline position that would need a substitution in most games would be the left back due to the outsized attacking demand in their current style of play.

It's still early in the season, though, and RSL hits the road next after splitting its two-game homestand against Seattle and San Diego. Next up is an often-dreaded trip to Houston to take on the Dynamo, a team RSL has become all too familiar with over the last couple of seasons with multiple meetings in the Open Cup and Leagues Cup.

"When it feels like this, there's some real reflection," Mastroeni said. "And myself and the coaching staff will be the first to hold our hands up and make sure that we go back and prepare the group the right way against Houston."

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