Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SANDY — On a night when Steven Gerrard and Robbie Keane came into Rio Tinto Stadium with the Los Angeles Galaxy, the first regular-season goal from a center back who started the season on the four-deep depth chart capped what may be the biggest win for Real Salt Lake's 2015 season.
Aaron Maund's first career goal gave RSL all the scoring it would need to hold off the star-studded Galaxy 1-0 in the quarterfinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in front of 11,060 fans on Tuesday night.
"Delighted for Aaron to get his first goal, I think, ever," said midfielder Luke Mulholland, who assisted on the score. "Delighted for him, and delighted for the boys. Really good feeling right now; it's a special night."
RSL will travel to face the winner of Kansas City and Houston, a game scheduled for July 21, in the semifinals on Aug. 11 or 12.
Maund scored the game's only goal with three minutes left in regulation, heading home a perfectly placed ball from Mulholland after Los Angeles goalkeeper Brian Rowe made a spectacular save on Abdoulie Mansally's smash from distance.
"I think the team rallied around me," Maund said after the match. "I love playing for this team; I love this team. I'm so happy about it."
Mulholland dished in the cross with barely a touch off Rowe's save, and Maund made no mistake even as goalkeeper Jeff Attinella stunned the visiting Galaxy and its high-profile lineup.
"I don't think a lot of people outside of this locker room picked us to win tonight," Attinella said. "But we did, and we have just two games left. We have a real shot at winning this thing. The response was incredible."
The RSL goalkeeper made four saves to preserve the shutout, including running off his line in the dying moments of stoppage time to tip a ball over a charging Alan Gordon. The Galaxy second-half sub known for dramatic finishes with two California teams ended in the back of the net, but Attinella held the ball to count down the final seconds of the win that sent RSL to its first U.S. Open Cup semifinal since a home-field loss to D.C. United in the finals of the 2013 tournament.
"It means we're going to the semifinals of this tournament," Maund said. "But it means a lot for us, because we really wanted to win that game. We knew it was going to have to be a team effort. It brought us together, and we got the job done."
Less than 10 minutes after Gerrard entered the match as a second-half substitute, Attinella made back-to-back saves on the former Liverpool captain. The Floridian came off his line while Gerrard had him on a counterattack and stoned the ex-England national team midfielder near the penalty spot to keep the game scoreless at 0-0.
But the RSL back line held firm, keeping Gerrard and Co. to seven shots and only four on target. The highlight, of course, was Maund's late goal — but defenders Chris Schuler, Tony Beltran and Abdoulie Mansally deserved their share of the credit, head coach Jeff Cassar said.
"Aaron's been working incredibly hard," Cassar added. "He's finding himself in a nice little rhythm right now. I thought he and Chris were beasts in the back."
Maund's goal was a reward, not just for him, but for a lot of players who stick around and quietly make an impact doing the gritty work on MLS teams across North America.
"It's nice for me because I can use this as a fantastic example for the rest of the players," Cassar said. "When your number gets called and you step up, you get rewarded. Aaron's doing that."
In the first half, Attinella made two saves on three shots faced to preserve the halftime shutout. The Florida native made a reflex save on Sebastian Lletget's close-range shot in the 29th minute, less than 10 minutes after punching Robbie Keane's effort from distance over the bar.
Joao Plata had a golden chance for RSL on a breakaway in the 21st minute. The diminutive Ecuadorian raced onto a ball around midfield, staved off an onrushing Leonardo and sliced a ball that trickled just right of the far post.
The complexity of the game could've changed when Gerrard entered at halftime. It did — but not in the Galaxy's favor.
"I firmly believe in the guys, and we are going to keep doing what we are doing," Cassar said. "I couldn't be more proud of them tonight."
