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PHILADELPHIA — Don't look now, but Real Salt Lake might have a real contender on its hands.
The Claret and Cobalt went to the home field of the undefeated Eastern Conference powerhouse Philadelphia Union and came away with a 2-1 win to extend their unbeaten streak to six games.
"I think this was a decent litmus test to see where we stand and the type of team that we are," head coach Pablo Mastroeni said. "I thought we had some really, really good moments, and, more importantly, the fight and the grit to see this game through. The effort to win games on the road isn't an easy task, but they took it in stride."
Chicho Arango has been the MVP of the team — and maybe the whole league — so far this season, but it was the supporting cast that showed up in a big way on Saturday.
Arango still got things going with an assist to Andres Gomez, who fired a rocket through the hands of Andre Blake and into the back of the net for the opener in the 34th minute.
Daniel Gazdag equalized for the Union in the 50th minute, and it seemed like RSL would have to settle for a point on the road until Alex Katranis got the ball outside the box and launched a shot into the far post for the game-winner in the 89th minute.
A stunner from Katranis! @realsaltlake go ahead late! pic.twitter.com/pUFEyuiyBK
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 28, 2024
"I saw the ball coming to me and I just thought, 'I have to shoot,'" Katranis said of the goal. "I'm very happy, of course, that I scored the goal, but the most important is I helped the team and we got the 3 points."
The fiery Greek international hit the "shush" celebration with a finger over his mouth following the goal that singlehandedly lifted RSL back into first place in the Western Conference, tied with the Galaxy on points but ahead 8-4 in goal differential.
"This is not the time for celebrations," Katranis said after the match. "Of course, today we're going to celebrate, but from tomorrow it's again time for work until the next game."
The Claret and Cobalt return to America First Field for a match against rival Kansas City on Saturday, May 4.
