Real Salt Lake Downs Rival Colorado in U.S. Open Cup Round Of 16

May 24, 2023, 10:00 PM | Updated: May 25, 2023, 1:20 pm

KSL Sports

DENVER – Real Salt Lake will advance in the U.S. Open Cup after defeating rival Colorado, 1-0, in the round of 16.

Despite the Rapids controlling the time of possession, RSL played stifling defense for the whole 90 minutes which led to the shutout win.

crazy how it feels like we were just here pic.twitter.com/v41PqQQipv

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 25, 2023

RSL Outmatches Colorado For Second Time In Four Days

First Half

Colorado defender Keegan Rosenberry took a shot from outside the box in the 5th minute. RSL goalkeeper Gavin Beavers was able to make the save.

Andrés Gómez was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 12th minute.

Jefferson Savarino and Pablo Ruiz each had a shot blocked early in the first half.

In his U.S. Open Cup debut, Jefferson Savarino scored a goal from outside the box to give RSL a 1-0 lead. The goal came in the 30th minute.

Have a strike Jefferson 🚀🚀🔥🔥
Sava puts RSL up 1-0 in Colorado #RSL @kslsports @opencup pic.twitter.com/jY6cw6EhmL

— RSL Show on KSL (@rslshow) May 25, 2023

Braian Ojeda was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 37th minute.

Defense was the name of the game in the first half for Real Salt Lake.

The Rapids dominated the time of possession (62%) but RSL was able to save two shots and concede both of Colorado’s corner-kick opportunities.

Halftime and RSL leads 1-0
Besides the Sava goal and a few transition moments, Colorado has had a majority of possession through the first half. Teams are even on opportunities at goal.

Your thoughts on the first half?#RSL @kslsports

— RSL Show on KSL (@rslshow) May 25, 2023

Second Half

Real Salt Lake changed the starting lineup going into the second half. Danny Musovski came in for Anderson Julio.

Maikel Chang narrowly missed a header off of the right post in the 50th minute. Chang’s opportunity came off of an assist by Savarino.

45′ | Switching it up in the second half

0-1 | #COLvRSL pic.twitter.com/AIuH1v32U0

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 25, 2023

In the 64th minute, RSL brought in Marcelo Silva and Jasper Löffelsend for Brayan Vera and Braian Ojeda.

Colorado midfielder Connor Ronan got a shot off in the 68th minute but it was saved.

Rubio Rubín checked in for Maikel Chang in the 76th minute.

76′ | Rubio steps on

0-1 | #COLvRSL pic.twitter.com/a4ik0o1fBR

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 25, 2023

Colorado’s Keegan Rosenberry was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 78th minute.

The Rapids continued to stay aggressive with the ball but couldn’t get much past the RSL defense. Both teams took 10 shots through the first 80 minutes.

Jasper Löffelsend was shown a yellow card for a foul in the 82nd minute.

Damir Kreilach stepped on for Andrés Gómez with five minutes left in regulation.

Six minutes of extra time was added to the round of 16 matchup.

six minutes to go pic.twitter.com/UZi4VfJnvf

— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) May 25, 2023

Colorado stayed aggressive in the closing minutes but couldn’t find the back of the net. Real Salt Lake advances to the round of 8 with a 1-0 win.

How To Watch Real Salt Lake

All Major League Soccer games are broadcasted on Apple TV with MLS Season Pass.

Real Salt Lake’s U.S. Open Cup match against Colorado will be broadcasted on CBS Sports Golazo Network and KSL Sports Zone.

All Real Salt Lake English-language radio coverage for the 2023 season and beyond will be carried on various KSL radio signals. KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM) and KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) are both stations under the Bonneville International umbrella.

Chandler Holt is a Digital Sports Producer for KSLSports.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter at @ChandlerHoltKSL.