Real Salt Lake Falls 2-4 at New Mexico in 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

May 9, 2024 – Major League Soccer (MLS)
Real Salt Lake News Release

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico -Real Salt Lake suffered elimination in its initial 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup contest, dropping a 4-2 decision to New Mexico United after the USL Championship side fired off three first-half goals.

Both teams started slow, sizing each other up as RSL fielded a lineup with eight players rotated from Saturday’s home victory over Sporting KC. Though RSL dominated possession to start, it would be New Mexico United that created the first chance of the match. Intercepting the ball during Real’s building, New Mexico quickly cycled it to Marco Micaletto in the center of the attacking third. He held up play and laid it off to a charging Sergio Rivas for a point-blank shot, only kept out of the net by an acrobatic save from Gavin Beavers.

Tasting blood, New Mexico maintained pressure to break through for the 18th minute opener. The New Mexico defense played a long, elevated ball to Rivas on the right wing, who found Zico Bailey charging through the middle of the pitch with a one-touch headed pass. Enjoying a large amount of space as the RSL defense recovered, Bailey took three touches and ripped a cross-body shot with his right foot from outside the box, narrowly beating the outstretched glove of Beavers to give New Mexico a 1-0 advantage.

Without giving RSL a chance to breathe, New Mexico bagged a second goal just 22 seconds after kickoff from the first. As Real Salt Lake played it back from the reset, NMU intercepted a sloppy pass and immediately fed it to Dayonn Harris on the left side of the box. Marked, he passed to Bailey at the top of the box for the shot. This time electing to take a single touch, he scored nearly an identical goal as his strike from a minute earlier, opting for a low, driven shot into the corner netting on Beavers’ right side.

Real Salt Lake composed themselves following the rapid-fire goals, creating a run of chances. The first came in the 26th minute as Fidel Barajas controlled in the center of the park. Diego Luna came deep to receive the ball before firing it to Zavier Gozo in the center of the box. Gozo took a crafty touch with his right to split the defenders before getting off the shot, only to be denied by a kick-save from Alex Tambakis. Real nearly got one back in the 29th as Braian Ojeda tried his luck with a curled shot from distance, narrowly sailing over the crossbar.

Then, Real’s pressure paid off with a goal in the 35th…