Real Salt Lake rallied from a two-goal halftime deficit to post a 2-2 draw against Sporting Kansas City in a match between two red-hot teams on Wednesday night in Kansas City, Kan.
Daniel Salloi and Johnny Russell scored in the first half for the hosts before Danny Musovski struck early in the second half and Anderson Julio netted the equalizer for RSL.
Salt Lake (9-7-7, 34 points) extended an overall unbeaten streak to eight matches and moved to 5-0-3 in its last eight MLS road matches.
Kansas City (6-10-8, 26 points) failed to pick up its second win of the month and take full advantage of 18-year-old Salt Lake goalkeeper Gavin Beavers, who was making his fifth career MLS start.
Beavers had two saves, SKC’s Kendall McIntosh finished with seven and each goalkeeper made a crucial save in the final moments of the match to preserve the scoreline.
It was a quiet start until SKC broke through in the 30th minute. Beavers’ clearing attempt from the end line was picked off by Kansas City, and Russell dribbled down the left side. His cross found Salloi at the far corner of the 6-yard box, and Salloi one-timed in his fifth goal of the season.
SKC began pushing upfield in the 36th minute, and Erik Thommy fed Russell in the box. Russell made a move to get around defender Justen Glad and rocketed a right-footed shot past Beavers for his third goal of 2023.
Pablo Ruiz and Cristian “Chicho” Arango were among the Salt Lake substitutions to start the second half, and they immediately hooked up to create an RSL goal. Ruiz’s long pass to Arango drew two defenders on the former LAFC star, and Arango tapped a pass to Musovski breaking free to score his fifth goal of the year.
RSL kept attacking, but McIntosh made five saves between the 50th and 61st minutes, three times on Arango.
Then Julio subbed on in the 69th minute and needed just three minutes to score. Julio dispossessed SKC defender Daniel Rosero Valencia of the ball, sprinted in and shot below McIntosh’s dive. It was Julio’s 15th career MLS goal — his 11th as a substitute — and his fourth of the season.
Julio had a chance to put RSL ahead in the 89th minute when he received a pass while sprinting toward the box, but McIntosh dived in front to block it.
SKC had their chance in the first minute of second-half stoppage time when Alan Pulido found Gadi Kinda with a cross into the box. Kinda tried a point-blank header, but Beavers made the save.
–Field Level Media