FC Cincinnati take solid form west to face Real Salt Lake

FC Cincinnati will face a Western Conference club on the road for the first time this season when they match up with Real Salt Lake on Saturday in Sandy, Utah.

FC Cincinnati (14-6-3, 45 points) are coming off an impressive 3-0 home win over Inter Miami on Wednesday when All-Star midfielder Evander scored two second-half goals to increase his total to 15 and leave him two off the MLS lead.

Evander set an FC Cincinnati record Wednesday by scoring at least one goal in five consecutive matches. He outdueled Miami superstar Lionel Messi to keep Cincinnati just one point out of first place in the Eastern Conference.

"We have to understand that across the league, some of these environments that you're playing in, some of the venues (where) it's tough so you have to manage the game," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said. "You can't have a game that's open and in transition, because I think it's just asking too much of guys, and there's too much risk in that."

Real Salt Lake (8-10-4, 28 points) will bring their physical style to the pitch as they sit just one point out of the Western Conference playoff picture.

RSL's 58 yellow cards are fourth most in the league while their 274 fouls rank 10th. They also have a long-ball percentage of 49.46, sixth-best in the league.

RSL midfielder Diego Luna has eight goals and four assists. He has returned to the club after he scored three goals in six appearances for the United States men's national team at the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

"I think it's a collective mindset," said RSL head coach Pablo Mastroeni, whose team is on a three-match winning streak and a five-match unbeaten streak. "I think when you start getting a couple of results, you start believing that you're capable of things greater than what you initially thought."

FC Cincinnati enter on a three-match road winning streak.

--Field Level Media