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SportsLAFC host Real Salt Lake on Saturday in Western Conference clash of No. 3 vs No. 4
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Los Angeles FC will aim for consecutive victories when they host Real Salt Lake on Saturday night in an MLS match. LAFC recently defeated city rivals LA Galaxy 3-0, with Son Heung-min scoring his first goal of the season and Denis Bouanga adding a penalty. The win moved LAFC (8-5-3, 27 points) to third in the Western Conference, one point ahead of fourth-place RSL (8-4-2, 26 points). Real Salt Lake is playing its first league match in nearly two months, last playing on May 23. RSL sharpened fitness with a 4-1 friendly win over Burnley. Both coaches discussed squad rotation and defensive adjustments, with LAFC facing a busy August schedule including Leagues Cup matches.
Source report
Last Updated: July 21, 2026, 10:42 PM ET
Los Angeles FC will aim for back-to-back victories following the World Cup when they host Real Salt Lake on Saturday night. RSL will be playing its first league match in approximately two months.
The Black and Gold resumed their campaign with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over intracity rival Galaxy on Friday night. The result moved LAFC (8-5-3, 27 points) into third place in the Western Conference, above fourth-place Real Salt Lake (8-4-2, 26 points).
Son Heung-min scored his first goal of the season, and Denis Bouanga added his team-leading seventh goal from the penalty spot.
LAFC appeared refreshed from their time off, even though their opening tally from Mark Delgado came against the run of play. However, the road will become challenging again quickly. Head coach Marc Dos Santos' side is set to play at least eight matches — and potentially nine — in August, including at least three in the upcoming Leagues Cup.
Dos Santos acknowledged that Bouanga, Son, and others will need to accept squad rotation during that stretch as LAFC manages multiple pathways to a potential fifth major trophy in club history.
"What I have to do as coach of LAFC is to compete to win trophies all the time," Dos Santos said. "To promise to win trophies is ridiculous. It's too much parity in the league. ... There's a lot of good teams in the league. But what we want is to compete and try to win every trophy."
Salt Lake last played in the league on May 23, a 1-1 draw at Minnesota United. To sharpen match fitness, RSL played a 4-1 home friendly victory over Burnley of the EFL Championship a week ago.
Sergi Solans scored twice, while Zavier Gozo and Diego Luna also contributed goals in the victory against an opponent working through its own preseason.
RSL head coach Pablo Mastroeni expressed satisfaction but identified areas for improvement before restarting the league campaign.
"Transition D is critical in this league, especially when you're going up against Bouanga and Son," Mastroeni said. "That's got to be dialed in. And then our box defending. We've just got to do a better job of understanding ... just little details that I think we can tidy up."
This article first appeared on Field Level Media and was syndicated with permission.
Source
Yardbarker: SoccerWestern
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LAFC Host Real Salt Lake in MLS Return After World Cup Break