Real Salt Lake dropped the final of the Pacific Rim Cup, losing to Japanese J2 League club V-Varen Nagasaki at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii.
The match saw the debut of star forward Sam Johnson, as well as the first preseason minutes for veteran Kyle Beckerman, playmaker Albert Rusnak and winger Jefferson Savarino.
After falling behind 2-0 by the halftime break, RSL pulled one back via a golazo by 17-year-old Homegrown signing Julian Vazquez, who stroked the ball from 20 yards out into the top left corner. But just seconds later, Nagasaki beat a leaky RSL back line for a third time to seal the result.
RSL's preseason next shifts to Arizona, where they will play matches against the New York Red Bulls (Feb. 13), Phoenix Rising (Feb. 16), FC Dallas (Feb. 20) and the Portland Timbers (Feb. 23) before opening the 2019 regular season on March 2 in Houston.
Goals
- NAG - Takashi Sawada 20'
- NAG - Hijiri Onaga 39'
- RSL - Julian Vazquez 84'
- NAG - Takumi Nagura 85'
Real Salt Lake lineup (1st min): #51 Andrew Putna -- #12 Brooks Lennon, #14 Nedum Onuoha, #20 Erik Holt, #22 Aaron Herrera -- #5 Kyle Beckerman, #13 Nick Besler -- #7 Jefferson Savarino, #11 Albert Rusnak, #17 Corey Baird -- #50 Sam Johnson
Real Salt Lake lineup (63rd min): #51 Andrew Putna -- #3 Adam Henley, #13 Nick Besler, #52 Kalen Ryden, #45 Andrew Brody -- #43 Justin Portillo, #44 Maikel Chang, #26 Luis Arriaga, #11 Albert Rusnak (#6 Pablo Ruiz 76'), #27 Julian Vazquez -- #70 Kyle Coffee
