Ajago's 1st MLS goal, Cabral's shutout lift Real Salt Lake to 2-0 win over Seattle Sounders
Forster Ajago scored for the second time in as many matches overall, and Rafael Cabral made three saves to lift Real Salt Lake to its first win of the 2025 MLS season, 2-0 over Seattle Sounders FC.
The Lion came out to play Saturday afternoon.
Forster Ajago scored for the second time in as many matches overall, and Rafael Cabral made three saves to lift Real Salt Lake to its first win of the 2025 MLS season, 2-0 over Seattle Sounders FC in Sandy, Utah.
The Ghanaian footballer arrived at RSL via the MLS Re-Entry Draft from Nashville SC in the offseason, and came off the bench in the 68th minute to score his first MLS goal with his new club just over 10 minutes later.
Ajago, who finished his college career at Duke in 2023, had his goal celebration queued up — twice in three days, even — where the 23-year-old striker runs to the corner flag, paws at the air and roars like a lion in homage to his journey from Navrongo, Ghana, to Nasvhille, Tennessee — and now Salt Lake City.
“I gain the name ‘bear’ there from the celebration,” Ajago said during preseason. “It’s kind of like a bear. And it’s like claws.
“For me, it kind of has a story of coming through from the beginning. It’s been tough and for me, everything seems to be, I have to grab it. So it’s kind of like the aggressive mode of me taking out the weeds and clearing the way.”
Ajago got help, too, whether from the “monster of mentality” in the midfield, Braian Ojeda, following a 4-0 loss to San Jose in the club’s league opener last week, or Diogo Gonçalves, who assisted on Ajago’s goal.
Real Salt Lake struck early, though unconventionally, when Nouhou Tolo put the ball in the Sounders’ own net after pressure from Alex Katranis just eight minutes into the match.
“That’s the stroke of luck that we needed,” RSL manager Pablo Mastroeni said.
But RSL didn’t stop there, angling plenty of long balls from the back line to connect with the forwards and defending as a block against the Sounders’ aggressive counter-press.
“I think every game is different, and you take what they give you,” center back Justen Glad said. “They were pressing a little higher and leaving that space open."
The club held Seattle to just three shots on goal in its MLS home opener on a warm 56-degree day in the Beehive State. Seattle had 12 shots on goal, but in just 46.4% of the possession as Cabral stopped all three attempts on frame to keep the 1-0 lead through the 79th minute.
That’s when Diogo Gonçalves found Ajago on a breakaway, and the 23-year-old Ajago scored his second goal in as many matches overall with a left-footed shot from the center of the box to go up, 2-0.
“We talk about mentality a lot,” Mastroeni said. “And the reason is because we focus so much on the tactical aspect of the game. But what drives the moments are those unforeseen moments that drive transition.
“There are 450 moments in a football match — and you can’t get any of them wrong.”
RSLvSEA post-match press conference | Manager Pablo Mastroeni
RSLvSEA post-match press conference | GK Rafa Cabral
RSLvSEA post-match press conference | DF Justen Glad & FW Ariath Piol