Alex Katranis' offensive knack helps Real Salt Lake hand Philadelphia 1st home loss

“Alex has a knack of making plays in the attacking third,” said Real Salt Lake manager Pablo Mastroeni after the team's 2-1 road win over the Union.

Good things happen when Alex Katranis is on the ball, including Saturday night at Subaru Park in Philadelphia.

With a tie game in the 89th minute, the 25-year-old Greek left back collected a ricochet after Philadelphia. With almost no time, Katranis calmly lofted a left-footed shot on the volley, found the back post, and scored a banger that handed the Union their first home loss of the year, 2-1.

Katranis’ late stunner was the latest example of why the young defender is making waves as an attacking player, with his second goal (to go with two assists) in seven matches since joining RSL from Piast Gliwice in Poland.

“Alex has a knack of making plays in the attacking third,” said Salt Lake manager Pablo Mastroeni, whose team is tied for first in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference with 18 points on a 5-2-3 overall record. “The moment the ball left his foot, it looked like it was going in.”

Andres Gomez gave the visitors an early lead in the 34th minute, finishing a ball set up by Chicho Arango for his fourth goal of the year that gave Real Salt Lake a 1-0 halftime advantage.

But Daniel Gazdag equalized in the 50th minute for the hosts, becoming the Union’s goal scoring leader across all competitions with a cheeky back heel that beat Zac MacMath five minutes into the second half.

It would have been easy to pack it in and call for a draw at that point, on the road, in an environment that has been as tough as any tow in — some might call it impossible, after the Union hadn’t lost in Chester in over a year.

But that’s not this team’s style, Mastroeni said. Fortune favors the brave, he told the team at halftime.

“I think it’s just when things are going your way, the guys will find ways to make plays,” he added. “The mindset and the belief to keep fighting — it’s easy to sit back and get a point. But the team we want to be, we’re going to have to run through the gauntlet, we’re going to have to go through teams who have had a lot of success like Philadelphia. I think this was a decent litmus test to see the type of team that we are.”

Perhaps the bravest moment came from the first-year left back with a knack for getting on the ball.

“I saw the ball coming toward me, and I just knew I had to shoot,” Katranis said. “I’m very happy I scored the goal. But the most important thing is I helped the team get three points.”

After back-to-back wins on the road, RSL returns home next Saturday, May 4. Kickoff against Sporting Kansas City is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. MT on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.