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SANDY — Things haven't gone Real Salt Lake's way much at home over the last 12 months, but the tide might have shifted Saturday night at America First Field.
The all-too-familiar home woes looked to be rolling right along after giving up a goal to St. Louis in the third minute, but star striker and team captain Chicho Arango willed his team to a comeback with a second-half hat trick. It was the first hat trick for RSL since Damir Kreilach had one in September 2018.
"Don't worry," was the halftime message from head coach Pablo Mastroeni according to Arango. "'The goal will come, and when we score one, more will come.' And that's what happened."
Chicho Arango bagged a hat trick to lead @realsaltlake over St. Louis CITY SC. 🎩🇨🇴 pic.twitter.com/6bvxnYY7Ys
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) March 31, 2024
The Colombian scorer broke through for his most difficult goal first in the 70th minute, gathering a pass at the top of the box and firing a strike into the net.
"The first goal that he scored is world-class," Mastroeni said. "From a tough angle, he hits a real heavy ball against a really, really good goalkeeper. I'm just so happy for him to have the game that he had because that represents the rest of the group. When he plays like he did tonight and how he has been playing, I think we're on the cusp of being a really tough team to play against."
RSL's first penalty since 2022 gave Arango his second in the 84th minute, and Diego Luna got him the ball right in front of the goal on a breakaway for the third-and-final score in stoppage time, which RSL got 13 minutes of Saturday.
The victory gives RSL two home wins to bookend the month of March and an all-important 3 points in the standings heading into a stretch with three of the next four games on the road.
The Claret and Cobalt sit in a four-way tie for second place in the West after the win and head to Minnesota, with whom they are tied, next on April 6.
