Zavier Gozo collected signatures from Son Heung-min and Thomas Müller on his All-Star jersey after the July 29 All-Star Game, still dripping from the postgame shower, then flew home to Sandy on Thursday, July 30, to prepare for a road match that could define Real Salt Lake's summer.
RSL travels to Energizer Park on Saturday, August 1, to face a surging St. Louis City SC squad at 6:30 p.m. MT. The Western Conference clash caps a three-game road swing in which Salt Lake has dropped consecutive matches, falling 3-1 at LAFC on July 22 and 2-1 at Portland on July 26.
As we reported Thursday, Gozo made his All-Star Game debut at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, entering in the 62nd minute on the left wing as MLS beat Liga MX 4-3. But the 19-year-old's week in North Carolina extended well beyond that cameo.
RSL's All-Star Week, start to finish
The night before the main event, Gozo advanced to the Crossbar Challenge final at the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge at Truist Field, finishing runner-up to Club León's Javier Ruiz after two weather delays. He joked afterward that teammates Müller and Son "didn't believe in me at first" before he "had to put on a show."
RSL's presence stretched across every major All-Star event. Academy standouts Easton Wilson and Kellen Poll suited up in the MLS NEXT All-Star Game alongside future RSL Academy midfielder Daniel Carmona. Ben McQueen and Mostafa Saedi represented the club in the MLS Unified All-Star Game.
Gozo's selection itself made history. Raised in Eagle Mountain, he became the first Utah-born player voted into the MLS All-Star First XI and the youngest RSL representative in the club's 22-year history, surpassing Diego Luna's selection at age 20 in 2024. He's also the first player in MLS history named both an MLS All-Star and an MLS NEXT All-Star, having played in the 2023 NEXT game as an academy prospect.
"Winning games. I'm always focused on the present and what we're doing," Gozo said after the July 29 All-Star Game, according to KSL Sports. "All my teammates and the family we have there is counting on me and everyone else to win games and make a run in the playoffs."
Saturday's test in St. Louis
That focus shifts to a St. Louis side riding a four-match winning streak and unbeaten in eight across all competitions. Marcel Hartel leads St. Louis with five goals in 2026.
RSL (8-2-6, 26 points) sits fourth in the West. St. Louis (7-4-6, 25 points) is seventh, just one point back. RSL holds a 3-1-2 all-time record against St. Louis and hasn't lost to them in five meetings since a 4-0 defeat in Sandy in 2023, but the club hasn't won on the road since March 7 at Atlanta.
Head coach Pablo Mastroeni stressed defensive discipline before the Portland match on July 25, telling KSL Sports: "You have to have patience … You've got to be willing to suffer defensively. And that's okay. I tell the guys, 'We have a great attack. We're gonna get our chances, but when the game's asking you to be patient, don't go rogue.'"
Gozo enters the match with six goals and five assists in 16 appearances, tied atop RSL's scoring chart with rookie Sergi Solans. Two new faces could also feature: forward Saba Lobjanidze, acquired from Atlanta United, debuted July 22 against LAFC, and Colombian centerback Juan José Arias first appeared July 26 at Portland.
Saturday's match airs exclusively on Apple TV. After St. Louis, RSL returns to America First Field in Sandy for a five-game homestand beginning Tuesday, August 4, against Liga MX's Tigres UANL in Leagues Cup 2026.
