The New York Red Bulls rode two second-half goals from Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting to a 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake on Sunday night.
Choupo-Moting scored his 14th and 15th MLS goals of the season, which ranks tied for third in MLS. The forward has scored eight MLS goals in his last six appearances at Sports Illustrated Stadium.
Real Salt Lake scored early, grabbing the first goal of the match in the third minute of the game.
The Red Bulls equalized the match in the 52nd minute, when defender Raheem Edwards played a pass into the feet of captain Emil Forsberg, who hit a left footed cross and found forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, who tapped the ball into the back of the net.
RBNY took the lead in the ninth minute of second half stoppage time, when Choupo-Moting converted his penalty kick attempt to the top right of the net.
"We have to learn a lot from this game," Head Coach Sandro Schwarz said. "But when we had the energy level, the intensity, the whole time, but it's not so easy to be honest when you are 1-0 down, it's not so easy, then you need normally two touches, then you need four touches. Then, of course, it's also human a little bit then, the heads go down. And the reaction, and this is what we said very -- in a very emotional way in this halftime today, it was not done from tactical point some things, it was more very emotional, and the reaction was great."
Choupo-Moting has now tied Thierry Henry (2012) for ninth place in franchise history for the most MLS goals scored in a single season.
Forsberg tallied his eighth MLS assist of the season and the 13th of his MLS career. Forsberg has recorded seven goal contributions in five matches against Western Conference opponents this season.
Edwards tallied his second MLS assist of the season and the 30th of his MLS career.
Sean Nealis eclipsed 15,000 minutes played across all competitions for New York and became the seventh player in franchise history to accomplish the feat.
The Red Bulls tallied their ninth MLS win at home this season, which is the most in a single season since 2019.
A.J. Marcucci moved his record with the first team to 4-0-2 mark across all competitions.
"We needed those three points today, especially with only eight games left," Marcucci said. "I think we're right on the brink of playoffs, so every single point matters, and tonight, getting three points, especially in a game like that against good competition, is very important."
New York will head to Subaru Park on Wednesday, August 13 to battle the Philadelphia Union in the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET with coverage on Paramount+, CBS Sports Network, and New York Red Bulls Radio presented by Sports Illustrated in English via the New York Red Bulls app and NewYorkRedBulls.com.
