HERRIMAN, Utah – Real Monarchs SLC plays host to Austin Bold FC on Saturday afternoon at Zions Bank Stadium as the visitors arrive aiming to bounce back from a midweek defeat that put their fourth-place position in the USL Championship’s Mountain Division under additional pressure. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET.

@RealMonarchs (4-18-6, 18pts) played to a scoreless draw with Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC in its most recent outing last Friday night at Zions Bank Stadium as the club’s struggles in front of goal continued to manifest. Eliminated from playoff contention, the Monarchs were unable to find a way through against the Switchbacks to be held scoreless for the eighth time in the past nine games. Real did make history in the contest, however, as Axel Kei’s introduction as a second-half substitute aged 13 years, 9 months and 9 days old saw him become the youngest player to compete in a professional league in North American history. Kei was more than a year younger than the previous holder of the Championship’s mark for the youngest player to appear in the league – Phoenix Rising FC’s Ansu Kanneh, who was 14 years, 10 months and 2 days old at the time of his debut last season – and could be expected to see more minutes as the season winds down.

@AustinBoldFC (10-8-10, 40pts) fell to a 3-1 defeat against Birmingham Legion FC on Wednesday night as a first-half goal by Nathaniel Adamolekun wasn’t enough to earn a result at BBVA Field. Bold FC remains in fourth place in the Mountain Division, however, one point ahead of New Mexico United and two points ahead of Rio Grande Valley FC with four games to go in the season. Bold FC does not face either of those sides in its remaining slate and holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Toros, but it will want to make the most of its contest with the Monarchs, whom the side has taken two victories and one draw against in three prior meetings this season. With games on the road against San Antonio FC and El Paso Locomotive FC up next, the pressure will remain on Austin to maintain its current spot in the standings.

FiveThirtyEight.com Match Predictor: Real Monarchs SLC 27%, Austin Bold FC 44%, Draw 29%

Most Recent Lineups

Real Monarchs SLC (4-4-2): Zach MacMath; Jaziel Orozco; Kyle Adams, Ashtone Morgan, Andrew Brody; Bode Davis, Christian Nydegger, Justin Portillo, Milan Iloski; Bobby Wood, Charlie Wehan

Austin Bold FC (3-5-2): Elliot Panicco; Gustavo Rissi, Jermaine Taylor, Casey Walls; Nick Hinds, Amobi Okugo, Juan Pablo Torres, Xavi Baez, Omar Gordon; Nathaniel Adamolekun, Jorge Troncoso

Discipline

Real Monarchs SLC – Caution Accumulation Warning: Jaziel Orozco

Austin Bold FC – Caution Accumulation Warning: Alassane Ates Diouf