San Diego FC played its eighth game in the 2025 MLS regular season this Saturday, April 12, against Colorado Rapids, away from home.

This was San Diego’s first-ever visit to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in what is regarded as a tough place to visit.

SDFC was coming off home victories against LAFC and Seattle Sounders but struggled much more in this match. Mikey Varas repeated the exact starting lineup that was used in the 3-0 victory against Seattle in the last matchday.

CJ dos Santos has solidified his role as the undeniable starting goalkeeper. Franco Negri, Christoppher McVey, Paddy McNair, and Jasper Loffelsend made up the backline. Jeppe Tverskov, Anibal Godoy, and Luca de la Torre started in the midfield. The attacking three consisted of Hirving Lozano, Anders Dreyer, and Onni Valakari.

The first half was a very contested affair with Colorado coming up on top with a penalty kick goal in the 37th minute. The penalty was awarded after CJ dos Santos knocked Darren Yapi down inside of the penalty area.

Dorde Mihailovic shot the penalty left, and dos Santos was able to get a piece on it, but his effort was not enough to save the strike. Some of the other notable moments in the half included a save by CJ dos Santos on a shot by Cole Bassett and a miss in front of the net by Onni Valakari.

San Diego dominated possession heavily in the opening 45 minutes with 64 percent of control. However, the creativity was just not there with just Onni Valakari’s miss as the only scoring opportunity of note for San Diego.

SURGICAL from Luca. pic.twitter.com/ZNFnalzY2Z

— San Diego FC (@sandiegofc) April 13, 2025

SDFC began the second half much better with a goal by Luca de la Torre in the 49th minute. Hirving Lozano passed the sphere to de la Torre, who pulled off a shot from inside of the box. This was the San Diego native’s second goal of the season and brought a glimmer of hope for the away side.

The match remained deadlocked for just a few minutes as Colorado regained the lead in the 52nd minute. Darren Yapi scored off a corner kick in what was a very messy goal with a lack of organization from San Diego’s backline.

In the 60th minute, Rafael Navarro gave the home team a 3-1 lead, which was enough to seal the game. The marking was very sloppy and allowed for this third goal by the opposition.

In the 69th minute, Willy Kumado, Milan Iloski, and Alex Mighten came on to try and make a spark in the offense. San Diego managed to generate some dangerous play in the second half and were much better offensively than in the first half. However, the finishing was not there, with some good saves by Zack Steffen.

Tomas Angel came on for Hirving Lozano in the 84th minute and made an immediate impact, scoring in the 89th minute. However, it was far too late to try to spark a comeback, as the result seemed destined after Colorado’s third goal.

Tomás Ángel’s first goal for @SanDiegoFC pic.twitter.com/9BcUrtZGYH

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) April 13, 2025

The backline was perhaps the worst it has looked all season, while the attack really needed to do more with the ball. While the altitude is a very minor factor, there are far more serious faults in play that led to this defeat on the road. San Diego never gave up and really pushed for that equalizer, but it was too late.

This was just San Diego’s second loss of the season, ending a two-game winning streak in two home games. SDFC will now travel to play Charlotte on April 19 and then will host Real Salt Lake on April 26 at Snapdragon Stadium.

Francisco Velasco

Francisco, 28, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego FC, San Diego Wave. I have covered Liga MX, MLS, Mexico National Team, USWNT, Copa América and European clubs like Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund.