San Diego FC reloads after Leagues Cup setback, eyes playoff push against Sporting KC
Credit: SDFC
Just like that, MLS is back in action.
Leagues Cup came and went, a mostly forgettable experience for San Diego FC, who lost two of three guaranteed games. The team has been busy bolstering their roster. Sporting director Tyler Heaps brought in three new young players in Aiden Harangi, David Vasquez and Pedro Soma. He also signed Corey Baird from FC Cincinnatti, a veteran and a San Diego native.
While San Diego’s Leagues Cup run fell short of Mikey Varas’s expectations, it offered valuable insights. The tournament highlighted areas in need of improvement, particularly the weaknesses Mexican sides were able to exploit. Armed with those lessons, SDFC now turns its focus back to MLS play, aiming to sharpen their approach and turn those shortcomings into strengths.
Let’s dive in.
Leagues Cup and Lessons Learned
One could argue that SDFC would have been better off playing in the U.S. Open Cup rather than Leagues Cup. After all, an expansion team with no minor league squad presents unique difficulties in playing multiple games in a week. Open Cup is the oldest tournament in American soccer. Similar to England’s F.A. Cup, it allows for participation of lower league clubs and runs April through September. Games are played sporadically throughout the season, a format that better fits San Diego’s first campaign.
All that isn’t to say that San Diego didn’t hold their own. Quite the opposite actually. SDFC dominated possession in all three games while showing moments of brilliance. Pachuca were instrumental in capitalizing on the few mistakes SDFC made. Tigres took the most of their opportunities and scored when it mattered. In both of those losses, San Diego were never truly out of it – showcasing to the fans that the team will always fight until the last whistle.
Although many expected head coach Mikey Varas to rest his starters in the third game of the tournament—given the team was already eliminated—he still fielded seven regular starters. Mazatlan had everything to play for, they were on the cusp of giving themselves a chance to advance to the knockout stages with a win.
The message was clear. San Diego FC were not going to take this lying down. The intention was to put together a strong performance and show the audience that the club is capable of winning matches against Liga MX teams.
Young Players Shine Bright
New acquisition David Vazquez got the start vs Tigres, playing 62 minutes. He showed moments of brilliance by showcasing fearless attacking, running straight at defenders. SDFC’s playstyle requires a lot of possession and Vazquez demonstrated patience by completing 19/22 passes. His performance versus Tigres earned him another started against Mazatlan, this time in the midfield. Vazquez seemed more comfortable in that position, weaving his way through defenders and setting up Valakari’s goal with a brilliant pass into the box.
Additionally, Pedro Soma made his highly anticipated debut in the game against Mazatlan. He didn’t disappoint. Soma is everything he was hyped up to be. Composed on the ball and precise in distribution, Soma was a pleasure to watch. According to FotMob, he completed all 37 of his passes—a perfect 100% accuracy rate. The U.S. youth international also showcased a sharp tactical mind and strong grasp of the game, making him a versatile and valuable option for Mikey Varas to call upon.
Sporting Kansas City Has Everything to Play For
Sporting KC comes into this match sitting in 13th place, same as when they came to San Diego in week 14. In their last matchup, SKC made it extremely difficult for San Diego to score when they played in a low block, dropping more than half of their team on defense. The point that SKC earned that night was the gameplan all along.
Kansas City were without star striker Dejan Jovelic during their trip to San Diego. He expects to be ready to go on Saturday. In his first year with Kansas City after being acquired from LA Galaxy, Jovelic tallied 13 goals and two assists on the season. He will look to link up in play with Daniel Salloi, the Hungarian number 10 who plays on the left wing and is the second highest scorer on the team with six goals and three assists.
It’s unclear what the strategy for Kansas City will be when faced against a club who’s in the number one spot on the table. After all, the possibility of making the playoffs is still not out of the question. With a strong finish, SKC can sneak their way into the final playoff spot. That scenario would become more realistic with a positive result against San Diego. Will SKC play not to lose, or will they go for all three points? It remains to be seen.
SDFC Gears Up for Playoff Push with Key Players Back in Action
After a couple of injuries crippled the San Diego defense, Paddy McNair and Chris McVey (McDuo) used the time off from MLS during Leagues Cup to rest and recover. If they’re ready to go on Saturday, San Diego FC will be one step closer in getting back to their original starting 11.
Defensive backs Luca Bombino and Oscar Verhoeven also enjoyed some time off the pitch during the Leagues Cup matches and should be available to go. It remains to be seen what Mikey Varas does in the midfield after how well Pedro Soma and David Vazquez played. The two youngsters will join defender Aidan Harangi and should be available off the bench.
SDFC have everything to play for this weekend. After all, they want to remain on top of the western conference and prove that they’re back to their winning form. For Mikey Varas, this means starting the final push into the playoffs.
“This Kansas game is kind of a closing of this congested summer phase, so for us, it’s about finishing this moment really strong.
“We’ll be coming off a game three days prior, so it’s just about being able to turn that around, recover, take the things we did really well against Mazatlan and some things we still want to be better at, and then finish this moment strong to set us up for this final push in the league”, Varas said.
Another Escondido Native
It’s no secret that Escondido produces a lot of good soccer talent. Corey Baird is another example. The 29-year-old joins San Diego FC after seven season in the MLS. His resume includes playing for Real Salt Lake, where he scored 15 goals in 3 years and added a Rookie of the Year accolade. Additionally, Baird played for LAFC and Houston Dynamo where he combined for 20 goals before being signed to FC Cincinnatti in 2024.
Baird brings depth and a veteran presence to the San Diego offense that most recently lost Milan Iloski, who signed with the Philadelphia Union. His hard work rate off the ball gels with the high-press system that Varas likes to run. As Marcus Ingvartsen inches closer to making his return in the center forward position, Baird will add more competition for minutes to Tomas Angel, who has been fairly ineffective.
“We are excited to add an experienced player like Corey to our team,” said SDFC Sporting Director Tyler Heaps. “We’re confident that Corey’s versatility, work rate, and professionalism will be a valuable addition to our roster. He’s proven he can have success in this league, and we’re excited to welcome him back to San Diego.”
Despite not signing a true number nine, Varas has spoken about possibly moving Anders Dreyer into that role. With Angel unable to cement himself into a starting role due to his lack of goal contributions, Varas has to think outside the box. If the Great Dane was to move into the CF position, it would free up the right-wing spot, setting the stage for Corey Baird and David Vazquez to go head-to-head for the starting job.
Sporting Kansas City and San Diego face off at 5:45 PM on Saturday, August 9th. The game can be streamed via Apple TV and listened to on the radio by tuning into AM760.
Dmitry Anisimov is a San Diego native who played soccer up to the college level when he represented the SDSU Men’s Club Soccer team. Growing up in San Diego, Dmitry is a fan of all the home teams but he specifically couldn’t wait until San Diego got an MLS team. Once that dream became reality, Dmitry married his love for writing and the game of soccer to portray a voice of the San Diego soccer community. There is a deep-rooted love of soccer culture in San Diego and Dmitry hopes to bring it to light through his pre and post-game coverage of all things San Diego FC.