The good news for San Diego FC is that during its match Saturday, it keep one big trend alive – holding opponents scoreless for an entire match.
The bad news, however, was that SDFC also couldn’t find the back of the net.
That meant the club had to settle for a 0-0 draw with Sporting Kansas City on its home pitch at Snapdragon Stadium.
It was the sixth match this season that San Diego prevented its opponent from scoring a goal, and the third time in the past four matches. It was just the third time SDFC has been kept off the board, and also the club’s third draw of the year.
“We played against a different type of challenge in this game,” head coach Mikey Varas said during the post-game press conference. “Sporting KC was really patient. Credit to them for their game plan. They slowed the game down a lot.”
Varas added that in past matches this season, teams had pressed San Diego, but SKC employed the opposite tactic.
“They didn’t have very much to offer in the way of attacking, but we weren’t able to counter (the slower pace),” he commented. “They made it difficult for us.”
San Diego defensive midfielder and team captain Jeppe Tverskov added during the post-match press conference, “We feel like it’s two points lost.”
“They deliberately tried to make the game slow and drag it out a lot,” he said. “We were a little frustrated at the end.”
Despite several attempts, San Diego FC couldn’t score Saturday. (Photo by Chris Stone/Times of San Diego)With the draw, San Diego’s overall record now stands at 7 wins, 4 losses and 3 draws. The team’s home record is 4-1-3. The club earned one point as a result of the draw – asopposed to the three it would have received with a victory – and now has 24 for the season.
San Diego FC was playing its third match in eight days, and the fifth out of seven scheduled in May. During the eight-day, three-game stretch, which ended Saturday, the club earned a total of seven points (two wins, one draw) out of a possible nine.
As of Saturday night, SDFC was in third place in the MLS Western Conference standings, behind the Vancouver Whitecaps (8-1-4, 28 points) and Minnesota United (7-3-4, 25 points).
“Every time we’re at home, we expect three points,” said midfielder Luca de la Torre, a San Diego native acquired by the club in January. “It’s disappointing. We know that next week, we’ll come with more fight.”
The game was filled with lots of physical play, with a number of fouls called and free kicks issued by the officials.
The first half was notable in that three yellow cards were issued to three different players. First, during the ninth minute, Sporting KC defender Jensen Miller was carded for a hand foul against SDFC winger Alex Mighten. Then, In the 21st minute, SKC forward Santiago Munoz received a free kick after being fouled by defensive midfielder Anibal Godoy, who was shownthe yellow card.
And in the 37th minute, SDFC defender Luca Bombino was yellow carded after a hard foul on attacking midfielder Manu Garcia.
None of the players were able to convert the free kicks into goals, however.
The match was the end of a three-game road trip for SKC. The two clubs play again Aug. 9 with SKC hosting.
The draw against Sporting KC means that San Diego is undefeated in the month of May. The expansion side went through some growing pains in April, losing three straight, beforebouncing back with four straight wins in May, including SKC.
Saturday’s contest was part of a three-match home stand at Snapdragon. The club next meets rival LA Galaxy at 1:30 p.m. May 24 in a match that’s scheduled to be nationally televised on Fox and Fox Deportes.
Notes: Three San Diego players were on the injured list for the match, including Danish forward Marcus Ingvartsen, who’s still mending from to a leg injury that’s sidelined him for most of the season. Additionally, Columbia defender Andrés Reyes is battling a hip injury. Defender Hamady Diop, a Senegal native, is still struggling with his own hip issues that have kept him out of game action.
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