Due to either injury or international call-up, San Diego FC had to rely on the mettle of their youth players without key starters such as veteran midfielder Anibal Godoy and stalwart centre-back Paddy McNair to hold down the backfield. That mettle was quickly put to the test when the defense was caught flat-footed in the first half falling behind 2-0 before the 20th minute had struck.
SDFC’s offense quickly responded with a goal by San Diego native Luca de la Torre in the 27th minute which kept hope alive. Going into the second half with the score still 2-1 the Chrome and Azul’s youth were able to hold strong on defense and prevent Austin FC from finding another score for the rest of the game. However, despite the offense playing aggressively in the opponent’s third of the field and maintaining possession for the majority of the match they were unable to mount a comeback like in weeks prior and fell for the first loss in club history.
Another week, another three phases, another three takeaways, let’s get into it:
National team hopefuls show out.
After Team USA’s embarrassing fourth-place exit in the CONCACAF Nations League following consecutive losses to Panama and Canada, manager Mauricio Pochettino will be looking to shake things up and change the trajectory of the squad before the North American-hosted 2026 World Cup. Both teams in this match have players who are looking to find a way back into the Men’s National Team in SDFC’s Luca de la Torre and Austin FC’s Brandon Vázquez and both players certainly made an impact Sunday. Torre was his usual energetic and aggressive self making key passes off quick maneuvers and, with a little deflection help, scored his first goal with his hometown club. Vázquez was a show all himself finding the first goal for his new Texas team in the 10th minute off a breakaway play, he would have found himself two more goals off similar sequences if it weren’t for a couple of misplaced touches.
Offense falls woefully short.
Two weeks in a row San Diego’s offense failed to secure victory while having control of possession. This match was particularly disturbing; they controlled 76% of the possession time but failed to find the back of the net when they needed it most. The offense could not salvage a draw despite the defense holding Austin scoreless in the second half and ended the match with a paltry four of 17 shots on target. Even forward Anders Dreyer, who has been particularly reliable, has been unable to find his shot in recent weeks. Whether this is an alarming sign of future problems for head coach Mikey Varas’s squad or just growing pains on the road to success is to be seen, but recent performances are worthy of some fan concern.
First test of adversity
With those concerns in mind, SDFC has still had a relatively smooth start to its inaugural season. 2-2-1 is nothing to be ashamed of, and fans of an expansion team such as this club should even find some pride in it. There were also still some positives to take from the match despite the frustrating loss. For three straight weeks, San Diego fell behind early and in this game, it was two scores before they were even halfway through the first half, yet they dug in and quickly responded with a goal of their own and continued to claw at Austin’s lead for the entirety of the match. They had several opportunities to snatch a point from the jaws of defeat, and while it is disappointing they ultimately failed in their bid to do so, it should be reassuring that never once did it feel like the players gave less than 100% effort. Now fans will be looking to see how their young team bounces back from their first-ever loss.
SDFC plays their next game home at Snapdragon Stadium against in-state rival LAFC on Saturday, March 29 at 7:30 PM PST. Those wanting to tune into the match, can watch on MLS Season Pass through Apple TV or listen on iHeartMedia’s San Diego Sports Radio 760 AM (KGB-AM).
