Friday night at Snapdragon Stadium brings a real challenge to a depleted San Diego FC roster. “One of the most thin rosters I’ve ever been a part of,” said Luca de la Torre. The summer transfer window is officially open as of Thursday, July 24, but the reinforcements won’t be here in time to help against the second-place team in the East.
Nashville’s Hot Streak
Nashville SC makes its first-ever road trip to San Diego, and they are bringing a lot of firepower along. Striker Sam Surridge is currently tied for the Golden Boot with none other than Lionel Messi, having scored 18 goals on the season. Hany Mukhtar complements Surridge on the other side of the field, having scored 11 goals himself.
Oh yeah – Nashville’s defense isn’t so bad either. The yellow and black gave up the second-fewest number of goals in the East. A big part of that has been All-Star defender Andy Najar. The Honduran right-back is an excellent defender who also leads Nashville in assists. The two-way player is a threat on the attack, as he fearlessly takes on opponents and possesses an uncanny ability to make key passes that lead to goals.
Riding a two-match clean sheet streak, Nashville will look to make it three against a San Diego team that hasn’t been very dangerous in front of the net since the departure of Milan Iloski. Nashville SC has won seven out of their last ten, with only one loss coming against Inter Miami. San Diego’s young back line will need to be at their best. Nashville SC sits atop the MLS for percentage of shots on target. Surridge and Mukhtar are intentional with their shot selection. Given the opportunity, they will make the opponent pay.
Varas Looking for Growth
Speaking of All-Stars, San Diego FC has three of their own. Jeppe Tverskov, Anders Dreyer, and Hirving Lozano all represented the Azul and Chrome in the All-Star game on Wednesday. “It’s definitely a challenge, because we have to see how they come back from the travel and the game,” stated coach Mikey Varas. With San Diego’s depleted roster due to injuries and recent transfers, they don’t have much room for more players to be unavailable.
Mikey Varas is not one to make excuses when dealing with adversity. It’s very clear that his team will be put to the test against a strong team. Varas always embraced the challenge. “It’s going to be another massive challenge, but these are what we love because we want to be tested by the best. That’s how you grow.”
Growth will be measured by how the youngest back line in the league will do against a top offense.
Reports out of the Sharp Healthcare training facility indicate that Anibal Godoy will be available, although it’s not clear how many minutes he will play. Paddy McNair turned in a full practice session, which puts him closer to making his return. There was no news on Chris McVey’s injury, so it remains to be seen if he will be available to play on Friday.
If the vets can’t go, Manu Duah will likely get the call at center-back again. Duah put in a great performance in the last game and earned himself trust in the CB position. Ian Pilcher, the oldest of the four defenders at only age 22, should start opposite of Duah. Luca de la Torre sees no issues with starting a young, inexperienced back line. “I think the most important thing is just to trust them,” de la Torre said. “They’re here for a reason, they have quality, they’ve been doing well in training, they deserve their chance.”
Transfer Rumors Are Heating Up
With the Leagues Cup approaching, the thin SDFC roster will soon receive reinforcements. Sporting director Tyler Heaps has been busy lining up deals. Earlier this week, Heaps mentioned he has a few players who are close to signing with San Diego. A couple of rumors circulated on the internet linking SDFC to Pedro Soma and David Vázquez, both of whom are only 19 years old.
Soma currently plays in Spain. He’s on loan with the Barcelona B in the Spanish 4th division. A strong midfielder, Soma brings poise on the ball and great field vision. Vázquez is currently having a great season with the Philadelphia Union’s reserve team. He’s touted as a versatile midfielder who’s got a bright future. Both players progressed through the U.S. youth national team system, where Mikey Varas became familiar with them.
Nashville’s Hot Streak
Nashville SC makes its first-ever road trip to San Diego, and they are bringing a lot of firepower along. Striker Sam Surridge is currently tied for the Golden Boot with none other than Lionel Messi, having scored 18 goals on the season. Hany Mukhtar complements Surridge on the other side of the field, having scored 11 goals himself.
Oh yeah – Nashville’s defense isn’t so bad either. The yellow and black gave up the second-fewest number of goals in the East. A big part of that has been All-Star defender Andy Najar. The Honduran right-back is an excellent defender who also leads Nashville in the assist category. The two-way player is dangerous on the attack as he fearlessly takes on players and possesses an uncanny ability to make key passes that lead to goals.
Riding a two-match clean sheet streak, Nashville will look to make it three against a San Diego team that hasn’t been very dangerous in front of the net since the departure of Milan Iloski. Nashville SC has won seven out of their last ten, with only one loss coming against Inter Miami. San Diego’s young back line will need to be at their best. Nashville SC sit atop of the MLS for percentage of shots on target. Surridge and Mukhtar are intentional with their shot selection. Given the opportunity, they will make the opponent pay.
Varas Looking for Growth
Speaking of All-Stars, San Diego FC has three of their own. Jeppe Tverskov, Anders Dreyer, and Hirving Lozano all represented the Azul and Chrome in the All-Star game on Wednesday. “It’s definitely a challenge, because we have to see how they come back from the travel and the game,” stated coach Mikey Varas. With San Diego’s depleted roster due to injuries and recent transfers, they don’t have much room for more players not to be available.
Mikey Varas is not one to make excuses when dealing with adversity. It’s very clear that his team will be put to the test against a strong team. Varas always embraced the challenge. “It’s going to be another massive challenge, but these are what we love because we want to be tested by the best. That’s how you grow.”
Growth will be measured by how the youngest back line in the league will do against a top offense.
Injury Report and Next Man Up
Reports out of the Sharp Healthcare training facility indicate that Anibal Godoy will be available, although it’s not clear how many minutes he will play. Paddy McNair turned in a full practice session, which puts him closer to making his return. There was no news on Chris McVey’s injury, so it remains to be seen if he will be available to play on Friday.
If the vets can’t go, Manu Duah will likely get the call at center-back again. Duah put in a great performance in the last game and earned himself trust in the CB position. Ian Pilcher, the oldest of the four defenders at only age 22, should start opposite of Duah. Luca de la Torre sees no issues with starting a young, inexperienced back line. “I think the most important thing is just to trust them,” de la Torre said. “They’re here for a reason, they have quality, they’ve been doing well in training, they deserve their chance.”
Transfer Rumors Are Heating Up
With the Leagues Cup approaching, the thin SDFC roster will soon receive reinforcements. Sporting director Tyler Heaps has been busy lining up deals. Earlier this week, Heaps mentioned that he has a few players close to signing with San Diego. A couple of rumors circulated on the internet linking SDFC to Pedro Soma and David Vázquez, both only 19 years old.
Soma currently plays in Spain. He’s on loan with the Barcelona B in the Spanish 4th division. A strong midfielder, Soma brings poise on the ball and great field vision. Vázquez is currently having a great season with the Philadelphia Union’s reserve team. He’s touted as a versatile midfielder who’s got a bright future. Both players progressed through the U.S. youth national team system, where Mikey Varas became familiar with them.
Mastermind Plan in Place
Joining fellow 19-year-olds Luca Bombino and Oscar Verhoeven—both U.S. U-20 national team standouts—the two rumored midfield additions would fit seamlessly into San Diego FC’s youth movement. Head coach Mikey Varas appears intent on building a foundation rooted in familiarity and cohesion, prioritizing players who have already shared the field together. That built-in chemistry could prove invaluable for a club seeking its young core to contribute immediately.
SDFC will look to improve on its performance after earning just four points from its last four matches. If growth is what Varas intends to see, Friday will be the time to prove that progress is more than just a talking point.
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.
