San Diego FC’s sluggish start streak persisted on Friday, but the expansion team managed to win and defeat one of the top MLS teams in the process.
At Snapdragon Stadium, the team came alive in the second half to defeat Nashville SC 1-0 after a scoreless first half of a well played, calculated chess match.
Hirving Star The goal was delivered by Chucky Lozano. In the eighth minute of the second half, Lozano, who had just played in the MLSAll-Star Game on Wednesday, scored with a right-footed drive from the middle of the goal that found the top right corner of the net.
He hadn’t scored a goal since June 28.
Then came a near-goal, with seconds left in the ten minutes of stoppage time, when Anders Dreyer’s left-footed attempt struck the lower left corner of the net to seal the victory.
Since MLS finally decided that time had passed, it was nearly Dreyer’s 12th goal of the season. San Diego thought it had won 2-0, but there was a small difference in the final score because SDFC thought it counted.
Nevertheless, it was still a victory. It was Lozano’s eighth goal of the year. Dreyer’s 16th assist of the season came on Lozano’s goal.
San Diego, who had lost their previous three home games going into the contest, recorded their first clean sheet since defeating Austin FC 2-0 on May 31.
It was the first time the two sides had ever clashed. San Diego started the game at the top of the Western table, while Nashville, one of the greatest MLS teams this season, began the game in second place in the Eastern Conference.
After the win, SDFC is now 14-7-4 with 46 points, while Vancouver, which plays Sporting KC on Saturday, has 42 points. With a 14-6-5 record and 47 points, Nashville, meanwhile, drops to third place in the Eastern standings.
In a postgame interview, SDFC head coach Mikey Varas stated that you must ultimately treasure victories over strong opponents. The guys had a great game, so we’ll enjoy this one.
San Diego had four players out for the game because of lower-body injuries: forward Marcus Ingvartsen, right-back Willy Kumado, defender Christopher McVey, and forward Anisse Saidi.
Anbal Godoy, a defensive midfielder, made a comeback to the starting lineup and played roughly 35 minutes in the second half after missing the previous three games due to injury.
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Just 48 hours prior, three members of San Diego’s starting lineup were in Texas. During the All-Star Game in Austin, Lozano, Dreyer, and Jeppe Tverskov all played for at least half an hour each.
Sam Surridge scored for MLS during Nashville’s 3-1 triumph over a squad composed of Liga MX league all-stars. Nashville also sent three players to the All-Star Game.
Notes: Next up, SDFC will start playing in the Leagues Cup, an annual competition involving Liga MX and MLS clubs. Three games against Mexican teams are planned for San Diego over seven days: CF Pachuca on Tuesday, Tigres UANL on August 1, and Mazatl n FC on August 5. Every game is planned for Snapdragon.
Updated July 25, 2025, at 11:50 p.m.
