It's All Part of the Journey
San Diego FC lose in Western Conference Final, 3-1 to Vancouver Whitecaps
This is the newsletter I’ve been dreading to write: the final one of the season. Sure, the ride was going to come to an end eventually, but I was enjoying it too much. We all were. This season had everything—all the highs, the lows and everything in between. It was an incredible and historic inaugural season for San Diego FC.
The season officially ended on Saturday night with a 3–1 loss against the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference Final. Now that it’s over, it’s time to reflect.
For most of my life, I had always been a destination person. I was a person who always wanted the end result quickly, rather than enjoying the process. My high school and college years were a blur because all I wanted to do was get it all over with. I just wanted to get through those years and get the diploma because that was always the end goal. I never thought, not once, that I should enjoy those years or take a second to stop and smell the roses.
That all changed after I graduated from San Jose State University. A couple of life-changing events happened to the point that my mindset had to change. For once, I decided I should try and slow time down and enjoy the journey and all the little things that come with it.
The Inaugural Season: Embracing the Unknown
That was about eight years ago. But the mindset to enjoy the journey continues. With San Diego FC, we didn’t know anything about the club. All we could do was witness a first-year club become a team. Match by match, minute by minute, we learned a little more about the organization, about the team’s style, about the head coach and the players. We had no choice but to enjoy the journey because we had no clue where this team was destined to go.
The team started their regular season on a Sunday afternoon against LA Galaxy. The first match was against the defending MLS Cup champion. It was a tall task already and all we could do was believe that they can sneak out of Carson with a result. But SDFC did much better than a draw, they went up to Carson and won. The first goal by Anders Dreyer made his introduction to MLS and to the San Diego fans who didn’t know who he was. For me, the first goal is what made this whole thing real. The second goal sealed the first ever win in San Diego FC history. I remember running around my apartment when the goal went in. In San Diego’s first seven matches, they had four wins, two draws, and one loss for a total of 14 points to start the season.
San Diego would then go on their only three-game losing streak of the season. Defeats to Colorado, Charlotte and Real Salt Lake brought this team back down to earth. For the first time, this team did look like a first-year club. But did this team come crashing down after three straight defeats? No. In the next 10 matches, San Diego went 8-1-1 accumulating another 25 points in the process.
Their successful stretch started against FC Dallas at home where SDFC scored five goals for a 5–0 win. In that match, it would be the first time we saw Milan Iloski score a goal. His first of 10 goals for the club. Also in this stretch of 10 games was the Vancouver match where he scored four goals in one match. Milan Iloski will always be a club legend woven into our history.
The Saga and the Shift
After this successful 10-game stretch, drama ensued regarding Milan Iloski and the club. Both sides couldn’t come to an agreement on a new contract for Iloski. The club had just won a match against Chicago Fire with Milan Iloski sitting on the bench. By the time San Diego got back from Chicago and was getting prepared for the next match against Toronto FC, Iloski was gone and his loan had been terminated.
After this Iloski saga, SDFC was still winning games but they were now doing it in different ways. It wasn’t the high flying attack we were seeing at the beginning of the season. We were now seeing a team that was playing better defensively down the stretch. They posted back-to-back clean sheets to start off the post-Iloski winning era. A couple of wins against two California teams in August brought the record to 5–0 against California teams up to that point.
The match against LAFC was huge. Anders Dreyer wanted to kill the party with his game-winning goal to ruin the first match for Son Heung-min, who LAFC had just acquired in the summer transfer window.
For San Diego FC, the summer transfer window was about making moves that could help us now and into the future. David Vazquez, Pedro Soma, and Leo Duru were all young players acquired with the future in mind, while Corey Baird and Amahl Pellegrino were acquired for the late playoff run. It took a while for both players to find their footing but they were able to contribute big late in the season. After being subbed on in Houston for Chucky Lozano, Pellegrino was able to get a goal and two assists in his more natural position at left winger. In the very next match, Pellegrino was able to get two goals against Portland on Decision Day.
That night, all the players huddled up to look at an iPad to see who won between FC Dallas and Vancouver. It turned out Dallas won and San Diego were the top team in the Western Conference. It was because of the results of Decision Day that San Diego FC was hosting a Western Conference Final on Saturday night.
The Final Snapdragon Moment
Going into Saturday night, I had a feeling, no matter the result between Vancouver and San Diego FC, that this was going to be the final match in Snapdragon Stadium this year. When I checked my phone before heading into the stadium, the Inter Miami score read 3–1. If the results stood, that meant Miami was hosting the cup Final. So for us in San Diego, it was all about soaking in the moment of the final match at Snapdragon.
I was with my friend Jesus for the match. Back in October 2023, us, along with our friend Pierre, went to Snapdragon Stadium for the first time to attend the brand reveal. We had already seen the leaks but we didn’t care. We were going to rep the team from that moment on. I even bought a sweatshirt that I took on a plane to London. It was probably one of the first times that SDFC merch was seen outside of San Diego. We were going to support this team through all the good and bad times. We were just happy to have a first-division team.
We recognized on Saturday night how much this match was a community event. We saw old friends we hadn’t seen in a while sitting in our section (shout-out to Randy and Hector). A supporter was the Keeper of the Flow for the match. Even the supporters’ section sang the national anthem. This team is much more than just a badge on a shirt or a logo on a hat, this team now belongs to the community.
Those were my thoughts as I saw a second goal roll into the back of the net and Vancouver took a commanding 2–0 lead.
When it comes to the actual match itself, it took me 48 hours to watch any footage. I didn’t want to see any of it because SDFC got cooked. Vancouver was the better team. I’m not going to sugarcoat that. In the first half, Vancouver had the ball 42% of the time, took five shots, and all five were on target, with four considered big chances for the Whitecaps. The expected goals (xG) at the half were 2.11 to 0.47 in favor of Vancouver.
In the second half, San Diego FC subbed in Chucky Lozano, and he made a difference by scoring a goal in the 60th minute. Mounting a comeback down two goals to Vancouver was going to be tough. What made the situation tougher was goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega receiving a red card for a tackle outside the penalty area in the 79th minute. San Diego FC had 10 men on the field, and SDFC had no choice but to bring on goalkeeper Duran Ferree and take an attacking player off the field in Amahl Pellegrino. With just 10 minutes plus some change left in the match, you could sense that it was all over for the home team.
But that was just one match. One Western Conference Final and one game away from playing for an MLS Cup. From here on out, this team will be hunting for hardware. Whether that’s an MLS Cup, Supporters’ Shield, Champions Cup, Leagues Cup or U.S. Open Cup, San Diego will get one soon enough. But as I said from the beginning, it’s all about the journey and that’s what matters.
On this journey we witnessed a Danish player by the name of Anders Dreyer come into MLS and dominate the league. Dreyer was in the MVP conversation, pretty much all year. Jeppe Tverskov came into this league and became on of the best central defensive midfielders I’d ever seen in MLS. Most importantly, Tverskov was named captain and acted as a leader throughout the season. We also saw the growth of a young team with young players. Manu Duah, Luca Bombino, Oscar Verhoeven and Ian Pilcher became grown men right in front of our eyes.
From the time the season started to now, the supporter’s section has grown. The Purple Lot is filled with more people. Being at Snapdragon for a match is more than just being at a match; it’s a community gathering event. Beers were shared, friendships have been made and moments of taking your kids to their soccer game then taking them to watch SDFC will always be remembered. San Diego has grown so much as a sports town in the last 10 years. From losing a team to falling in love with a new one.
The last thing I have to say about that is… “Yo me enamore, de San Diego me enamore, toda la vida te seguiré”.
Dates to Remember
December 9th: Champions Cup Draw
December 10th: MLS Free Agency opens
December 18th: MLS Super Draft
February 3–5: Round One of Champions Cup
February 7–21st: Coachella Valley Invitational
February 21st: First MLS Regular Season Match against CF Montreal