SAN DIEGO — The SD Loyal are back home on Saturday after a road trip to sweltering Arizona. The Loyal will take on Reno 1868 FC at Torero Stadium. The 7 p.m. game can be watched locally on the CW San Diego.
It has been a rough stretch of three games for coach Landon Donovan’s team. The Loyal have not found the net in each of those games, being outscored by a total of 4-0 in the matches. Despite the recent results, Donovan has seen his team dominate possession and create scoring chances and needs one step to complete plays into scoring. SD Loyal will have that chance coming into the match with a 3-3-2 record with 11 points in the Group B standings.
Reno 1868 FC comes into Torero Stadium on a roll.
They are in first place in Group A, tied with Sacramento Republic FC with 15 points. Reno has won four of its last five games with its only two losses coming against Sacramento Republic. It is also coming off a 5-2 win against Portland in which the offense exploded to help the team earn another three points. Reno 1868 FC began the return to play schedule with three-straight wins before facing Sacramento and losing 1-0 on Aug. 12 in a tight match.
Reno 1868 FC head coach Ian Russell played with SD Loyal head coach Landon Donovan for four seasons (2001-2004) as members of the San Jose Earthquakes, winning MLS Cups in 2001 and 2003. This is the first time these clubs meet in official competition. SD Loyal beat Reno 1868 FC (4-2) in a preseason game Feb. 29.
