San Diego FC has no time to dwell; focus turns to Real Salt Lake
March 20, 2026: San Diego FC training at Sharp HealthCare Performance Center ahead of Matchday 5 against Real Salt Lake. SAN DIEGO — San Diego FC doesn’t have time to dwell on its exit from the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup. The club’s first run in the tournament ended in a humbling fashion against Deportivo Toluca F.
C. , the back-to-back Liga MX champions. San Diego stunned Toluca in the first leg of the Round of 16, earning a gritty 3-2 win at Snapdragon Stadium.
That result came despite going down a man early and conceding a penalty. The return leg, however, told a different story. At Estadio Nemesio Díez, the combination of altitude, experience, and physicality proved too much for the newest MLS expansion club.
Toluca pulled away to secure a 6-3 aggregate victory. Head coach Mikey Varas told the media at the Sharp HealthCare Performance Center on Friday that his team is determined to deliver a “bounce-back performance,” and that his squad will be at full strength, with no players resting and no new injuries to report. “The most important thing is that the team went for it,” Varas said about the tournament.
“We were really brave to go for it. We left everything on the field. We’ve got a great fighting spirit about us—a no excuse mentality, in terms of having a short preparation and a shorter break and still making a good run.
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