San Diego FC Earns 2-1 Road Win Against St. Louis CITY SC
May 10, 2025 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
San Diego FC News Release
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - San Diego FC (SDFC) earned a 2-1 road win against St. Louis CITY SC with second half goals by SDFC Forwards Milan Iloski and Anders Dreyer at Energizer Park on Saturday night. With the result, SDFC picked up their second consecutive win and snapped a three-match road losing streak, while handing St. Louis their eighth straight defeat. SDFC (6-4-2, 20 pts) remain in fourth place in the Western Conference and have now recorded their third road win of the 2025 MLS season.
Iloski broke a scoreless draw in the 79th minute and Dreyer added SDFC's second goal of the night eight minutes later to extend the lead. It was the second meeting between SDFC and St. Louis, who played to a scoreless draw during SDFC's home inaugural match on March 1.
Next up, SDFC will host back-to-back matches in a span of four days at Snapdragon Stadium against Colorado Rapids on Wednesday, May 14 and against Sporting Kansas City on Saturday May 17. Both matches will kick off at 7:30 p.m. PT and will air live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Tickets for both matches are available via SanDiegoFC.com/Tickets.
Goal-Scoring Plays
0-1 - Milan Iloski (Ánibal Godoy, 79th minute:) Iloski broke the scoreless draw with a right-footed rolling shot into the lower left corner of the St. Louis CITY SC net off a pass by Godoy, who fed Iloski after taking a pass from Luca de la Torre.
0-2 - Anders Dreyer, 87th minute: Dreyer sealed the win for SDFC with a sharp left-footed strike from a tight angle near the end line on the left side of the pitch, threading the ball between goalkeeper Ben Lundt, the post, and the end line to find the back of the net.
1-2 - Kye Hiebert, 90+1: Hebert pulled one back for St. Louis with a close-range finish, slotting home a rebound after SDFC goalkeeper CJ Dos Santos blocked Marcel Hartel's free kick near the goal line.
Postgame Notes:
- With tonight's 2-1 win against St. Louis CITY SC, SDFC earned its sixth win in Club history and snapped a three-game road losing streak.
- SDFC is now 6-4-2 with 20 points through 12 games this season and currently sits in fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
- SDFC has won consecutive matches, outscoring its last two opponents 7-1.
- SDFC is now 3-3-0 on the road this season.
- SDFC is now 6-3-1 against Western Conference rivals this season.
- In its inaugural season, SDFC is tied with the Philadelphia Union for the second-most goals scored in MLS in 2025, with 23 through 12 matches.
- Forward Milan Iloski made his fifth-consecutive SDFC appearance, replacing Onni Vakakari in the 67th minute, marking his seventh career MLS appearance.
- Milan Iloski scored his second goal for SDFC and his second MLS goal tonight.
- Iloski, a San Diego native, has now scored in consecutive matches coming off the bench. He scored his first SDFC goal and first career MLS goal last week in the 5-0 win against FC Dallas.
- Anders Dreyer scored his fifth goal of the season in the 87th minute of the match.
- Dreyer is now tied with Hirving "Chucky" Lozano in goal contributions for SDFC this season with 10 (5 goals, 5 assists) in 12 starts and 12 appearances. Lozano has 4 goals and 6 assists in 9 appearances.
- Thanks to Anders Dreyer's game-winning goal tonight, SDFC is currently the only team in MLS to have multiple players with at least 10 goal contributions (Dreyer and Lozano).
- Goalkeeper CJ Dos Santos and defender Chris McVey started tonight and played a full 90 minutes through the Club's first 12 matches, each totaling 1080 minutes played.
- Defenders Luca Bombino and Willy made their fifth starts for SDFC tonight.
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Defender Oscar Verhoeven made his second-straight appearance since being acquired via loan from the San Jose Earthquakes on April 25. He made his official SDFC debut last week against FC Dallas.
Next Game
Next up, SDFC is set to host Colorado Rapids at Snapdragon Stadium on Wednesday, May 14. SDFC will then face Sporting Kansas City at home on Saturday, May 17. Both matches will kick off at 7:30 p.m. PT and air live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
Match Information
2025 MLS Regular Season
San Diego FC (6-4-2, 20 pts) vs. ST. Louis CITY SC (2-6-4, 10 pts)
Saturday - Energizer Park (St. Louis, MO)
Scoring Summary:
SD (0-1) Milan Iloski (Assisted by Ánibal Godoy) 79'
SD (0-2) Anders Dreyer (Assisted by Paddy McNair) 87'
STL (1-2) Kyle Hiebert, 90+1
Misconduct Summary:
SD - Onni Valakari (caution 39')
STL - Tomas Ostrak (caution 59')
SD - Oscar Verhoeven (caution 90+6')
STL - Timo Baumgartl (caution 90+6')
Lineups:
SAN DIEGO FC: GK CJ Dos Santos, D Willy Kumado (Oscar Verhoeven, 80'), D Luca Bombino, D Paddy McNair, D Christopher McVey, M Jeppe Tverskov -C-, M Aníbal Godoy, F Onni Valakari (Milan Iloski 66'), M Luca de la Torre, F Anders Dreyer, F Hirving "Chucky" Lozano.
Substitutes Not Used: GK Pablo Sisniega, M Emmanuel Boateng, D Hamady Diop, F Tomás Ángel, M Alejandro Alvarado Jr., D Franco Negri, F Anisse Saidi.
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 3; FOULS: 9; OFFSIDES: 4; CORNER KICKS: 1; SAVES; 4
ST. LOUIS CITY SC: GK Ben Lundt, D Josh Yaro, D Aki Watts, D Kyle Herbert, D Timo Baumgarti (Celio Pompeu, 84'), M Conrad Wallem, M Tomas Ostrak (Xande Silva, 73'), M Joao Klauss (Simon Becher, 73'), M Cedric Teuchert, M Jannes Horn (Jayden Reid, 73'), F Marcel Hartel -C-.
Substitutes Not Used: GK Christian Olivares, F Mykhi Joyner, D Joseph Zalinsky, M Jake Girdwood-Reich.
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 5; FOULS: 9; OFFSIDES: 3; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES: 1
Referee: Allen Chapman
Assistant Referees: Kali Smith, Justin Howard
Fourth Official: Abdou Ndiaye
VAR: Michael Radchuk
AVAR: Tom Supple
Weather: Cloudy, 74 Degrees
Attendance: 22,423
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
SDFC HEAD COACH MIKEY VARAS
On what was the message to his team at halftime:
"The game picture wasn't the one we anticipated, changes a little bit because we didn't anticipate that they would men mark us all over the field for 90 minutes. That's credit to them. As a team, they were really brave to come and try to press us like that. But I was so proud in the first half that the boys were committed to our style of play. We're trying to find a solution. Sometimes a solution was to make a few extra passes and then a free player would emerge. Sometimes it was to play on the final line when it was one-v-one we weren't doing that very effectively. So, what we told the guys is we needed to be a little bit more clear if when we were going to do that, which I thought we did better in the second half. The other thing was that we were suffering a little bit when our press was good, they were kicking along, and we were losing many second balls in the first half and second half. I think we won everything. I think that the guys did a good job in terms of exploiting the space with diagonal balls and be in between their wingers, their wing backs, in their side center backs to our wingers in the second half, and that helped a lot. And then our counter press was way more organized and aggressive in the second half. So, the first half was a big struggle, but I was really happy with the boys commitment. And then the second half, we were able to kind of turn the game in our favor."
On upcoming home matches, having to play on quick turnarounds:
"We're starting a new challenge now, right? And the new challenge that we haven't faced as a group yet is quick turnarounds. So, you know how big our squad is, how quickly we can recover and repeat those type of performances, making sure that we continue with this kind of performance mindset, of making sure we stick to our principles and we show commitment and discipline for our structure, our game plan, principles and effort. And then it'll be a great challenge in terms of that, you know, one thing I want to mention is that, in the last couple games, especially, Anders (Dreyer) and Hirving (Lozano), really, really making big contributions.
On Chucky Lozano's impact on defense and his overall performance tonight:
"You know, I think if you watch Hirving's game right now, for me, it's really clear that he's putting in tremendous amount of effort to help us defend. His pressing today was fantastic. His defending in the low block, and then he creates such a big problem for the opponent in terms of one v- one and for me, I think he's flying. And I would expect that the Mexican Federation is watching these games and seeing that, you know, he's, he's really, really, really stepping up in a big way."
On Milan Iloski coming off the bench, making a difference:
"So, we talk about these guys being came game changers off of the bench, and I was really proud that he came in, made another impact, scored another goal, was able to help us keep and actually improve the intensity of our press. And then Oscar (Verhoeven) coming in, also coming in and helping us shut the game down, a young player, you know, he's only been with us for a few weeks, but he's adapting really quickly. And then all the guys that were left on the bench, you know, guys that were almost about to go in, and then they scored the set piece, and then we changed our mind. And just the commitment to being part of the team and celebrating the team performance is like, it's such a massive step in the right direction for us. On Luca Bombino: Yeah, bambino is growing every single game he's another one that I think, I hope the Federation is looking very clear at for the 20s, because he's playing first team minutes, and he's, he's showing that he can be an impact at this at this level, winning a game on the road."
On Luca Bombino:
"Yeah, bambino is growing every single game he's another one that I think, I hope the Federation is looking very clear at for the 20s, because he's playing first team minutes, and he's, he's showing that he can be an impact at this at this level, winning a game on the road."
SDFC FORWARD MILAN ILOSKI
On coming on and scoring goals, helping the team:
"It's a great feeling. You know, coming in mid-season like this, it was, you know, important for me personally to make an impact. You know, I needed to, I think, prove to the staff and also the players that I can be trusted and that, you know, I can offer something to the team. So, you know, I'm happy to just be doing my job and, you know, help the team get as many points as possible."
On scoring tonight in a big moment for the club after a missed attempt:
"It was a good chance. It was a tight angle, so it wasn't the easiest chance, but, um, you know, it was just a little bit of like, you know, like, it's a big moment in that time, still being 0-0, that's a big chance for us to take the lead. So, you know, just a little bit of, like a letdown, like, Alright, come on next and then it's on to the next one. You have to have that mentality as a striker and, you know, as an athlete like you can't get held up on, you know, missing a chance like that, or, you know, having a low moment like that. You have to bounce back fast and be ready for the next chance to come. So, when something like that happens, you're just, you know, focused on the next action, the next play, and ready to go again."
On about what it's been like training and playing with this club, meshing with players on the roster and team chemistry in just a few months:
"Yeah, no, of course, yeah. It's, it's amazing with a club done, this was a short period, you know, from the outside coming in, the team was doing well before I got here. So, you know, it's amazing to see when you come in, and you can, you can really feel it when you're on the training ground, and the team works really well together. Of course, when you have great players, it's going to, you know, be a little bit easier, I think, to get things going. And we have such talented players, and, you know, the staff does a great job of putting us all together and doing team building stuff and stuff like that off the field, also that is always going to contribute at the end of the day. So, the group's really close. I think we also all feel really how important it is to the fans and to the people back in San Diego. So, I think, you know, it's the whole collective is to try and win games. And I think surprised a lot of people, because coming in, you know, I even, for me for being when I was abroad, I saw the comments about how San Diego was going to struggle. So, I definitely think that a lot of people took it, like, all right, like, a little bit personal, and now we can, you know, show people. So, for me, coming in, it's been, you know not easy but it has been pretty seamless for me to come into the team, but everyone's been very welcoming, and it's been easy for me so far."
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