After two on the road, Sacramento welcomes Rio Grande Valley FC to Heart Health Park to close out a stretch of five matches in 15 days. Republic FC will be looking to extend their three-game win streak to four, and continue their climb in the Western Conference table with a fourth straight league result.
At a Glance: #SACvRGV
- Saturday, August 6
- 8:00 PM kickoff
- Heart Health Park, Sacramento, CA
- How to watch: FOX40, Antenna TV 40.2, FOX40.com, FOX40 App, ESPN+
- Tickets
- Match Day Guide
- Pre and Post-Match Party: 5:30PM at Pete’s Restaurant and Brewhouse – 2100 Arden Way, Sacramento, CA 95825
The Latest – Republic FC
Wednesday, Sacramento came from behind to claim a win for the second straight match. It extends the club’s momentum to their fifth and final contest in a two-week span that started with a draw at Phoenix on July 23. Rodrigo Lopez became Sacramento’s all-time assists leader, and in what hopefully will provide a big confidence boost, Keko and Douglas Martinez each found the net for the first time since June.
After two tough trips in terms of travel, coming back home to Heart Health Park will likely refresh the club. Sacramento’s played at home just once – the U.S. Open Cup Semifinal – in the past three weeks. Mark Briggs’ Men will be playing to move up in the table yet again, starting a stretch of matches that could see them hop into the top three in the West. They currently sit two back of New Mexico in fourth place and four back of Colorado Springs in third, with second place San Diego within reach just seven points ahead.
Opponent Report
Rio Grande Valley will be looking for their first win in six games. Taking on four teams above the playoff line during that span every match has been competitive and decided by just one score, but finding net has been troublesome. The club has scored just twice and been held without a goal on four occasions. Welcoming Cuban striker Frank Lopez back should help matters, as he looks to be ready for his first 90 minute effort since returning July 23 from a six-match absence.
RGV’s backline has been very strong of late, conceding only five scores in their last seven games. Should Akeem Ward, Jonathan Ricketts, Wahab Ackwei and Erik Pimentel keep up their strong form it could make for quite the defensive battle with Sacramento’s back three on a similar streak of only four goals conceded in their last five games.
Head to Head
History favors Sacramento in the all-time fixture, with Republic FC taking five wins and three draws in 10 all-time contests. But, last time the two clubs met on April 23 it went the Toros way in a 2-1 result decided in stoppage time. Sacramento holds the scoring advantage in the matchup, netting 19 goals to Sacramento’s 13 in their ten previous meetings.
