SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego FC spent the day in Mexico City preparing for the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup opening round matchup against Pumas UNAM, holding a commanding position after last week's 4-1 victory at Snapdragon Stadium.
The substantial home win means San Diego FC only needs to win, draw, or lose by one or two goals to advance to the tournament's next round.
"Because you know in this tournament, we have the away goals rule, so it's important to get as much of a gap as we can going into Mexico because we know that will be a difficult game," defender Luca Bombino said following last Tuesday night's win.
Despite the comfortable 3-goal cushion, head coach Mikey Varas doesn't plan to adopt an overly conservative strategy for Tuesday's match.
"What you will see is San Diego FC, going after the game. Trying to score goals, trying to score the next goal," Varas said during a pre-match news conference.
Speaking from Mexico City, both Varas and defensive midfielder Anibal Godoy acknowledged that the team still needs to be smart about managing their advantage.
"We have to be ready for everything. Tomorrow is a big game for us, also for the club, and we have to follow our game plan for tomorrow," Godoy said.
The elevation in Mexico City, over 7,000 feet above sea level, presents another challenge. Varas said the issue isn't a huge concern but was addressed during training sessions.
"Just making sure that we're as prepared as possible. We want to have a 'no regret' mentality in everything we do, in life, and in this journey together," Varas said.
Tuesday's kickoff is at 5 p.m. If San Diego FC advances to the second round, they would face another top Mexican squad, Toluca, in the round of 16. The matchup would feature a home game on March 11 at Snapdragon Stadium and a road match about 90 minutes west of Mexico City in Toluca on March 18.
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