Red Bull New York know that every game is a playoff game for the remainder of the 2026 season with San Diego FC being the latest opponent at Sports Illustrated Stadium on Saturday night. While the opposition isn’t strong in the Western Conference, they are still a club that presents a problem. They can score goals and have pushed their recent opponents to the limit with draws against Inter Miami and Austin FC.
“It’s a team that will challenge us in terms of our ability to really press and make the game hard on them,” said head coach Michael Bradley when asked about the challenges San Diego brings. “They have interesting ideas. They have players in the attack who can score goals at any moment. So we have spent a good amount of time watching them and trying to understand. Trying to be able to give our players the best possible picture of what to expect from the game.”
Red Bull are coming off a shattering loss to St. Louis City SC, 3-0 last Wednesday. The loss was their sixth of the season at SI Stadium, a place where many teams once thought it nearly impossible to gain points. Now, the club runs of the risk of a losing season at home, which has never happened since the stadium opened in 2010. Last season, 10 of the club’s wins came at home, while this year they’ve only managed four.
While much can be forgiven for the latest performance, due to players being unavailable during the international break, the club still has much to prove in order to regain the confidence of the fanbase. New York has never missed the playoffs in back-to-back years. However, they are trending towards less points than in 2025.
“Our ideas never change,” said defender Julian Bazan about the approach against San Diego. “The idea is the same. Go to press, keep the match in our terms. We need to stay compact to have a winning mentality and the matches in our stadium with our fans. So we need to go press, score and be stronger in this match.”
Expectations are that Julian Hall and Adri Mehmeti will be back and available for selection. Head coach Bradley understands the importance of the upcoming fixtures and a first-time visit from San Diego could be the lift the club needs to secure their place in the MLS Cup Playoff picture.
photo from Matt Kremkau