Jesús Brígido scores in SAFC debut
SAN ANTONIO (August 17, 2024) – San Antonio FC took all three points in its first-ever meeting with North Carolina FC Saturday, grabbing a 1-0 win at Toyota Field.
The loan goal of the match came off the foot of San Antonio’s newest addition, Jesús Brígido, in his club debut. Brígido cut through from the right flank and tucked in a ball at the far post for the game winner in the 79th minute.
On the defensive end, SAFC silenced NCFC to complete its fifth clean sheet of the season, posting back-to-back shutouts for the first time this year.
Next Up
San Antonio FC heads back to the road to face Sacramento Republic FC Saturday, August 24. Kickoff is set for 10:00 p.m. CT, and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+. This season is presented by Toyota.
Scoring Summary
SA: Jesús Brígido (Assisted by Juan Agudelo) 79’
Postgame Notes:
- SAFC moves to 6-11-6 on the season with 14 points, now sitting just three points out of a playoff position in the Western Conference standings.
- Midfielder Jesús Brígido made his first appearance for the club since joining the club on loan from Chivas.
- Brígido is the fifth SAFC player to score in his club debut this season after Juan Agudelo, Lucas Silva, Bura and Hugo Mbongue.
- Forward Juan Agudelo recorded his third assist, moving into second place on the team.
- Goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega recorded his fourth clean sheet of the season, making three saves on the night.
- Eleven of San Antonio’s 24 goals have been scored in the 75th minute or later.
- SAFC has matched or outshot its opponent in 14 of 23 matches. Both teams finished with 11 in the contest.
- Agudelo took over the captain’s armband for the first time this season.
Attendance: 6,729
SAFC Starting XI: Pablo Sisniega, Kendall Burks, Trova Boni, Carter Manley, Nelson Flores Blanco, Bura, Luke Haakenson (Shannon Gomez 76’), Jorge Hernandez, Machop Chol (Jesús Brígido 46’), Juan Agudelo (captain), Luis Solignac (Hugo Mbongue 88’)
Substitutions Not Used: Sofiane Djeffal, Izaiah Garza, Kendall McIntosh, Landry Walker
Disciplinary Summary:
NC: Paco Craig (Yellow Card) 17’
SA: Jorge Hernandez (Yellow Card) 50’
NC: Oalex Anderson (Yellow Card) 51’
NC: Mikey Maldonado (Yellow Card) 69’
Quotes:
Head Coach Alen Marcina
(On the win…)
“Yeah, it’s back-to-back shutouts so defensively, extremely organized last two games. Guys were hungry; guys were resilient. It was a hard-fought, well-earned three points tonight … We focused tonight against North Carolina, which, for me, is the most athletic team in the league. It’s not an easy team to play against, and then next week, we go against one of the best teams in the Western Conference in a place that’s incredibly difficult to play, and so that will be after we rest and recover and enjoy the win.”
(On the team’s mindset through adversity …)
“I think from the players, it’s more about their commitment, their positivity, their optimism. They all believe in that locker room. They’re extremely positive because they know that you trust the process. We understand what we’re going through. We don’t make excuses. It’s incredibly difficult, but if we get negative, then the outcome is we’ll stay here. You know, we have to be positive and keep working. Take it game by game, and hopefully it’s enough to be in the playoffs.”
(On facing one of the top teams in the West next week…)
“We’ve got to continue to build on these two great defensive performances and keep working on the attacking element. We know we’ve adapted in one area, so there’s a little bit adjustment going forward, and if we can continue to build and grow from here, we put our best foot forward in Sacramento.”
Goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega
(On recording back-to-back clean sheets…)
“Yeah. I mean, obviously very happy with that as well. When we don’t concede, it’s impossible to lose obviously, so if we keep kind of going on this route, it should be getting better and better. We should get more points, and obviously, I think you could see that we changed the way we played a little bit, but I think it was effective. We give up a lot less chances, so I’m very happy with the back-to-back shutouts.”
(On the team sitting three points outside of the playoff line…)
“I mean, it says that we still have a fighting chance to rescue the season. It’s still early enough where we can get something out of this season, and if we make playoffs, which is obviously our goal, anything can happen. You know, this is a system in the U.S. where the playoffs are one game and anything can happen in that game, so our goal right now is to get over that playoff line, which I think that if we keep playing the way we are right now, we can do.”
Defender Nelson Flores Blanco
(On shutting down North Carolina…)
“I think it was a great defensive shift by everyone, not just the defense. It was a collective and that’s what we were practicing all week. For the last two weeks, we’ve been practicing that, and we’ve been trying to perfect it, and we’re happy that that everything [Alen] coached us, we were able to do in the game. I think they only had a few shots on targets, so props to him for the tactics and props to the whole team as a collective to be able to defend well tonight and counter.”
