Oakland Roots SC and Sacramento Republic FC square off on Saturday night in Roots SC's inaugural Championship home opener after playing to a thrilling 3-3 draw in their first meeting on June 2. | Photo courtesy Sacramento Republic FC
OAKLAND, Calif. – Oakland Roots SC hosts the home opener for its inaugural USL Championship season on Saturday evening at Laney Stadium with rival Sacramento Republic FC the visitor for the second meeting between the clubs this season. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET.
@OaklandRootsSC (1-2-1, 4pts) is hoping for greater reward as it plays its first home game of the season than it found in its last outing, when the side out-possessed and out-shot Orange County SC but suffered a 1-0 defeat at Championship Soccer Stadium last Saturday night. Oakland is set to have goalkeeper Zeus De La Paz back in the lineup after his time with the Curacao Men’s National Team for FIFA 2022 World Cup Qualifying, and the side will be hoping it can produce more of the attacking action that saw it play to a 3-3 draw against Sacramento when the sides first met on June 2. That night the side got goals from Jesus Enriquez, Ariel Mbumba and Jeremy Bokila, but was twice unable to hold onto a lead on the road. If it can pull off a win on Saturday, it could be a very big step forward toward contention in the Pacific Division down the line.
The draw with Oakland came in the middle of what’s turned into a prolonged downturn in form for @SacRepublicFC (2-4-1, 7pts), which is in the middle of a five-game winless streak after suffering a 2-0 loss to Real Monarchs SLC on June 9 in its most recent outing. The contest was the third time the side was held scoreless, and the second time this season it failed to register a shot on goal during the 2021 season. Republic FC will be without defender Jordan McCrary on Saturday night after he was shown a red card for abusive language following the contest with the Monarchs, and his absence could be noticeable as the 27-year-old recorded a goal and assist in the prior meeting between the clubs as Sacramento looks to snap its longest winless streak since the 2017 season.
FiveThirtyEight.com Match Predictor: Oakland Roots SC 31%, Sacramento Republic FC 40%, Draw 29%
Most Recent Lineups
Oakland Roots SC (4-2-3-1): Luis Barraza; Akeem Ward, Tarek Morad, Emrah Klimenta, Soya Takahashi; Danny Flores, Matias Fissore; Guillermo Diaz, Lindo Mfeka, Jesus Enriquez; Jeremy Bokila
Sacramento Republic FC (4-1-4-1): Tomas Gomez; Nabi Kibuguchy, Mitchell Taintor, Hayden Sargis, Duike Lacroix; Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu; Tucker Bone, Jaime Villarreal, Petteri Pennanen, Rafael Jauregui; Dariusz Formella
Discipline
Oakland Roots SC – None
Sacramento Republic FC – Suspended: Jordan McCrary