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USL Championship Power Rankings – Week 9

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 05/05/25, 5:00PM EDT

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Republic FC has the positive underlying numbers as it tries to make its way toward the light with results

Look at all of Sacramento Republic FC’s numbers this season, and it feels like there’s a good team trying to make its way into the light.

That’s certainly the way it seems to feel within the club’s camp. After Sunday’s 1-0 win on the road against NorCal rival Oakland Roots SC, midfielder Luis Felipe Fernandes said as much.

“We know that we've been playing well, the stats show that we've been dominating games, but we needed that win, and we just got it,” said Fernandes. “It’s good to give us confidence to move forward.”

The result at least meant that after entering the weekend in last place in the Western Conference, Republic FC’s is above the playoff line in eighth place, but still with work to do to get into the spaces the club expects to be. At the center of that has been Sacramento’s finishing, where the club ranks first in the league in Expected Goals at 11.84xG but ranks in the lower half of the league with nine goals in seven league contests.

Republic FC isn’t the only team suffering from this affliction. Lexington SC has been putting up good underlying numbers on either side of the ball – it ranks third in Expected Goals (10.89xG) and 10th in Expected Goals Against (7.82xGA) – but those numbers are basically inverted when it comes to execution in each penalty area.

That’s the conundrum that Republic FC Head Coach Neill Collins and Lexington’s Terry Boss are attempting to figure out. For Sacramento, the defensive side of the ball is starting to take shape with three shutouts in the past four games across all competitions.

“Sometimes you want to win a certain way, but it’s actually those wins that really kick start [things],” said Collins on Sunday. “You give the team confidence, it gives them more belief.

“I generally feel outside of maybe one half at Orange County, we’ve played very well and not had the rewards. I think today, we had to do a different [way] and we did it, we did it well.”

Now it’s time for the side to start delivering at the other end of the field.

Here are this week’s rankings.

Biggest Movers

11 ELP 7 COS, TUL

Rank

 

Team

Change

Summary
1 Louisville City FC
(5-0-2)
Week 10: @ PIT
Last Week:
1		 Louisville remains undefeated across all competitions after a solid home victory against Lexington. Now, can it continue its home undefeated streak against Minnesota United?
2 Charleston Battery
(5-2-0)
Week 10: @ TBR		 4
Last Week:
6		 The difference Juan David Torres can make was evident on Saturday. Absent against FC Naples, he delivered in spectacular fashion to get the Battery back in the win column.
3 Detroit City FC
(4-1-3)
Week 10: @ HFD		 1
Last Week:
4		 Darren Smith’s scoring streak continues, but Le Rouge will be annoyed they didn’t pick up all three points on the road given their early lead and man-advantage in the second half.
4 Loudoun United FC
(6-2-0)
Week 10: vs. LEX 		1
Last Week:
3		 United might have lost, but they were easily the team in control against Las Vegas. We’re not going to be too harsh here given how good the side continues to look.
5 San Antonio FC
(5-2-1)
Week 10: vs. OAK
Last Week:
5		 You can make a case his performance in Rhode Island was the best Richard Sánchez has had since joining San Antonio. Outstanding display to earn the visitors a point.
6 El Paso Locomotive FC
(3-2-3)
Week 10: @ TUL		 11
Last Week:
17		 Putting up your biggest win against your biggest rival behind the first hat trick in club history? That was a heck of a Saturday night for Locomotive. More of that, please.
7 New Mexico United
(5-2-0)
Week 10: vs. PHX		 5
Last Week:
2		 United came out flat and was never in a position to recover as Locomotive dominated the flow of the game. That should be a wake-up call ahead of another rivalry clash with Phoenix.
8 Miami FC
(2-4-1)
Week 10: ---		 2
Last Week:
10		 Are we starting to believe in Miami? Coming back on the road to earn a point in Monterey Bay was another good step, and there was nothing fortunate about it as the side moved up to sixth.
9 Sacramento Republic FC
(2-2-3)
Week 10: vs. IND		 1
Last Week:
8		 On the plus side, Sacramento has found a way to close out consecutive 1-0 victories instead of dropping points. The team’s still not firing on all cylinders in the final third, though.
10 Indy Eleven
(1-2-3)
Week 10: @ SAC		 1
Last Week:
11		 The Boys in Blue’s fightback against Detroit City showed the sort of spirit we needed out of this side, but they’ve got to start games better. Four goals conceded in the opening 15 minutes, the most of any team in the league.
11 Monterey Bay FC
(4-2-3)
Week 10: @ RI 		4
Last Week:
7		 Monterey Bay’s still in a good position but now has only one win in its last six games after conceding late against Miami FC. Needs to start picking up the pace again.
12 North Carolina FC
(3-3-2)
Week 10: vs. OC 		4
Last Week:
16		 North Carolina’s first win away at Highmark Stadium gave the side a positive boost ahead of this week’s Open Cup showdown with Charlotte FC, where they’ll need to find another gear.
13 Birmingham Legion FC
(1-3-3)
Week 10: ---
Last Week:
13		 Rome wasn’t built in a day, but the way Legion created some of their scoring chances in Tampa Bay was a positive sign despite letting another win at Al Lang Stadium slip away late.
14 Rhode Island FC
(1-3-2)
Week 10: vs. MB		 1
Last Week:
15		 Albert Dikwa returning to action on Saturday was a good sign, but if JJ Williams is going to be out for a while it’s going to be a challenge for a Rhode Island attack that’s numerically better when he’s part of it.
15 Orange County SC
(3-3-1)
Week 10: @ NC		 7
Last Week:
22		 Bagging his first two goals in the Championship should take a little weight off Lyam MacKinnon’s shoulders. The technique on his second was absolutely wonderful.
16 FC Tulsa
(4-3-0)
Week 10: vs. ELP		 7
Last Week:
9		 Tulsa’s gone a little off the boil since its impressive win in Las Vegas. Things still look like they’re going in the right direction, but they need to start getting back in the win column.
17 Las Vegas Lights FC
(3-2-2)
Week 10: vs. COS 		2
Last Week:
19		 The Lights continue to confound the numbers, with Raiko Arozarena the star of the show against Loudoun United. We’re still unsure if this is a sustainable means to success, but it’s working for them right now.
18 Lexington SC
(1-3-4)
Week 10: @ LDN		 4
Last Week:
14		 With the experience it had in its lineup, Lexington should have been ready for what was coming in Louisville. That it didn’t seem to be, and reacted too late to make a difference, was disappointing.
19 Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC
(1-3-4)
Week 10: @ LV		 7
Last Week:
12		 Switchbacks Head Coach James Chambers described his side as being “in a real funk”. No better time than to break out of that than in the Open Cup against New York Red Bulls.
20 Hartford Athletic
(1-5-0)
Week 10: vs. DET		 2
Last Week:
18		 There’s no shame in losing in Charleston, but that’s a pretty big bump in the road after the progress Hartford had shown in the last couple of weeks. The road gets no easier from here, too.
21 Oakland Roots SC
(2-5-1)
Week 10: @ SA
Last Week:
21		 Roots’ recent burst of winning has dropped off again. There were at least chances to be had against Sacramento, only for Republic FC’s Danny Vitiello to close them down.
22 Tampa Bay Rowdies
(1-5-1)
Week 10: vs. CHS		 2
Last Week:
24		 The Rowdies salvaged a point at home to Legion thanks to Pacifique Niyongabire’s magical footwork. In fairness, they probably deserved something out of the game.
23 Phoenix Rising FC
(1-3-4)
Week 10: @ NM
Last Week:
23		 The last thing Rising needed was to see Jearl Margaritha substituted off after his early goal in Colorado Springs. The rest of the club’s attacking corps needs to start stepping up.
24 Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC
(2-4-1)
Week 10: @ LOU		 4
Last Week:
20		 The Hounds are struggling mightily to create chances. Their 4.27 Expected Goals mark is the lowest in the Championship so far this season.

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Tag(s): Power Rankings  San Antonio FC  CO Spring Switchbacks  Orange County SC  Phoenix Rising FC  Sacramento Republic FC  FC Tulsa  Charleston Battery  Louisville City FC  Pittsburgh Riverhounds  Tampa Bay Rowdies  Las Vegas Lights FC  Birmingham Legion FC  North Carolina FC  Indy Eleven  El Paso Locomotive FC  New Mexico United  Loudoun United FC  Hartford Athletic  Miami FC  Oakland Roots SC  Detroit City FC  Monterey Bay FC  Rhode Island FC  Lexington SC 

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