| Pacific FC vs. Inter Toronto Aug. 8 at 5 p.m. ET /2 p.m. PT Starlight Stadium in Langford, B.C. Watch Live: OneSoccer Tickets available here |
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Saturday's only West Coast action features two Canadian Premier League sides desperate for a win.
Pacific FC, currently bottom of the table and still searching for their first victory of 2026, take to the Starlight Stadium pitch hoping this might be the opportunity they need.
The Tridents have lost their last five games, but they've been somewhat unlucky in recent weeks not to get anything. They led against both Atlético Ottawa and FC Supra, but lost both matches. Those were the only two games commanded by head coach Terry Dunfield, who officially arrived at the club on July 7.
So, Pacific have demonstrated that they can compete with the clubs ahead of them in the standings; the challenge now will be to convert that into a 90-minute performance. They can score, and go ahead in games, but they have to avoid conceding late.
That said, there's an extra challenge for Pacific this week as captain Josh Heard and attacking talisman Marco Bustos both serve suspensions after red cards in last week's loss to FC Supra.
This week's foe on Vancouver Island is an Inter Toronto side that has also been struggling lately. They've lost six of their last seven, and haven't won since the last time they visited Pacific on May 17.
The most worrying thing for Mauro Eustáquio and his staff is that Toronto have conceded a staggering 25 goals in that seven-game stretch. Only three other teams in the CPL have conceded more than 25 in the entire season so far.
Inter Toronto's most recent bright spot came against Ottawa a few weeks ago; they withstood heavy pressure from Atleti on that day and arguably should have came away with the win. The finishing let them down on a couple occasions when chances materialized, but a 1-1 draw in the capital was still a solid building block.
Eustáquio mentioned this week that he is challenging his veteran players to step up in this difficult stretch. Although the club's main issue has been leaking goals, they might find a boost if they can score some more of their own.
Last time these clubs met, Toronto won 1-0 at Starlight Stadium thanks to Sebastian Gonzales's first (and to date only) goal for the club.
Both Toronto and Pacific desperately need three points to begin turning their season around; can one of them make a statement on Saturday afternoon?
NEWS & NOTES
- Pacific FC will be missing attackers Josh Heard and Marco Bustos, as both players serve suspensions for red cards shown to them in last week's match.
- Inter Toronto's Luke Singh and Tomasz Skublak, as well as Pacific's Christian Greco-Taylor, are all one yellow card away from suspension.
- Toronto remain without forward Shola Jimoh, who is with the Canadian team at the Concacaf U-20 Championship in Mexico.
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Pacific FC: Himaras; Chung, Konincks, Belluz, Greco-Taylor; Gomulka, Juhmi, Daniels; Kratt, Díaz, Toualy
Inter Toronto: Pavela; López, Singh, León; Ferrari, Yeates, Kibato, Bassett; Badibanga, Skublak, Altobelli
KEY QUOTES
"It's been two real solid performances, and the only frustrating part is we haven't been paid; against Ottawa we had an xG of four and a half. It's been almost five years since we hit a number like that, so we were disappointed not to pick up points in Ottawa. ... [Against Supra], the guys showed so much heart and character to play like we did with 10 men, create the chances we did. Another solid performance, which leaves us hungry for tomorrow and trusting in our process." - Pacific FC head coach Terry Dunfield
"We really have to start looking at ourselves. That was the message throughout the week. Football isn't easy even when you're winning games, let alone when you're losing games. Right now we're going through a very tough spell, it's a tough moment because you've got to play both sides of the coin. You've got to build back confidence of a team that isn't really performing and doing what we know we're capable of, and then you've got to look at the other part that what we're doing isn't enough, and we have to continue to be demanding of each other." - Inter Toronto head coach Mauro Eustáquio
