| Vancouver FC vs. Pacific FC June 14 at 3:00 p.m. PT The Stadium at Langley Events Centre in Langley, B.C. Watch Live: OneSoccer Tickets available here |
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Vancouver FC and Pacific FC will face off in a fascinating Salish Sea Derby clash at The Stadium at Langley Events Centre on Sunday, in the final matchup for each team before the CPL's World Cup break.
After Vancouver picked up a 3-1 win in the first meeting between these two this season, coming at Royal Athletic Park back in May, it will be interesting to see what this latest matchup can produce.
Given what is known about these two sides, one thing is for sure - typically, these derby matches rarely disappoint in terms of entertainment, and that's unlikely to change in this matchup.
For Vancouver, they'd love a repeat of that last derby, as they look to head into the World Cup break on a positive note. Having picked up an impressive 2-1 home win vs. Atlético Ottawa in their last match, they're looking to pick up back-to-back wins for the first time since last September.
They do that, and they can vault into a tie for fifth in the CPL table, which they'd more than take considering some of the points they've left on the table this season.
For Pacific, meanwhile, they're still in the hunt for their first victory of 2026, as they've been off to a slow start to the campaign.
They've picked up steam lately since the arrival of interim head coach Yiannis Tsalatsidis, picking up back-to-back draws in their last two games, so they're certainly trending in the right direction.
Because of that, they'll feel that they're due for a win, one that would help keep that momentum going heading into this break, one that they can use to their advantage as they look to rescue their slow start to the campaign.
On paper, it's worth noting that while both teams typically combine for high-scoring games when they face off against each other, they're two of the lowest-scoring teams in the CPL right now - perhaps that will give both the incentive to come out strongly in chase of goals, as they look to enter this break with a bang.
NEWS & NOTES
- Pacific's Joshua Belluz is available for selection after a one-game suspension for a red card
- Vancouver's Emrick Fotsing could be available after representing Canada's U20 team in international action
- Vancouver's Marcello Polisi is one yellow card away from an accumulation suspension
PROJECTED STARTING XIs
Vancouver FC: Irving; Doner, Campagna, Field, Proctor; Pecile, Sswewankambo, Polisi, Bah; Mousset, Campbell
Pacific FC: Himaras; Heard, Konincks, Lajeunesse, Greco-Taylor; Chung, Gomulka; Kratt, Bustos, Toualy; Díaz
KEY QUOTES
"We've been playing well all year; our challenge has been putting the ball in the back of the net. We've had a few good performances in a row, we're just hoping to build, so it would be nice to get a victory before we head off to this World Cup break." -- Vancouver FC head coach Martin Nash
"It's been a collective effort from the 25 guys we have in training. The mood and the spirit took another quantum leap this week, and we've been focusing a lot on two aspects: one is our team intentions, which is why we do what we do, our shared and collective ideas. And then we've been working really hard on our details, which is behaviours and actions." -- Pacific FC interim head coach Yiannis Tsalatsidis