2026 Match Recap: Phoenix Rising FC 2, Sacramento Republic FC 0

From rival to another, Sacramento paid a visit to another Western Conference foe, Phoenix Rising. It was complete domination from Phoenix as two penalty conversions from Ihsan Sacko gave the victory to the home side.

Phoenix was part of the same group as Sacramento, in the middle of the table, just a couple of spots above the playoff line. After a rough start to this season, it has been a mixed bag for this Rising side. Their last five contests across all competitions saw them get two wins, two losses, and one draw. Phoenix's last match saw them get hammered in Tampa Bay, with the Rowdies scoring three goals. This side goes as far as Ihsan Sacko can take them. Sacko is the club's leading goalscorer and chance creator. So, Pa-Modou Kah will look to set him up for as much success as possible as Phoenix continues to develop this young squad.

Sacramento was looking to recover after seeing its three-game winning streak come to an end at the hands of San Antonio. A couple of defensive miscues led to San Antonio capitalizing on those opportunities. But Forster Ajago managed to score a goal in that contest. In the meantime, from that match, the club announced the acquisition of goalkeeper Joshua Moya on a 25-day contract. Curious to see if this signing has implications for current backup keeper Jacob Randolph. The Republic has already seen Phoenix this season, coming away with a 2-0 win back home. Blake Willey scored his first professional goal in that match, with Dominik Wanner also adding to the total.

Coach Neill Collins made this selection for Sacramento:

Tonight's starting squad ⚔️#PHXvsSAC | @TiemannLawFirm pic.twitter.com/rZSF6IN1Zs

— Sacramento Republic FC (@SacRepublicFC) May 31, 2026

A couple of changes for the Republic's starting lineup from their last match against San Antonio. Mark-Anthony Kaye and Danny Crisostomo reclaimed their starting spots as the defensive midfield duo. This shifted Aaron Essel to the backline to replace Jared Timmer. A couple of notes for the bench. Memo Rodriguez returned to the team sheet as he's been out with injury. And Josh Moya took the reserve keeper spot on the bench.

Both teams had early chances in this match. The first one on target came to Phoenix in the 6th minute. Gunnar Studenhofft held the ball up for supporting runners to come behind. Ihsan Sacko received the ball and dribbled across the Sacramento box, but he was tackled off possession. The ball came to Hope Avayevu, where he took a quick shot. His effort was low to the ground but easily handled by Danny Vitiello.

Phoenix again looked threatening in the 20th minute. Jpe Avayevu was on the ball down the right flank and quickly fed the ball through to find Gunnar Studenhofft. The striker ran behind the backline and only had Danny Vitiello to beat. His immediate shot got past Vitiello, but it hit off the post and got cleared by the Republic defense.

It seemed that with every passing minute, Phoenix was getting closer and closer to scoring the opening goal. And the closest chance so far came in the 31st minute. A corner kick was put into the Sacramento box by Ihsan Sacko. The cross found the head of Pape Mar Boye, which was aimed at the opposite upper corner. Lee Desmond was sitting at that post and rose up to head the ball off the line and over the bar.

And if Sacramento thought things couldn't get worse, a penalty was awarded to Phoenix in the 38th minute. Lee Desmond and Gunnar Studenhofft were battling for a free ball in the Sacramento box. But a shoulder barge and a trip of Studenhofft was enough for the referee to award a penalty. Ihsan Sacko stepped up to take the penalty. And he sent Danny Vitiello the wrong way to neatly slot it away for the home side.

As cool as you like 🧊@PHXRisingFC’s Ihsan Sacko opens the scoring from the spot! pic.twitter.com/x40O6SsHUG

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) May 31, 2026

And lightning struck twice just before halftime as Phoenix was again awarded another penalty. This time, Michel Benitez tripped up Ihsan Sacko as he streaked into the Sacramento box. And again, Sacko stepped up to take the penalty. This time around, Danny Vitiello guessed correctly, but Sacko placed his shot out of Vitiello's reach to double Phoenix's advantage.

Déjà vu 🪄

Ihsan Sacko’s league-leading 𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐡 tally of the campaign doubles the @PHXRisingFC’s lead! pic.twitter.com/cz9dUip3h7

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) May 31, 2026

At halftime, Sacramento again found themselves in a hole going into the break. The defense just could not cope with the speed at which Hope Avayevu and Ihsan Sacko were playing. That duo was popping up in multiple places, making it hard for the Republic defense to keep track of them. And then add on the pressure that Gunnar Studenhofft provides, and it leads to this kind of result. Sacramento couldn't establish any possession in midfield, which led them to play really directly to try to find Forster Ajago. But he also couldn't establish possession, so it just compounded the pressure on the Republic's backline. Sacramento only manages two shots in total as opposed to Phoenix's sixteen. They failed to make their presence felt in the first half.

At halftime, Jared Timmer and Memo Rodriguez came on to replace Lee Desmond and Arturo Rodriguez.

Phoenix were looking to get another goal on the scoreboard as Gunnar Studenhofft again was marauding past the Republic backline in the 53rd minute. He got to the end of a long ball with only Danny Vitiello to beat. Studenhofft went for a lofted effort that was pawed away by Vitiello.

And then, going in the opposite direction, Sacramento got its first decent chance. It was Michel Benitez making the run behind as he got onto a long ball. With Patrick Rakovsky to beat his shot was aimed at Rakovsky's chest and blocked away.

Coach Collins made another substitution in the 56th minute. Chibi Ukaegbu came on to replace Aaron Essel.

Gunnar Studenhofft again broke through the Republic backline in the 62nd minute. And again, his shot was parried away by Danny Vitiello.

Danny Vitiello was doing everything possible to keep his side in the match as a pair of shots from Ihsan Sacko and Charlie Dennis threatened the Sacramento goal. But Vitiello came up with some beautiful saves to block both opportunities.

In the 67th minute, another substitution was called on as Pep Casas stepped on to replace Mark-Anthony Kaye.

Sacramento was showing some signs of life in the 71st minute with another shot. Tyler Wolff put in a low cross into the Phoenix box that got to the feet of Mayele Malango. His driven effort forced Patrick Rakovsky to the floor to come up with the save.

The Republic made one final substitution in the 78th minute with Dominik Wanner taking the place of Danny Crisostomo. The Republic formation shifted so Memo Rodriguez would move into central midfield with Pep Casas.

In the final couple of minutes, Danny Vitiello came up with more beautiful saves, and Sacramento had a couple more chances, but nothing changed the scoreline before the final whistle blew.

WHAT A SAVE BY VITIELLO!! 🧱 pic.twitter.com/kfu54m2ZJW

— Sacramento Republic FC (@SacRepublicFC) May 31, 2026

The match ended with the two penalties as the deciding factor. That being said, Phoenix clearly earned the result. Their attack completely overran the Republic's defenses and caused a whole bunch of issues that Neill Collins couldn't solve. Sacramento just looked flat out exhausted from the start and it showed in the lead-up to the two penalties. Here's hoping a return home is what the club needs. Next up is a cup contest as the Republic hosts Monterey. Onwards!

Key Takeaways:

• No goals from open play is the main takeaway from this one. Danny Vitiello did everything he could. The rest of the team let him down.
• Mark-Anthony Kaye and Danny Crisostomo were ineffective as cover for the defense. Was it worth it to bring both of them on for their first starts since their injury in this match? The knock-on effect of Freddy Kleeman being injured and forcing us to use Aaron Essel as a centerback is being felt.
• We are not built to be a direct team with Ajago being the man to hold-up play. Whenever we tried to bypass the midfield and play direct, the pressure would just come back on us.
• 10 games into the regular season and the Republic are below the playoff line.

Sacramento Republic FC: 0 goals, 7 shots, 2 shots on target, 50.6% possession, 5 corners, 4 offsides, 0 yellow cards, 0 red cards.

Phoenix Rising FC: 2 goals, 23 shots, 10 shots on target, 49.4% possession, 5 corners, 1 offsides, 5 yellow cards, 0 red cards.

Republic FC Lineup: Danny Vitiello, Michel Benitez, Lee Desmond (OUT, HT'), Aaron Essel (OUT, 56'), Jack Gurr, Mark-Anthony Kaye (OUT, 67'), Danny Crisostomo (OUT, 78'), Tyler Wolff, Arturo Rodriguez (OUT, HT'), Mayele Malango, Forster Ajago

Republic FC Bench: Josh Moya, Jared Timmer (IN, HT'), Ryan Spaulding, Chibi Ukaegbu (IN, 56'), Pep Casas (IN, 67'), Dominik Wanner (IN, 78'), Memo Rodriguez (IN, HT'), Kyle Edwards

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Check out the stats from this match here!

(Photo thanks to Sacramento Republic FC)