The San Diego Wave spent this week preparing to face their Interstate 5 rivals, more time than they’ve had in a while.
But the club is anything but complete.
The Wave (5-3-0) will take on Angel City FC (3-3-0) on Saturday without coach Jonas Eidevall, who will serve a one-game suspension after being sent off in last week’s loss to Bay FC with a red card. Assistant coach Becki Tweed will lead the Wave into BMO Stadium in Exhibition Park.
Tweed should feel right at home. She spent two seasons in Los Angeles, serving as Angel City’s interim head coach for the second half of the 2023 season and leading the club to the playoffs before being promoted to the permanent job in 2024. She was dismissed in December 2024, then joined Eidevall’s staff in San Diego a month later.
Tweed, 37, said her task on Saturday includes “making sure we keep things as simple as possible, and just finding the joy.”
“It’s been a crazy couple of weeks in terms of load and games, so just reminding ourselves of who we are, our identity, and keeping to grow in that space,” she said.
The Wave were 4-1-0 heading into the National Women’s Soccer League’s international break last month, good for first place in the standings. Since returning, they’ve gone 1-2-0 largely because they struggled to finish their scoring chances. The Wave’s lone victory, a win against the Summit outside Denver, came after San Diego climbed out of a 2-0 halftime hole.
San Diego was then held scoreless in losses to Portland and Bay FC.
The Thorns struck early, scoring just 10 minutes into their April 29 match. The Wave controlled possession and generated more shots on goal, but failed to capitalize on their opportunities.
A similar script played out against Bay FC on Sunday at Snapdragon Stadium. The visitors jumped out to a 1-0 lead within the first five minutes thanks to a goal from Racheal Kundananji. The Wave once again controlled possession and created quality scoring chances, but the finishing touch was missing.
The back-to-back losses dropped San Diego from first place to fourth in the NWSL standings. Technically, the Wave are tied with the Washington Spirit on points, but Washington owns the tiebreaker with a plus-8 goal differential compared to San Diego’s plus-3.
Saturday, the Wave defense will need to keep a close eye on Sveindís Jónsdóttir, who has been Angel City’s standout player with three goals and two assists this season. Like San Diego, the Los Angeles club will also be dealing with a suspension: Maiara Niehues will sit out the first of two straight games, after the NWSL assessed her with a major game misconduct in last week’s 1-0 loss to the Utah Royals.
Forward Melanie Barcenas has re-signed with the San Diego Wave for the 2026 season. (Jenny Chuang, San Diego Wave)
Finishing chances will be critical for the Wave. Their attackers need to take advantage of opportunities the same way they did during their five-game winning streak.
“We want to be a dynamic, attacking, creative team that adjusts to every single team we play,” Wave forward Melanie Barcenas said. “So I think continuing to just find our connections and figure out those connections in the attacking half … and just being resilient — no matter if we get scored on early, to figure out ways to score and win the game.”
Wave (5-3-0) vs. Angel City FC (3-3-0)
When: 5:45 p.m. Saturday
Where: BMO Stadium, Los Angeles
TV: ION