LAFC to vie for a spot in Open Cup quarterfinals

MOSCOW — Reaching the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup would be a significant accomplishment for an MLS expansion team, and it’s one the Los Angeles Football Club can add to a growing list of achievements with a win over the Sacramento Republic FC on Wednesday at Banc of California Stadium.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

The U.S. Open Cup, which features a field of 94 teams from all tiers of the U.S. soccer ladder, is the oldest ongoing competition in the country. Sacramento is one of three teams from the second-tier United Soccer League still alive in the tournament.

The Seattle Sounders won the tournament as a first-year club in 2009, but since then only one of six MLS expansion teams eligible to play in the competition made it as far as the quarterfinals

The game marks the end of LAFC’s brief World Cup break; the team returns to MLS play Saturday when it plays host to Columbus. Coach Bob Bradley remains without four starters who are in Russia with their national teams, but is expected to start the rest of the first-team players against the Republic (84-4), which is third in the USL’s Western Conference standings.

LAFC is 7-4-3 in MLS play, good for third in that league’s Western Conference table.

Sacramento’s roster contains half a dozen former MLS players, including one-time Galaxy midfielder Jaime Villarreal and Scottish midfielder Adam Moffat, who made more than 130 MLS appearances with five teams over eight seasons. The Republic eliminated Seattle in extra time in a fourth-round game two weeks ago.

Three MLS teams have been knocked out of the Open Cup by USL teams. The winner of Wednesday’s game will play the Portland Timbers in the quarterfinals next month.