San Diego FC head coach Mikey Varas warned his side against resting on their laurels ahead of their second season in MLS, which kicks off against CF Montreal on Saturday.

San Diego enjoyed a record-breaking first season in the league, finishing top of the Western Conference with 63 points, the most by an expansion side in MLS history.

They then went to the Western Conference final in the playoffs, losing to the Vancouver Whitecaps.

And that run deep into the postseason has raised the expectations of the club further, and Varas made it clear that San Diego do not have the option to let up.

"When you do something special, or almost special, it can be a natural reaction for people to relax; that was hard, wow, and that's just something we won't accept," Varas said.

"We need to not only take the same steps we took last year in our preparation, but we need to take those steps even better."

Anders Dreyer, one of the breakout stars of MLS in 2025, echoed his head coach's aims.

"Now it's a new season. Now we start all over again, and we have to prepare," Dreyer said.

"It's going to be tough. A second year for any team is always tough. Teams are preparing a little bit more for what's ahead when they're playing against us."

CF Montreal, meanwhile, endured a miserable 2025, finishing 13th in the Eastern Conference with just 28 points, having won just six of their matches.

It was 15 points fewer than they managed in 2024 when they reached the postseason, and head coach Marco Donadel is convinced Montreal will make a big improvement this time around following a positive preseason.

"It was a long pre-season, but I think it was very good work on and off the field. We used our time perfectly; this is like a brand-new experience," he said.

"I'm very satisfied with our current situation, but also curious about our first real test. We're happy with training and pre-season games, but San Diego is a different challenge."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

San Diego FC – Anders Dreyer

Dreyer recorded 19 goals and 18 assists in 2025, joining Lionel Messi, also last season, as the only two players in MLS history to record at least 17 of each in a season.

He was involved in at least one goal in 22 matches last season, tied with Messi for the most of any player.

CF Montreal – Prince Owusu

Prince Owusu (13 goals) and Dante Sealy (nine goals) combined to score 22 of Montreal's 34 goals last season.

With Sealy departing for Colorado, Owusu is the only player remaining on the club who scored more than two goals for the team last season.

MATCH PREDICTION: SAN DIEGO FC WIN

This will be the first meeting between San Diego and Montreal. Last season, San Diego split its six meetings with Eastern Conference teams, winning twice, losing twice and drawing twice.

San Diego's 63 points in 2025 were a record for an expansion team, surpassing the 57 Los Angeles FC collected in 2018.

Meanwhile, Montreal's 28 points in 2025 equaled their fewest in a full season in club history (28 in 2014). Montreal's 34 goals and -26 goal difference were both the worst in a single season in team history.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

San Diego FC – 66.2%

Draw – 18.4%

CF Montreal – 15.4%