He may not be the first signing in San Diego Loyal SC’s history, but in terms of statements of intent today’s announcement that reigning USL Championship Defender of the Year Joe Greenspan has signed on to join Landon Donovan’s squad in Southern California is a major one.

The 6-foot-5 former Navy standout is now set to become a central pillar around which Donovan, Loyal SC’s EVP of Soccer Operations and Manager, can build his initial roster as it joins the Championship for the 2020 season.

The signing also brings echoes from the last time Warren Smith launched a team in the USL Championship, when Sacramento Republic FC entered with designs on being a serious player from the opening kickoff next spring.

Back then in California’s capital it was Rodrigo Lopez that was brought aboard as Sacramento’s talisman. All he did was become an instant Republic FC legend, earning All-League First Team honors in the regular season, scoring a hat trick in the Miracle at Bonney against the LA Galaxy II in the Semifinals of the postseason, and then taking MVP honors in the 2014 USL Championship Final.

It's a lot to ask of Greenspan to achieve that status as quickly in San Diego as Lopez did in Sacramento, but in terms of being a key foundational piece, Loyal SC has certainly got its man.

And while the Championship has grown a lot in the years since – Republic FC remains the last expansion side to lift the title in its inaugural season – contention in an inaugural season isn’t as unrealistic as it might seem. We only need to look to this past season to realize immediate contention isn’t unattainable with El Paso Locomotive FC’s run to the Western Conference Final an example of the sights San Diego can set for itself.