TAKEAWAYS | 5-Star Performance
LAFC breaks its scoreless streak in style with five goals at home against Nashville SC.
Gimme five!
Amiright? Don’t worry, no one from Nashville reads this (I think). But seriously, nothing makes you feel good like five goals.
Think about it. Even the fan that last week told you LAFC was finished is feeling good right now. I’m anti-rollercoaster when it comes to LAFC, as in I don’t get too high or too low with any performance, and I have been trying to watch my words. Because despite coming into the match reeling from the worst start to a season in LAFC history, what can you really say after a 5-0 win that isn’t drenched in hyperbole?
But I’ll do my best.
And I think it starts with this: a 15-pass sequence that led to the third goal.
There is a lot to like in that clip. Positional play. Players moving in and out of space. Passing! That Atuesta dummy! But the biggest takeaway is now we know what this team is capable of. Through the first four matches, all things considered, we hadn’t seen this level in LAFC’s play. Not even glimpses. But you were told (by the team and me) that it was close. That goal delivered on that promise and put the match to bed.
So, what do we know about LAFC now? For starters, they can score… and score a lot. They can score via set pieces - always a great way to break a scoreless streak. They can score in transition. They can keep a clean sheet. And they can play in more than one way. They can cobble together long, controlled possessions that result in scoring opportunities - a little over 10 minutes after this, LAFC created a big chance with over 20 passes!
That leads us to the question you’ve all been dying for me to answer: Is LAFC back?
Well, they aren’t going to win 5-0 every week. But if they can find a mix of those things above and continue to add the ability to control games while still being dangerous, they’ll be very successful this season. They might not be back but they turned a corner on Saturday night.
Here are the Takeaways from LAFC’s 5-0 win over Nashville SC:
It Starts With Focus
If you’re an LAFC sicko like me, you were treated to a bit of a surprise in LAFC’s midweek media availability. Assistant coach Ante Razor stepped in to answer questions ahead of the match.
The seventh-leading goalscorer in MLS history quickly quelled any concerns surrounding LAFC’s start to the season and recent goal drought. Both things you’d expect him to say. But he also gave us this surprisingly specific nugget:
“First it begins with whether we have the ball or don’t have the ball. We are a pressing team on goal kicks. We press. We stay high. We found a few lapses in that in the last game [against Minnesota], which was very bizarre and rare for our team. So, it was a little bit of a concentration thing. And I think the concentration throughout the entire game is what led to this past game being below our standard. We recognize it. Our players recognize it. It all starts with concentration and our ability to now understand what we want to do and make it clear.”
With that in mind, here are two snapshots from Saturday night against Nashville:
Both pics are Nashville taking a goal kick. Both pics show LAFC high up the field, six players within 20 yards of one another and focused on keeping Nashville penned in. Both pics precede LAFC goals.
Ahead of this match, LAFC’s Passes Per Defensive Action - a good barometer of how hard and often a team presses - were middle of the pack in 2024. Last season, they were near the very top. Like Razov said, this is a non-negotiable. LAFC is a pressing team. It’s a weapon used not for defensive purposes but to create goalscoring chances originating close to the opponent’s goal.
Returning to that identity and focus was clearly a top priority in training this week. And with it, everything else on Saturday night fell into place.
Credit Where It’s Due
Last week, I used an entire section of the Takeaways to single out Mateusz Bogusz and the ways he can do better as a false 9. It’s only fair I do the same to credit the things he did well this week.
Let’s go back to that 15-pass sequence that led to the goal. And this time, pay particular attention to Bogusz.
The role of the false 9 is tragically misunderstood. It’s not a deficiency. It’s a solution when you have a dominant goal scorer coming from wide areas like Dénis Bouanga. This play is the quintessential false 9 moment.
Throughout much of the first half, Bogusz was doing more traditional 9 things. He was staying high, engaging Nashville’s center backs, and not really factoring in to LAFC’s attack with the ball. That changed in the second half when he started dropping deeper to receive the ball.
In the clip above, Bogusz drops into the midfield giving LAFC a 4v3 advantage. Keep an eye on Jack Maher. He’s not comfortable following Bogusz into this area at all - look at how hesitant he is. Fearing Bogusz’s ability to turn with the ball, Maher makes a late step to the LAFC attacker’s back. He doesn’t know it yet but that step is going to cost his team.
Bogusz plays quickly to an onrushing Sergi Palencia - a good example of a third-man combination - and now Maher is running toward his own goal. This is where the false 9 is effective. Bogusz not only facilitated LAFC’s movement down the field, he’s also broken Nashville’s backline by luring Maher out of line. As the play continues it’s that Maher-sized hole in Nashville’s backline that LAFC will exploit.
Palencia slides a simple ball into the heart of the Nashville penalty area. Instead of Maher standing there, it’s Eduard Atuesta arriving. Shaq Moore has to step away from marking Bouanga to compensate. Atuesta, with his beautiful football brain, runs over the ball and Bouanga is all alone for the finish.
Bogusz initiates the play and unsettles the backline, creating an opportunity for LAFC’s primary scorer. It’s false 9 play at its best.
On To Next Week
There isn’t much more to say about a 5-0 win that is of any value other than this:
This can all be undone.
The result following this is probably a better gauge of where LAFC stands. Put together a strong performance at altitude in Colorado, with the season’s first derby looming, and we’ll all be feeling pretty good.
Then again, a performance like the one in Minnesota will welcome all that existential dread, once again.
Never get too high. Never get too low. It’s a long season.
Martinez looked great and looking forward to seeing his development.
Terrific recap and analysis, Vince 🙌