TAKEAWAYS | Is This The Turning Point?
LAFC breaks its three-match losing streak with 4-2 win agains the Galaxy.
Derbies are fun. Derby wins are always more fun. Always.
I can say that now. I didn’t feel that way before LAFC hosted the Galaxy on Saturday night. To be honest, I didn’t really feel anything at all. There was zero hype in my home.
For starters, I’ve had enough of the Galaxy for 2023. There was the last-minute postponement of the Rose Bowl match to start the season. Then LAFC went to their place… and finally won. After that, it was the valiant but ultimately futile effort of the kids in the Open Cup. The Rose Bowl match was rescheduled and eventually played on the Fourth of July - the less said about that the better. And finally, the third match between LAFC and the Galaxy in the regular season, the fourth in all competitions, played out on Saturday.
It’s just too much Galaxy. I don’t like having to think about them this much. The opposite of love isn’t hate. It’s indifference. After today, can I go back to forgetting about the Galaxy?
However, the biggest reason for my lack of excitement was all the extras. This match always becomes so much bigger and about so much more than what occurs in the space of 90 minutes. And I’ll be the first to say, that’s pretty much exactly what you want from big rivalries. I get it. But most times, and especially after a team has lost three in a row, there’s so much stock put into the result of just one match solely because of the two teams involved.
I hope I’m wrong.
I hope this result is a turning point for LAFC. The Black & Gold are now second in the Western Conference with six matches to play. They are six points back for conference leaders St. Louis City. LAFC travels to St. Louis on Wednesday for a top-of-the-table clash before heading on to Philadelphia three days later to face the 2022 MLS Cup runners-up.
A good team beats its rival at home despite its recent form. A great team goes on to get results in two difficult matches on the road with major playoff implications.
We’ll find out what category this LAFC team resides in by this time next week.
Here are the Takeaways from LAFC’s 4-2 victory over the Galaxy:
Big Decisions For A Big Game
I think it’s fair to say a majority of football fans fantasize themselves as professional head coaches. I don’t say that disparagingly, I’m one of you.
But then I actually think about what it’s like to be a head coach. And I have second thoughts.
Steve Cherundolo understands the assignment and the consequences. I don’t think it bothers him all that much when people lay blame at his feet after losses. Or fail to give him credit when the team wins. He just goes about his business, a majority of which we don’t see throughout the week.
So, we’re going to give the LAFC head coach some much-deserved credit right from the jump.
Cherundolo made some big choices for this match - both personnel and tactical. And he got them all correct.
First, he handed Maxime Crépeau his first start since the 2022 MLS Cup final, when the goalkeeper went down with a catastrophic injury. Over three hundred days had passed since Max’s last first-team appearance - 315 days to be precise. And while Crépeau failed to produce a single save – mostly a result of the Galaxy’s paltry two shots on goal in the match – it was the right move. Where Crépeau thrived for LAFC in this was as a safe outlet in possession. Despite a lengthy absence due to a broken leg, the LAFC goalkeeper was at ease with the ball at his feet, shifting from left to right and pinging balls safely to the feet of his teammates to relieve pressure.
The other surprise on the team sheet was Cristian Olivera getting the start head of Mario González in LAFC’s front three, shifting Carlos Vela to a more central position.
Like Crépeau, it was Olivera’s first start for LAFC in the 2023 regular season. And also like Crépeau, Olivera looked comfortable right away. In particular, his off-ball movement was impactful and looked like second nature to the forward – you could tell he was taking more initiative and not overthinking.
Olivera’s defensive work was also important as Cherundolo switched up his team’s shape out of possession. Primarily playing out of some version of a 4-3-3, LAFC tends to keep its wide forwards high even when defending deep in its defensive half. For a team that devastates opponents in transition, it’s a standard tactic.
But against the Galaxy, LAFC dropped into more of a 4-4-2 shape when defending deep. Dénis Bouanga and Olivera tucked in next to the central midfield pairing of Ilie Sánchez and Kellyn Acosta and Mateusz Bogusz moved closer to Vela up top, giving LAFC four across midfield. The result was better coverage across midfield against a Galaxy team that likes to move teams side to side and push its fullbacks into the attack.
With more bodies in the middle and less ground to cover individually, LAFC did an excellent job at keeping the Galaxy in front and not allowing the opponent to easily play between the lines. The Galaxy managed just five shots despite having over 60 percent of the possession. While Riqui Puig wasn’t able to provide a single key pass (a pass that leads directly to a shot) the entire night.
The change in shape didn’t hamper his wide forwards production any either. Bouanga finished the night with two goals and Olivera’s two shots on target were joint-best on the night with Bouanga.
Back To Basics
I love this quote from Gary Lineker, one of the best forwards in English history and now presenter for Match of the Day:
“People often say about a player that scores goals, ‘He’s in the right place at the right time.’ That’s true but the answer to that is to be in the right place all the time…. The thing I always do is make a run. I’ll decide, I just take a chance to go for a space. I’ll make sure I get there in front of the defender. And if the ball comes to me, then that’s great.
So if I make 15 or 20 of those runs in a game and the ball comes to me once and I’m all on me own two yards out from goal, everybody will say, ‘Well, he’s in the right place at the right time.’ But the answer is to be in that place all the time. Then, eventually, when the ball does come to the right place, you’re there.”
It’s an idea I bring up often on this Substack: soccer is a sport of failure. Nearly a hundred percent of the thousands of actions – dribbles, passes, shots, tackles, etc. – don’t result in a goal. That can be depressing but the solution is to be overly optimistic.
From the opening whistle, it was obvious LAFC was up for this one by the sheer number of runs they made off the ball. Every chance they got, you saw LAFC numbers in the Galaxy penalty area.
And here it is in practice on the first goal:
That run in the 23rd minute was not Bouanga’s first. But it was the first time a teammate found him and the result was a goal.
The larger point about this play is that you’ll notice Bouanga isn’t the only one making a run. Olivera also sprints into the box the moment the ball goes wide to Chiqui Palacios. Cherundolo and his staff refer to these as “deep runs” and was clear the team was clued into the concept. Make the run even if you aren’t going to get the ball, and force the opponent to react to your movements.
No one will remember the majority of times the ball didn’t come but the one time it does can be the difference. That’s easier said than done when things are going well, which makes the fact the LAFC was able to embrace the concept and be rewarded all the more important.
When this team is switched on and bought in, it’s tough to beat.
Hollingshead Makes The Difference
In Portland last week, we saw an LAFC team trying to embrace possession with little success. There were more than a few reasons for this – not having your best offensive player available doesn’t help – but I specifically pointed to not having Ryan Hollingshead as a reason LAFC was ineffective.
The defender was back to his scoring ways against the Galaxy. That’s now four goals on the season. Hollingshead is on pace to equal or top his previous career best of six goals from last season. And the goals are (obviously) nice. But it’s Hollingshead’s understanding of his position in LAFC’s setup that provides a lot of the difference.
As this play starts, Hollingshead is in a position you’re more likely to see a central midfielder than a right back. He’s inside of the Galaxy’s two widest players Tyler Boyd and Raheem Edwards. It’s not a position most defenders are comfortable with because there is less space than on the touchline. But it forces the Galaxy to contend with another player centrally with Bouanga holding LAFC’s width on his own.
Now, it must be said, the first pass wasn’t meant for Hollingshead and he gets a bit lucky the ball deflects right into his path. But you see the idea as Hollingshead runs up the seam and Edwards starts to shift out wide to content with the ball’s intended receiver Bouanga.
Hollingshead ability to come inside forces opponents to make difficult decisions, opening space for himself or his teammates. If that ball reaches Bouanga, then Edwards has another decision to make. He can defend Bouanga out wide or track Hollingshead’s run into the box. Are you giving the most dangerous player on LAFC time and space 25 yards from your own goal or are you tracking the highest-scoring defender of the last few years as he makes an unopposed run into your box? And if you don’t track Hollingshead, then someone else has to shift over and open up a different space.
I think you get the point. And that is what was lacking in Portland. Despite all its possession, LAFC couldn’t unbalance the Timbers last week without Hollingshead.
Hollingshead’s ability to invert into midfield from fullback is the straw that stirs LAFC’s drink in possession. It shouldn’t go unnoticed.
I agree this year galaxy rivalry got overplayed! Is always good to win against them but I am also a little Galaxy fatigued!! One think that I have not heard much about is how disrespectful the Galaxy supporters were during the National Anthem, they couldn't be silent for 3 minutes they were chanting all the way thru the anthem..! I did notice Vela in the center but Honestly I think Vela doesn't seem to make much of a difference now, still very good player
but some how he doesn't seem to fit 100% Cherondulo game plan! and I can only hope Bouanga and Bogusz would undertand the importance of precison passing and timing of it, if they would understand that ! man LAFC would be a force to wreck with, but too many opportunities are lost because of bad decisions by those two..!
It was a fun night at BMO. Even though we gave up our lead twice (of course we did), the result never felt in doubt because the team looked mobile and engaged. Bad LAFC took the night off. I enjoyed Hollingshead's strike and Bouanga's header (!) and was pleasantly reminded that Tillman has skills. But the best part of the night was when Vela tossed Riqui Puig into the garbage can, or so it seemed. God bless Puig, he is a fantastic player, but oh so very annoying.