The Takeaways are back for the 2024 season! Thank you to everyone who stopped me at the stadium to say they loved the newsletter, sent a message of support, or voted on IG for me to keep writing Takeaways. Without you, it wouldn’t exist!
Following a period of record turnover, LAFC started the 2024 MLS season the only way it knows how: winning.
On Saturday afternoon, Timothy Tillman and Mateusz Bogusz found the back of the net against an injury-depleted Seattle Sounders side. Pedro De La Vega converted a penalty on his debut to cut the deficit in half but it was not enough as LAFC held on for a 2-1 victory.
Since entering the league in 2018, the Black & Gold has kicked off each of its seven seasons with a win. That season-opening perfection is now an MLS record. But aside from that slice of history, what can you really take away from match one of 34?
Without jumping to any rash conclusions, it’s safe to say that points on Matchday 1 count just the same as those at any other point in the season. Trust me, I did the math. Earning three points at home is always a recipe for success in a league where it is notoriously difficult to win on the road. Taking those three points from a rival that historically, and based on this season’s talent, is likely to compete with you for the top spot in the conference is even better.
When LAFC travels to Seattle in the final match before the Leagues Cup break in July, it’ll do so knowing that even a draw maintains its head-to-head advantage with the Sounders. I know I said it’s just Matchday 1, so is it too soon to talk about playoffs? Because that’s an advantage that could prove vital when it comes to hosting in the playoffs.
Then again, LAFC didn’t seem to mind busting Seattle’s playoff unbeaten streak in 2023. So, you draw your own conclusions.
Here are a few more (cautious) observations from LAFC’s 2-1 win to start the 2024 MLS season:
Two Debuts And A Homecoming
Let’s go back to turnover for just a moment. Just four players in Steve Cherundolo’s lineup to start 2024 featured in the corresponding lineup against Portland at the beginning of 2023 - compare that to the seven players that maintained their starting roles from opening day 2022 to 2023. Yet, despite the lack of continuity in the names on the back of the jerseys, the style of play on the field was distinctly Black & Gold.
Hugo Lloris in goal and left back Omar Campos made their LAFC and MLS debuts on Saturday. While Eduard Atuesta played his first MLS minutes since 2021. All three were instrumental on the day for LAFC.
For Atuesta, it was a glimpse of the player Black & Gold fans came to love and adoringly refer to as “El Profe” throughout four seasons. The Colombian slotted seamlessly into Cherundolo’s midfield three in possession, albeit in a more advanced role. With Atuesta on the field, LAFC has another outlet and connector in midfield, something it sorely lacked at times last season. Dropping at times from his advanced position, Atuesta kept the Sounders from keying in on Ilie Sanchez as LAFC’s lone ball progressor in the buildup.
Atuesta is like a key to the lock of set opposition defenses. Even when he’s marked, he’s still a passing option for teammates. That ability to carve out space with his body positioning and close control gives LAFC another safety valve in possession and a new wrinkle to its buildup play that even Cherundolo said was “too fast and direct” at times last season.
My only concern in the match was Atuesta and his midfield partners’ struggles controlling the match out of possession after Seattle’s goal. With the Sounders wingers coming inside from wide areas to pick up positions between the lines and De La Vega dropping to receive and take on players 1v1, the LAFC midfield lost a bit of its shape trying to get pressure on the ball.
Cherundolo removed Atuesta in the match’s 87th minute and after the match noted the midfielder still needs to reach full fitness. Once El Profe is back to full fitness and forges a greater understanding with his teammates that concern should be alleviated.
While Atuesta was a familiar face in an unfamiliar lineup, Campos stepped straight into the starting 11 for arguably one of LAFC’s most consistent performers of the last four seasons. Diego Palacios was a mainstay at left back for LAFC, playing over 100 times for the club before departing for Corinthians in Brazil.
Despite being three years Palacios’s junior at 21, Campos doesn’t lack in the experience department. The defender appeared in just shy of 100 matches in Liga MX with Santos Laguna before joining LAFC. His top-flight experience was on display from the opening minutes as Seattle and LAFC traded attacks in a wide-open start to the half.
There’s a lot to like about Campos even from just this match. Right away, his style of play is very similar to Palacios. He’s quick up and down the field and a battler in 1v1 situations. Where he may edge Palacios, and ultimately have a higher ceiling, is his end product.
Campos’s assist to open the scoring for LAFC in the 45th minute showcased where he might be a cut above Palacios going forward. Receiving the ball wide on the left, Campos drove at his man like we’ve seen Palacios do so many times for LAFC in the past. Using a burst of acceleration, Campos gained a yard of separation from Sounders right back Alex Roldan before floating a pinpoint cross to Timothy Tillman for the finish from 10 yards out.
The quality of the delivery was self-evident. The finer detail is in the timing. Campos sent his cross as soon as he bought that yard of space. Too often, young wingers and fullbacks will try to completely beat their marker before sending a cross when all you really need is a bit of separation. A quick delivery is effective in that it steals time from the opposition’s defenders in the box. When the fullback is beaten on the outside that’s usually their cue to get tight in the box. A quick cross gives the attackers the advantage of surprise as the defenders try to track the ball and their mark at the same time.
Make no mistake, Palacios delivered the greatest cross in LAFC history in the 2022 MLS Cup. But as well as he played during his time in LA, there was always this hope he could do more in terms of goals and assists. Campos still has a big void to fill in Chiqui’s absence but he has the tools.
As for Lloris, what can you really say about a World Cup winner and over 500 top-flight appearances? Really the only concern ahead of this season was that he hadn’t started a match in 10 months. Just over two minutes into the match, the goalkeeper put those fears to rest.
Was it a great save? No. Jordan Morris should have placed his shot better from eight yards out. But what you’ll notice about Lloris as Morris gets free is the calmness. There are no happy feet. He’s not bouncing from side to side. Lloris trusts his positioning and then his ability to react. In comparison, Morris looks nervous and rushed. The result is a shot nearly right at Lloris and at the perfect height for the save.
After the match, Cherundolo spoke about the leadership that Lloris brings to his young team. That confidence in what he does rubs off on defenders. LAFC needed Lloris to be the most confident guy in the stadium in the opening minutes against Seattle, lucky for the Black & Gold the 37-year-old showed no signs of rust.
A New Weapon
Twice in the first half against Seattle, we saw something that is becoming extremely rare in this sport.
After making a save on two separate occasions, Lloris sprinted forward and launched a punt downfield. Goalkeepers these days are required to be good with their feet but punting is a dying art as teams eschew it in favor of playing short to maintain possession.
Lloris didn’t lose possession though. He turned defense into attack both times with one action. His punts were in the direction of a streaking Denis Bouanga. The accuracy of each punt gave Bouanga plenty of running room. When you have the most dangerous player with space behind, why not go for it?
Lloris had one other link-up with Bouanga that was noteworthy. Although it wasn’t a punt, Lloris was quick to pick out a toss through the middle to Bouanga that got LAFC immediately into Seattle’s half with possession once again. Bouanga found Bogusz with the next pass before the LAFC no. 19 fired a rocket into the top corner of the net to make it 2-0.
After the match, Lloris said he actually wasn’t very happy with his distribution and mentioned not being on the same page with teammates at times. If he can dial in more early attempts to teammates and take advantage of LAFC’s devastating speed on the break, it’s a weapon from an unlikely place for the Black & Gold.
Bogusz Takes Advantage
There are two things you can count on with LAFC at the start of each season. One we’ve already talked about. If it’s a season opener, the Black & Gold are taking three points. The other is that eternal question: When is LAFC going to get a 9?
Make no mistake, when people ask that what they are really saying is “when are LAFC going to get a striker that just scores goals?” Which is a bit surprising being that LAFC has been one of the highest-scoring teams since they joined the league. But some people are stuck in ways of seeing the game.
The reality is that positions are no longer a monolith. A striker in a team doesn’t have to be the primary goal scorer as long as he is serving a necessary role in the team. And when you have players like a Golden Boot winner on one side and a burner like Cristian Olivera on the other, maybe what serves the team better is a guy who can get the ball to them in space.
Enter Mati Bogusz.
Despite having more traditional forward options available, Cherundolo opted for Bogusz, normally a midfielder, in the 9 role. With Bouanga and Olivera stretching the defense, Cherundolo set Bogusz up to succeed in a role that suits his best attributes and what the team needed against their opponent.
As an advanced midfielder, Bogusz is at his best when he drops into the space between the lines and drives at the opposition. Seattle is traditionally a side that prefers its center backs to stay in position. A traditional 9 would occupy Seattle’s center backs in the place they feel most comfortable: the penalty area. Bogusz dares those center backs to come out of their comfort zone to deal with the space he creates. Tactically, it was a smart gamble for Cherundolo and his staff.
In addition to being an excellent dribbler, Bogusz has a great shot and quick release. On his goal, where a striker might try to carry the ball closer to goal, Bogusz is happy to curl a shot into the top corner as the defense scrambles to get organized in the penalty area.
I’m sure the questions about LAFC’s 9 aren’t going away anytime soon with rumors swirling around big-name arrivals in summer - this is LAFC after all! But on Saturday, Bogusz and Cherundolo proved there’s more than one way to play a 9.
Great article...nice to have "Takeaways" back.
Thanks for writing this Vince. One stat I saw that actually surprised me was how one-sided this series has been. LAFC is up 10-5 in wins, and 3 of Seattle’s wins came in 2020 the COVID season. The only team LAFC has beaten more is RSL. Speaking of the 9 position, why do you think Mario Gonzalez didn’t work out? His movement always seemed good but he mostly never seemed to be on the end of anything.