This actually doesn’t change my opinion.
Since the start of the season, I’ve said: LAFC has the talent to win another MLS Cup. And they still have that talent. Probably even improved on it in the market.
I also think, maybe I was more confident in my original statement when LAFC were reaching continental finals while keeping up with the top teams in the league.
But something is different.
The losses are one thing. Losing matches that you should win is another. Add the fact that LAFC has just five points from losing situations – games in which they conceded first – and I’m starting to get concerned this team is missing something.
While there might be legitimate reasons – schedule congestion, travel, injuries, etc. – the reality is that this LAFC team has the talent to win another MLS Cup… I’m just not sure talent alone will be enough.
Here are the Takeaways from LAFC’s 3-1 defeat to the Mighty Inter Messis of Miami:
Play Your Game
A trap that many teams have fallen into in the now Messi-era of MLS is being too Messi-focused. Although he is the greatest of all time, you still have to play your game.
And LAFC did that from the start.
They smothered Inter Miami from the opening kickoff. Every Miami turnover resulted in a chance for LAFC. It was one-way traffic for the first 30 minutes despite Miami nipping a goal through Facundo Farías in the 14th minute.
As for Lionel Messi, LAFC controlled the supply to him early on. And that’s the way to beat this Miami team, tilt the field toward their goal because that backline is prone to giving the ball away in bad spots.
Finish Your Chances
Well, actually, controlling the supply to Messi is only half of the way to beating Miami… you have to finish your chances, too.
LAFC created enough chances to win the match in the first 15 minutes. They squandered them all.
And it trickled down from there.
Miami finds a goal against the run of play. That’s not ideal but at least LAFC is creating chances, so you’re not too worried. But as chance after chance went missing, it felt more like dread than hope emanating from the players.
I’ll go back to the stat from my intro. LAFC has been abysmal this season when they concede the first goal. In fact, 11 times they’ve conceded the first goal to an opponent this season. On just three of those occasions, the Black & Gold rescued a result - one win and two draws. And those teams didn’t have Messi.
That’s a stark contrast to a team last season that seemed to always find a way. It also has adverse consequences on the other end of the pitch.
“You can lose a game 1-0 but not three. I think the second and third goals are pretty soft,” Steve Cherundolo said after the match. “And that can’t happen to a team with our ambitions.”
LAFC’s identity is predicated on chance creation. It’s too late to change course on that identity now. So its ambition is tied to the conversion of those chances. When that doesn’t happen, this team is susceptible to costly errors.
To put it another way: LAFC is boom or bust. There is no in-between. And that doesn’t instill an abundance of confidence in a league and playoff system engineered to keep the margins so thin.
The Reaction
It’s the one moment I can’t stop thinking about.
It’s scoreless in the ninth minute. Dénis Bouanga leads a 3v2 break at the top of the Miami penalty area. Carlos Vela is in acres of space on the right. There’s a literal entire half of the field in which Vela stands alone. And Bouanga takes a blocked shot.
Understandably, Vela is livid. Angry to a point we’ve rarely seen the normally even-keeled captain. He kicks the ball away in disgust and you don’t need to be an expert lipreader to understand what he’s saying.
And I’m not sure how to feel about the reaction.
On one hand, Vela isn’t wrong. Bouanga let the moment get the best of him. He has to pass that ball. But should the captain be putting his teammate on blast like that in front of a sellout crowd? I’m not so sure. Then again, I wasn’t the one Bouanga ignored.
But before I get too ahead of myself in thinking Vela torpedoed his teammate there. There is a world in which Bouanga ignores Vela there AND finishes the chance. I’d love to live in that world. Although it’s also a place where Bouanga scores AND Vela has the same reaction. And in that world, we have a whole different set of problems to untangle.
For now, I’ll refrain from moralizing. It was a mistake on Bouanga’s part and Vela had every right to be angry. Would I have preferred he tone it down like 50 percent and had a chat with Bouanga in the locker room? Sure. Is it something to keep an eye on? Maybe. But I wouldn’t read too much into it now because again, Bouanga should have played that pass. That’s the root of the problem.
Now I’m Convinced
I’ve been saying it for a while. And I know Kirk and The Counterpress Podcast have been on this too: LAFC has a possession problem.
It’s not a percentage problem. There’s no use having the ball for 60-70 percent of a match if you don’t do anything with it. The problem is that LAFC only knows one speed.
When teams drop behind the ball and are set, LAFC lacks or control games. That’s a problem when you’re not finishing your chances and the game state is not in your favor.
It’s a “live by the sword, die by the sword” problem. Right now, LAFC’s two biggest weapons are transition and counterpressing. It’s leaning into those to the extent it’s hurting other aspects of its game. The Black & Gold have almost no control in midfield. That’s fine when you play like LAFC did in the first half and can knock the ball around at the back before playing direct to your attackers and go at opponents in mini-transition moments or rely on regaining possession high up the field and start the transition cycle anew. But what happens when an opponent keeps its lines tight and defends well in its own end?
That’s the answer Steve Cherundolo and his staff need to find in these final eight matches before the playoffs.
Totally agree on the possession issue. If anything it gives them a way to set up even more effective transition attacks when they do play direct. I feel like LAFC has become too predictable in attack, sometimes you need to mix in some off speed stuff even if it’s not your best pitch. They have the talent to play multiple styles it’s a waste not to use that flexibility to their advantage.
Honestly, this was probably the most disheartened I’ve felt leaving an LAFC home game. Even in the big losses against Leon and Monterrey I felt like there was an explanation (missing player, short rest, questionable call, unlucky break, etc…), but in this game I came away feeling simply like Alba-Busquets-Messi were just too good. It’s probably an obvious thing to most people, but I had a sincere belief that LAFC was “different”, that they would show the world that they were still the gold standard in MLS. Miami showed why that’s not the case. Tough pill to swallow, but in the end it just makes this season even more important. I still don’t think Miami make the playoffs (I don’t think ppl appreciate how much this international window will set back Miami), but next year they are going to be impossible to beat. LAFC needs to capitalize on this season.
Denis seems to have the yips the last few weeks