Friday, June 20 | 3 p.m. PT
🏟 | GEODIS Park; Nashville, TN
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LAFC resumes its journey through the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 with the second of its three group stage matches - a Friday evening meeting with Espérance Sportive de Tunis of the Tunisian first division.
LAFC and ES Tunis sit tied for third place among the four teams in Group D, having each fallen by 2-0 scorelines to Chelsea and Flamengo, respectively, in their initial group stage matches on June 16.
The FIFA Club World Cup, an eight-group, 32-team tournament, will see two teams from each group advance to the Round of 16 based on points earned in the group stage. LAFC will play its third and final group-stage match on June 24 against Flamengo, while ES Tunis will wrap up group play that same day against Chelsea.
Friday’s matchup features two clubs eager to make a mark on the world stage in a group that includes internationally experienced sides (Chelsea and Flamengo) who entered the competition as the Group D favorites and are currently tied for first place. A win over ES Tunis could place LAFC in position to advance with a favorable result against Flamengo in Tuesday’s group-stage finale.
KINGS OF NORTH AFRICA
Founded in 1919, Espérance Sportive de Tunis (the Sporting Hope of Tunis) is the oldest and most accomplished club in Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1, considered one of the top three national competitions in both the African continent and the Arab world. ES Tunis has won the African championship four times and the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 title a record 34 times. Stunningly, the aggregate number of trophies won by the clubs in second, third, and fourth place in total league titles would not equal ES Tunis’ total of 34 domestic triumphs.
Nicknamed the Mkachkha (Smiling One), ES Tunis plays its home matches at Hammadi Agrebi Stadium, the largest in its 16-team league with a capacity of 60,000. The Athletic recently named ES Tunis’ red and gold kit the best home kit among the 32 teams in the FIFA Club World Cup. (LAFC’s black kit ranked 11th.)
THE MATCHUP
ES Tunis’ attack flows through its two Brazilian stars, Yan Sasse and Rodrigo Rodrigues, who have found a football home on the Mediterranean. Sasse, a 27-year-old attacking midfielder and right winger, came up through the ranks of proud Brazilian club Coritiba and this season scored 10 goals in 27 league appearances for ES Tunis.
Rodrigues, who turned 29 on Wednesday, is a pure striker who has played with multiple clubs in Brazil and uses his 6-foot-3 frame to both hold-up and finish the Tunisians’ attacks. He returned from injury this season to score four goals in 11 league appearances.
ES Tunis’ most in-form attacker is left winger Youcef Belaili, an Algerian international who scored nine league goals and created ES Tunis’ best chances in its CWC opener against Flamengo. Goalkeeper Bechir Ben Saïd is one of several members of the Mkachkha who also plays for the Tunisian national team, which currently stands at the top of its group in qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Ben Saïd put forth an inspiring performance against Flamengo on Monday.
ES Tunis’ traditional structure is a 4-2-3-1 with midfielders Onuche Ogbelu and Khalil Guenichi setting an anchor ahead of its four-man back line. LAFC prefers to play in a 4-3-3 shape, with its attacking talisman Denis Bouanga (12 goals and six assists in 23 appearances in all competitions this season) running along the left wing with the freedom to flow centrally or to the right.
LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo said that during the Chelsea match “a little bit of carelessness with the ball in the final third, in the opponents’ half, hurt us … that's where we'll look to improve for Espérance.”
CHELSEA DAGGER
LAFC and Tunis had similar experiences in their group-stage openers. The Black & Gold held 35 percent possession against reigning UEFA Conference League champions Chelsea, firing four shots on goal while conceding six. The 2-0 defeat ended LAFC’s 10-game unbeaten streak in all competitions.
In ES Tunis’ 2-0 loss to Flamengo, the North African club held 31 percent possession, with two shots on goal and four shots on goal conceded. “The loss to Flamengo wasn’t a surprise,” head coach Maher Al-Kanzari said. “Despite the result, I’m satisfied with the spirit and character shown by the players. We struggled in the first half but improved significantly after the break.”
THE SETTING
One of 12 American venues for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, GEODIS Park in Nashville, Tenn., opened in 2022, has a capacity of 30,109, and is the home of Major League Soccer side Nashville SC.
LAFC has played twice at GEODIS Park, garning a 2-1 win over Nashville SC in 2022 - the Black & Gold’s MLS Cup championship season - and a 1-1 draw in 2023 that saw Bouanga score a second-half equalizer as part of his MLS Golden Boot-winning campaign.
LAFC CAN WIN IF
It imposes the physical and direct style of Major League Soccer upon an opponent that prefers a more finesse-based approach. A strong start will be critical against the Tunisians, who will gain confidence should their system keep the game close past the 60th minute.
ES TUNIS CAN WIN IF
It finishes any early chances it gets against one of MLS’ most impenetrable back lines. Chelsea achieved Monday’s result largely because its two best build-ups ended in goals. The 2-0 scoreline left LAFC with a record of 2W-7L-4D in matches in which it conceded the first goal. One of those two wins came against Club América in the Club World Cup Play-in match on May 31. LAFC will seek to replicate that evening’s energy in the opening moments against ES Tunis.
