Carlos Vela told us. Or in Sporting KC’s case, maybe it was a warning.
“I think you have to start by saying, ‘OK. Carlos, you are not scoring goals.’ If I don’t score goals how can we win? When I start to play better, I start to score goals, everything will be better for our team,” Vela said after LAFC’s 1-0 loss to Houston in midweek, the fourth consecutive match in all competitions in which LAFC failed to score a goal.
In the 90th minute of Saturday night’s match in Kansas City, Vela’s words proved prophetic. The LAFC captain appeared to be late recovering his position when Aaron Long lofted a clearance down the middle of the SKC final third from just inside LAFC’s half. But as luck would have it, SKC makeshift right back Khiry Shelton was even slower to get in line with his defensive partners, keeping Vela onside.
Shelton’s lapse in concentration was fortuitous but Vela still had to do something he had not done in LAFC's previous eight regular season matches: score from open play. Vela took one touch to get the ball under control, the next touch sent the ball into the back of the net. Just like Vela said, when he scores LAFC wins.
In the four games Vela’s name has appeared on the scoresheet for LAFC this season, the club is a perfect four wins out of four. Saturday night’s goal was Vela’s fifth of the MLS season, and more importantly it helped LAFC snap a winless run of three matches in MLS - six matches in all competitions.
Here are the Takeaways from LAFC’s 2-1 win at SKC:
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Ch-Ch-Changes
Steve Cherundolo made four changes to his squad ahead of the SKC match. It was the 24th consecutive match in all competitions in which the LAFC head coach made at least one change to his starting 11 from the previous match.
Yes, you read that right … 24 matches. The last time Cherundolo fielded identical starting lineups in back-to-back matches was against Portland to start the MLS season and in the first leg of the Concacaf Champions League at Alajuelense.
“The schedule we have is what it is. And it’s literally impossible to start the same lineup every game. We’re not machines, the players nor the coaches. It’s impossible,” Cherundolo said after the match. “So, we do our best to field a team that has enough fitness in their legs, has enough freshness in their legs, and has the experience to win games in this league, which is very difficult on the road.”
LAFC will continue to get no sympathy from its opponents and the greater MLS community, including fans and pundits. The schedule isn’t offering any help in the coming weeks, either. But this is the reality in an unprecedented season in which the schedule is frontloaded due to the new Leagues Cup competition this summer. It’s not an excuse, rather it’s an explanation for why LAFC has struggled recently, as Cherundolo said, to find the right balance of fitness, freshness, and experience to be successful in a very competitive league.
And yet, through it all LAFC’s three points on Saturday moved it into a tie in points atop the Western Conference with St. Louis despite playing one fewer match.
Change In Shape
In addition to personnel changes, Cherundolo made a tactical change to his side’s shape against Sporting KC. Without the ball, LAFC pressed SKC in a 4-2-3-1 shape. Cherundolo has said in the past that by inverting his midfield triangle to have one advanced player and two in deeper positions, his pressers can be more aggressive with a stable base behind.
The adjustment catered to Cherundolo’s starting front four of Nathan Ordaz, Erik Dueñas, Mateusz Bogusz, and Stipe Biuk, clocking in at an average age of 19.5. Youth was on the side of their legs on a balmy evening in Kansas City. Against an SKC team that according to FBref.com has attempted the third-most passes in MLS, it presented a two-fold problem. LAFC was able to disrupt SKC’s rhythm in attack, while providing the Black & Gold with opportunities to win the ball closer to SKC’s goal.
In the match's first 10 minutes, SKC was unable to play through its normal buildup patterns. LAFC blocked off the middle of the pitch, relegating SKC to direct play (in which LAFC’s double-pivot in midfield and center backs routinely hunted down second balls) or to using wide areas to progress the ball – a tactic that LAFC nearly took advantage of when Chiqui Palacios jumped a pass near the touchline that resulted in Ilie Sánchez sending Biuk into the penalty area in the third minute.
Peter Vermes’ team eventually adjusted. Gadi Kinda began picking up positions closer to left winger Daniel Salloi, helping SKC outnumber LAFC right back Julian Gaines. Combined with the movement of striker Alan Pulido, SKC pushed LAFC deeper into its own half, negating the Black & Gold’s ability to press. But Cherundolo’s team again went to a 4-2-3-1 shape to start the second half, taking more control of the match by dictating SKC’s buildup play once again and creating a threat via counterattacks.
Give And Take
Back in early May, Denil Maldonado made a rash decision, leaving his feet in his own penalty area against San Jose’s Jeremy Ebobisse. The tackle resulted in a penalty to the home side and LAFC left Northern California with its first loss of the 2023 MLS season.
Following that match, Cherundolo said that a defender should never leave his feet in the box, and added that it was a mistake Maldonado would learn from. Unfortunately, that learning was still a work in progress in the 12th minute when Maldonado left his feet at the corner of the penalty area, taking out Gadi Kinda in the process. The initial call on the pitch was a goal kick but VAR correctly intervened to award SKC a penalty.
Alan Pulido scored from the spot, giving SKC the early advantage. And while I bet Cherundolo didn’t need to remind Maldonado of the lesson at halftime, the defender did the best thing possible to atone in the second half by getting on the end of a Mateusz Bogusz cross to level the score at 1-1.
“Obviously, a challenge that doesn’t need to happen with Denil. He knows that,” Cherundolo said after the match.
Maldonado does know better. Lucky for him and LAFC, he now knows what it's like to score his first MLS goal, too.
The Right Adjustments
Maldonado’s challenge that led to the goal was an unfortunate precursor of what was to come for LAFC throughout the rest of the first half.
After struggling to get out of its own half in a controlled fashion, SKC pinned LAFC back for long periods in the half. The trio of Salloi, Kinda, and Pulido camped out on LAFC’s right, interchanging with the ball and pulling Julian Gaines in every direction in his first MLS start.
SKC almost exclusively attacked down LAFC’s right side the rest of the half, outshooting the Black & Gold 9 - 1. This isn’t a slight on Gaines, who in addition to making his first start is also still learning a new position at right back. Not many teams are having success as of late against those three attackers, as shown by SKC’s recent run of results. And ultimately it wasn’t a total disaster for LAFC as SKC only had one goal to show for it. But as Cherundolo watched the trio’s free-flowing, one-touch football and his team’s inability to get close to them, an adjustment was in order to start the second half.
Ryan Hollingshead replaced Gaines at right back. Jesús Murillo replaced Palacios, sliding Maldonado to left back. And Carlos Vela pushed Mateusz Bogusz back to midfield in place of Ilie Sánchez.
In its 4-2-3-1 shape, LAFC immediately controlled play to start the second half. Their initial starting points were much higher up the pitch and the understanding between Vela and Hollingshead slowed the progress of SKC on LAFC’s right.
They were the right personnel changes at the right moment for the Black & Gold.
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