LAFC’s record this year against their MLS western conference rivals from Seattle speaks for itself.
The SoCal side are perfect head-to-head against the Pacific Northwesterners, winning all three of their meetings in 2024. That includes two Major League Soccer regular season contests (2-1 on Feb. 24th at BMO Stadium in LA & 3-0 on July 20th at Lumen Field in Seattle) and one in the Leagues Cup Quarterfinal Round (3-0 on Aug. 17th at Lumen again).
LAFC, currently flying high in second place in MLS’ western standings, outscored the Sounders 8-1 in the space of those three wins.
“We have a potent counter-attack if we can get a goal up early,” said LAFC coach and former U.S. Men’s National Team star Steve Cherundolo. “That’s been a recipe for success for us against Seattle of late.”
The Los Angeles-based side managed to go up early on the Sounders in their last two meetings – before rolling on to three-goal shutout wins. Veteran defender Ryan Hollingshead provided a 13th minute opener in the latest Leagues Cup meeting while Denis Bouanga hit a 16th-minute go-ahead goal in the July 20th MLS regular season contest. The tightest game of the three in 2024 came back on February 24th, at LA’s BMO Stadium, but Tim Tillman still opened the scoring for the home side on the stroke of halftime, leading the way to a 2-1 victory.
“A lot of our counter-attacks start by having a very solid structure on the defensive side of the game,” added the LA coach, whose side have a chance to win two trophies this year (MLS Cup and our Open Cup). “There’s no secret to it. Going up early fits into our match plan and if it goes the other way, things could look very different.
“It’s different for us when we have to chase the game,” Cherundolo admitted about his side’s possible kryptonite.
Early Lead Imperative for LAFC
“We are a difficult side to handle and to beat once you go down to us in the scoreline,” said Cherundolo. Sometimes it’s the quality of certain players or a good set piece or just good fortune. But getting up early on Seattle is imperative for us and we’ll try to do it again [in the Open Cup].”
LAFC’s Eduard Atuesta also appreciates the fine margins against Seattle ahead of the Open Cup Semifinal, despite the lopsided head-to-head record and cumulative scoreline this year. “Seattle is a team that can score and hurt you,” the Colombian midfielder said. “You’re always going to suffer for stretches of the game when they have the ball.”
