Scoreboard watching season has hit MLS, and interested parties can turn their full attention to the Los Angeles Football Club twice in five days.
Entering the latest FIFA international break, LAFC has three matches remaining on the league calendar, more than any other team. Postponements stemming from the FIFA Club World Cup and a horrendous natural disaster in Texas pushed matches from June and July, against Toronto FC and Austin FC, respectively, to the stretch run heading into the MLS Cup playoffs.
The lone MLS match on Wednesday features Toronto visiting BMO Stadium.
LAFC (16-7-8, 56 points) can surpass Minnesota for third place in the Western Conference standings with a sixth consecutive victory.
If Coach Steve Cherundolo’s group then makes it seven in a row on Sunday at playoff-bound Austin, second place is the worst spot the Black & Gold could occupy before Decision Day. In case Vancouver drops points at Orlando on Saturday, LAFC might even hold the top seed when it visits Colorado on Oct. 18 for the regular-season finale.
“There’s just a lot of math and scoreboard watching that goes on, but at the end of the day we know that it’s about us,” forward Jeremy Ebobisse said Tuesday. “I also know personally that it’s about momentum going into the playoffs and right now we have a ton of that.”
Since the start of August when Son Heung-min and Denis Bouanga joined forces in the LAFC attack, the duo’s record-setting torrent of goals helped orchestrate a 6-1-2 tear that has the club looking like a top contender again.
But LAFC will be without Son and Bouanga for the next two games. The pair, who have combined to score the past 18 goals for LAFC, have joined their national teams, as have fellow forward Nathan Ordaz and midfielder Mathieu Choinière.
“It’s a great opportunity for other guys who are hungry to get on the field, who have been itching to get on the field,” midfielder Mark Delgado said. “So, yeah, it’s a great moment for guys to step in and show why they’re here, show why they want to be here, and continue pushing this winning streak.”
Delgado, a 14-year MLS veteran, was among the players Cherundolo said he could count on. The midfielder’s initial season with LAFC following a trade with the Galaxy, where he won the MLS Cup in 2024, has yielded a career-high nine assists and 12 goal contributions.
“I think I’ve kinda been given freedom,” said the 30-year-old native of Glendora. “That’s the best way to put it. Steve believes in me. The coaching staff believes in me. I think that’s the biggest key here.”
A mainstay with Toronto from 2015 to 2021, Delgado netted an MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield in Canada. Since his departure, his former club has struggled to find that level.
Lately, though, the Robin Fraser-led group has been a tough out, earning draws in eight straight matches (five against playoff teams) while conceding just a goal per game.
“You definitely gotta respect that,” Delgado said. “They’ve got a lot of grit.”
Eliminated from playoff contention on Sept. 13, Toronto (5-13-14, 29 points) last won at San Diego on July 16 – a shocking result that could ultimately cost the expansion side a conference title to LAFC’s benefit.
Toronto will also sacrifice players to international duty Wednesday, but recent additions such as former LAFC midfielder Jose Cifuentes, a key contributor on the 2022 MLS Cup squad, and Djordje Mihailovic, a goal-scoring pest with Colorado prior to being traded in early August, are expected to play.
TORONTO FC AT LAFC
When: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
Where: BMO Stadium, Los Angeles
TV/Radio: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV/710 AM, 980 AM, 1230 AM