LAFC defeat Toronto FC in final preseason game

Los Angeles Football Club played their final game of the preseason Wednesday, hosting Toronto FC at The Banc and defeating them 3-1.

Brian Rodriguez scored once again in the preseason to set the tone, before Carlos Vela doubled the goals tally for LAFC and academy player Christian Torres scored the final goal, a sign that the first homegrown signings out of the LAFC academy are probably closer on the horizon than we think.

Here’s Rodriguez’s 16th-minute goal:

Toronto’s goal came in the 51st minute through Ifunanyachi Achara.

Vela’s goal came in the 74th minute:

And Torres hit a wicked one-timer to finish the proceedings (did you see the Vela dummy?) in the 81st minute:

Here was the LAFC starting XI: GK - Kenneth Vermeer; Tristan Blackmon, Jordan Harvey, Dejan Jakovic, Diego Palacios; Francisco Ginella, Bryce Duke, Latif Blessing; Carlos Vela, Brian Rodriguez, Adrien Perez

Once again, LAFC were missing a number of presumed starters for next week’s(!) Concacaf Champions League opener at Club León. Vermeer, Blackmon, Palacios, Blessing, Vela and Rodriguez are almost certain to start if they’re healthy. That’s just over half a lineup, though.

In addition to Ginella making his debut in game action, Jose Cifuentes also made his bow, off the bench in 62nd minute. Other players played, but the team didn’t share those specifics, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

So preseason games are over, with LAFC set to open the season Tuesday in Mexico. They were unbeaten in preseason, a lot of players got a lot of minutes in the four preseason games, although the likes of Mark-Anthony Kaye, Bradley Wright-Phillips, Eduard Atuesta, Eddie Segura, and Diego Rossi got slim to none alongside their teammates. The defense is an open question in some respects because Walker Zimmerman was shockingly traded away this week and right back remains an open mystery. LAFC have never played in Concacaf Champions League before. Time will tell how the preseason set the team up for the season, and it could work out or not, but the initial prep time is nearly over. As the saying goes, let the games begin.

What do you think? Are you pleased with the results, concerned about cohesion, or do you just want to see the games? Leave a comment below, let’s chat!