Fulltime: LAFC 1, Inter Miami 0. The second half was pretty sloppy, but LAFC see out the win. Thanks for following along, here’s the full recap!

Halftime: LAFC walk in up a goal, Carlos Vela scoring on his birthday. What will the second 45 hold? Stay tuned!

44th minute: GOOOOOOOOOL LAFC! Carlos Vela gets the ball in some space and does about the only thing he can do in the situation — chips it over Luis Robles to score. The moment of magic to liven up this game. LAFC up 1-0.

42nd minute: Saves, Vermeer! Two point-blank saves to deny Rodolfo Pizarro and Nicolas Figal in quick succession to keep it 0-0.

Lineups:

LAFC make two changes from Thursday’s CCL game, with Jordan Harvey starting at left back in place of Diego Palacios, and Francisco Ginella entering for Eduard Atuesta.

Miami’s inaugural XI is out, and Lee Nguyen is on the bench to start for his new team.

Fresh off a rousing comeback in Concacaf Champions League, Los Angeles Football Club are back in action Sunday afternoon, as they’ll host Inter Miami in the MLS season opener.

LAFC are coming off the big win over Club León, and obviously this game could go two ways: They could be sharper than ever, high off the big 3-0 win at The Banc on Thursday, something they did pretty much all last year. Or they could have a letdown, going from an emotional win in an elimination game, on short rest, to turn their attention to the first of 34 games in the league campaign. Again, I don’t expect that approach, but we’ll see if the black-and-gold look sharp to open the MLS season.

Add to that Inter Miami are playing their first-ever game, so what to expect? Traditionally, MLS expansion teams struggle to start out, especially with their first game on the road. Of course, LAFC themselves posted a landmark win on the road to open their history, so if anyone should know what can happen in these situations, it’s them.

So this should be a good one. LAFC will be hungry to show Thursday’s win, and the Supporters’ Shield-winning campaign last year, was no fluke, while Inter Miami will look to be the next LAFC. This should be a good one, we’ll see how it unfolds.

Odds:

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, as of Friday afternoon, LAFC are favored at home (-250) while Inter Miami are big road underdogs (+575). The odds of a draw are (+400), so the bookmakers think LAFC are a big bet to pick up a win.

How to Watch:

Sunday’s match between LAFC and Inter Miami will be televised on ESPN (English) and ESPN Deportes (Spanish) in the United States. The broadcast is scheduled to start at 2:30 pm PT with kickoff to follow after.

Come chat about the game with us in the comment section below!

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