LOS ANGELES – Carlos Vela was owner and lord of the night at Exploria Stadium in Orlando, Florida. When the LAFC captain was most needed, the Mexican striker appeared to send his team to their first final after beating Club America 3-1 in the semifinals.
LAFC removed the caste for the Major League Soccer teams and will face the Tigers in the CONCACAF Champions League Grand Final.
“It was a great effort on the part of the players, at halftime we felt we could still win the game, I didn’t expect that as soon as in the second half Carlos would have scored two goals. But I applaud the mentality of the players, the effort of all of them, it was wonderful. Today you could see the concentration, we have learned from mistakes of the past, I am very proud of all of them, “shared coach Bob Bradley after the LAFC win.
LAFC went to the investor losing 1-0 and with 10 men after the expulsion of Eduard Atuesta. The picture was uphill for the Los Angeles box, but early in the second half, Carlos Vela found two goals within a minute taking advantage of the rival’s defensive errors.
“Carlos is a special player, he is our captain, and what a night for him,” the American coach said. “For Carlos (Vela) it’s special to face the Mexican clubs, also after the ligament injury he suffered in the MLS tournament, he wanted to show himself now. He made a difference to us not only with the goals today, but with the his actions on the court, doing these little things that help you manage a game like that. “
The party was not without controversy. The refereeing, led by the Costa Rican whistler Juan Gabriel Calderón, left much to be desired. Remember that in this competition there is no support from the VAR.
The game was intense from the start and fouls that were not scored at the right time, allowed the game to escalate to the blows at halftime. A corner kick from Diego Palacios went unnoticed and, in the end of the first half, a foul in the area of America on Eduard Atuesta was not marked as a penalty and ended in expulsion from the Colombian player.
In a provocation between the Americanist goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa and Eduard Atuesta, the latter when he got up from lying on the grass, collided with Memo. The archer exaggerated the contact by taking the face, when the contact was in the body, and the flagman chose to mark attempt of aggression of Atuesta towards Ochoa showing the red card to him.
As a result of this action, things remained hot in the match and spread towards half time. There, LAFC assistant Davant Razov and Eagles coach Miguel Herrera ended up exchanging a few blows, which resulted in Poll being sent off for the second half.
“I have received many messages from people who have seen the rehearsals, I have not seen them but they have told me that he did nothing, that Atuesta did nothing and Ochoa started the provocation. It is unfortunate that he has to go through to these things to seek to have advantage, ”strategist Bob Bradley has indicated. “We talked about it as a group before the game, which had to be smart, play the game, be accurate, not be naive. I think the players handled things very well.”
Bob Bradley coached the United States for five years, from 2006 to 2011, while Miguel Herrera did the same with the Mexican national team from late 2013 to 2015. The intensity shown in the match made the American strategist recalled rivalries between Mexico and the United States.
“Yes it reminded me of these games during my time as USA coach. The games against Mexico were special, the players were motivated by these games, the level was high. There were moments on the field, which went going through half the time, that kind of emotion and passion is shown in big rivalries and it felt something like that tonight, ”Bradley noted.
LAFC is the first MLS team to surpass three MX League teams in a single tournament. In the round of 16 they beat León and in the quarterfinals they beat the Blue Cross, followed by the American Eagles in the semifinals. In the grand final of the international competition, another Mexican team, Tigres, will compete.
The Angelina franchise is just in its third year. Since joining MLS in 2018, he has shown great things; One-time signings, talented young players with a mix of experience elements and a coach like Bob Bradley who has implemented a style of play, are some of the factors that have given them success in a short time.
After falling short of expectations in the local tournament the past three seasons, LAFC will play the first final in its short history and will do so in an international tournament.