Following a dominant 3-0 win against Club Tijuana at BMO Stadium on Friday night, LAFC sets their sights on Vancouver Whitecaps FC in their final match of the 2024 Leagues Cup West 7 group stage on Tuesday at 10:30 p.m. ET at BMO Stadium.
This match marks Vancouver’s debut in the Leagues Cup this season. The Whitecaps are familiar opponents, having faced Steve Cherundolo’s LAFC seven times in the last two years, with two more encounters scheduled before the end of 2024. Vancouver has yet to find the way to constantly break down LAFC, losing five out of the seven head-to-head matchups.
Cristian Olivera and Denis Bouanga have been the driving forces behind this success. The duo maintained their form in the Leagues Cup, helping LAFC dismantle Tijuana for the biggest cross-border defeat in the tournament so far. The winger pair currently lead the Leagues Cup in goals, assists, and shots on target, and they will look to continue their success against Vancouver.
Whitecaps FC feature two standout players: Ryan Gauld and Brian White. As club captain, Gauld has proven instrumental, tallying nine goals and nine assists, amassing 18 goal contributions in MLS play. Meanwhile, White tops the team's scoring charts with 12 goals in the 2024 MLS season. Both players tend to go underappreciated in Major League Soccer, but could easily take over a match.
Gauld picked up an injury right before the MLS All-Star Game — but if he is match fit, he will pose a significant challenge for LAFC's defense.
“He's quite clever and quite good defensively,” said Cherundolo. “Which is extremely important for their offensive game”.
The biggest question mark for Vancouver will be what players will step up in Gauld's absence if the Scottish midfielder does not make the lineup.
LAFC look to improve on its Leagues Cup run that saw it lose in the quarterfinals to CF Monterrey. A win against Vancouver would guarantee them the top seed out of West 7. On the other hand, the Whitecaps are determined to advance to the knockout stages of the 2024 Leagues Cup after last year's Round of 32 loss to Tigres UANL.
After this match, the Whitecaps will face Tijuana. Depending on the result against LAFC, they may need to secure points in that game as well to advance into the knockout rounds of the tournament. Even if Whitecaps FC lose, they can beat Tijuana without going to penalties and advance into the Round of 32.
“It's a very tough opponent," said Vanni Sartini. “But the fact that they beat Tijuana and we have kind of two shots to try to qualify, try to win one of the two games.”
