LAFC hands rival Galaxy its first loss of 2024

LAFC remains the king of Los Angeles.

The 2022 MLS Cup champion and 2023 runner-up beat crosstown rival and Western Conference leader LA Galaxy on Saturday with a 2-1 home win at BMO Stadium in this season’s first “El Tráfico.”

Timothy Tillman gave LAFC a lead before four minutes of the derby had been played, a lead the Galaxy erased through Julián Aude just before the half-hour mark. But the 1-1 deadlock didn’t last long, as Denis Bouanga — last year’s Golden Boot winner as MLS’s top scorer — restored the hosts’ advantage from the penalty spot just seven minutes later. The goal that stood up as the game winner for Steve Cherundolo’s squad, handing the previously unbeaten visitors their first loss of 2024. 

Here are a few quick thoughts on Saturday’s contest.

Play of the game

Tillman’s early opener gave the home team a colossal advantage, but the Galaxy made things interesting by canceling out later in the first half. It was a wild sequence: Left fullback Aude beat World Cup winning goalkeeper Hugo Lloris but not the post on his initial shot. The Argentine youngster saw his second effort off the rebound blocked before getting a third chance — which he cleanly deposited behind Lloris to once again knot the score, at least temporarily.

Turning point

The decisive penalty was anything but clear-cut. Even after the video assist referee recommended that center ref Jon Freeman reconsider the challenge that felled Bouanga as a clear and obvious error, Freeman stuck with his initial decision and awarded the spot kick. It wasn’t a chance that the French striker was about to waste. He didn’t, sending the eventual game-winner past Galaxy keeper (and LAFC’s 2022 MLS Cup hero) John McCarthy.

Key stat

As a pure spectacle, El Tráfico never seems to disappoint. So it was in the 22nd all-time edition on Saturday, as the nemesis combined for 38 shots in all, with LAFC sending nearly half of their 20 looks on-frame.

What’s next for LAFC?

The Black and Gold head to Portland — perhaps the most difficult away trip in all of MLS — next Saturday to face the Timbers. LAFC returns to South Los Angeles on April 20, when the New York Red Bulls come to town.

What’s next for the Galaxy?

Greg Vanney’s side is back in action north of the border next weekend, when they visit the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night. The Galaxy’s two-match road swing ends on April 21, when they welcome the San Jose Earthquakes to Dignity Heath Sports Park in Carson for the first “California Clásico” of 2024.

Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports. Before joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was a staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has covered United Statesmen’s and women’s national teams at multiple FIFA World Cups. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.

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