What's next for LAFC after Champions League defeat?
LAFC had plenty of optimism heading into the second leg of its Champions League final, but a 2-1 defeat in the first leg proved too much to overcome.
Mexico's Club Léon won the CONCACAF Champions League final thanks to a 1-0 victory in Los Angeles in Game 2 on Sunday. It's the club's first Champions League trophy in its 78-year history.
"I think if you look at the 180 minutes we played, they deserved to win," LAFC coach Steve Cherundolo admitted after the match.
Winning the Champions League was LAFC's biggest goal in 2023. Now it must re-group in the MLS while facing a difficult schedule.
LAFC is third in the Western Conference with 25 points, but the club has only played 12 games to the rest of the league's average of 16. It missed several MLS match days during its Champions League journey and must make them all up.
MLS is already a notoriously exhausting league for players — the distances between matches are huge and the league's playing style is physical and demanding. LAFC is tired enough from its Champions League efforts, which included cramming in four extra games.
"We spent a lot of mental energy on the Champions League," veteran LAFC defender Giorgio Chiellini said. "But now we have to be focused and we have to try to use all our energy to continue our journey."
With games next against tricky and aggressive Atlanta United (Wednesday) and Houston Dynamo (Saturday), LAFC and its focus will be tested quickly.
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