Whitecaps seek breakthrough vs. LAFC in West semifinal

The Vancouver Whitecaps will try at last to get the better of visiting LAFC when they meet for a third consecutive MLS Cup Playoffs in Saturday night's Western Conference semifinal.

Vancouver lost to LAFC in the best-of-three first-round series in both 2023 and 2024, and were also eliminated by the Black & Gold from the 2023 Concacaf Champions League in the round of 16.

But with manager Jesper Sorensen in his first season, and former Bayern Munich star Thomas Muller joining the second-seeded Whitecaps during the summer transfer window, there's an argument that the past history means less.

Sorensen led Vancouver to the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup final before Muller's arrival. Muller had seven goals and three assists in his first seven league matches. And fellow attackers Ryan Gauld and Brian White are both healthy at the same time for one of the few times this year.

"I know about the history of Vancouver and LAFC," Sorensen said. "And yeah, we can try and see if we can change things. But this is a new group, this is a new team, and they are also a new group and a new team for the most part."

Sorensen is also correct that this third-seeded LAFC squad has a different look, thanks to its own summer signing of Son Heung-min.

The South Korean's arrival has created arguably the best attacking tandem in the league, with Denis Bouanga scoring a career-best 24 regular-season league goals and Son adding nine since his debut. They've also combined for three goals and two assists so far this postseason.

But elsewhere, this LAFC team still has institutional stability in the form of goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, defender Sergi Palencia, midfielder Mark Delgado and others.

"I think you see now, a team who really believes in itself, and they have an opportunity to prove that at home," LAFC manager Steve Cherundolo said of Vancouver. "But I do have the knowledge, and I think the experience to say that my teams show up for moments like this. And I can imagine there are plenty of other teams Vancouver would rather play than LAFC."