LAFC's Club World Cup play-in triumph was culminating moment, says coach Cherundolo
Steve Cherundolo sprinted towards the corner flag, his arms raised in celebration. When LAFC striker Denis Bouanga's extra-time winner pierced the Club América net, the club's normally reserved head coach simply could not contain his emotions.
After LAFC's 2-1 win over the Mexican side booked a spot in the upcoming Club World Cup, Cherundolo confessed that he has a tendency to dwell on moments when LAFC has come up short. Inside the BMO Stadium press conference room, the 46-year-old former U.S. international attempted to recall memories that he'd rather forget.
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'I tend to hear all of the losses and not the wins and all of the great moments of this team and what this club has done over the last three and a half years,' said Cherundolo. 'And so it's exactly what you saw. It's just pure raw emotion. It's me wanting to celebrate with our players and our fans because they deserve it and we deserve it.'
Cherundolo is leaving LAFC at the end of the season, the club announcing that he and his family will return to Germany for personal and professional reasons. Over his three-year span as head coach, Cherundolo has led the club to an MLS Cup title in 2022, a Supporters' Shield that same season and a U.S. Open Cup in 2024.
There have been disappointments, as well, namely the 2023 Concacaf Champions Cup final loss to León. It was a defeat that appeared to rob LAFC of a chance to compete at a Club World Cup. León's expulsion from the tournament gave LAFC a lifeline. They would have to get past a Club América team that has made history in Mexico after winning three consecutive Liga MX titles and narrowly failing to add another last week.
What felt like an uphill battle against a much stronger side on paper ended in euphoria on Saturday night. Bouanga, who had terrorized América's fullbacks all night, celebrated with his trademark front flip in the 115th minute. It was a dagger in the hearts of the Mexicans. For Cherundolo, it was an instance that brought his tenure at LAFC full circle. It wasn't a golden goal, but it felt like one for LAFC's staff and rabid community of fans.
'It's kind of a culmination of three and a half years of hard work and dedication that just kind of explodes in that moment,' he said. 'And I don't know if it's intuition, but I felt very comfortable after that. There's no chance, no chance of ever losing that game.'
When Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio blew his whistle to start the match, the LAFC and América supporters' sections simultaneously released smoke flares, in black and yellow, respectively, which engulfed the pitch and set the mood. FIFA's Club World Cup concept suddenly felt very real.
The game was tense and spirited. It felt like a cup final, and the prize at stake — a guarantee of at least $9.55 million — was very real. If this is what FIFA had in mind when the governing body created the 32-team tournament, much to the initial dismay of players and clubs alike, well, so far so good.
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If the participating teams deliver the type of effort that both LAFC and Club América displayed on Saturday night, FIFA may in fact be onto something. But this play-in match was an outlier of sorts. The U.S. vs. Mexico rivalry was on the line. It's always a battle of football culture when an MLS team faces a Mexican side. Pride was at stake in Los Angeles.
It wouldn't have surprised many to have seen América advance to the Club World Cup. Under Brazilian manager Andre Jardine, Las Aguilas (the eagles) have tasted domestic success on a continuum. The recent glut of success has had pundits in Mexico debating whether this América team was the best in the club's 108-year history.
A devastating loss to Toluca in an intense two-legged Liga MX final last Sunday, had left América wounded emotionally and physically before the play-in match. To add more pressure to the equation, a loss to an MLS team is unacceptable no matter how much MLS has closed the perceived gap between the two leagues.
LAFC is a club with eight years of existence. They're a toddler in comparison to the seasoned Mexican club that has already celebrated a centenary of continuance. But outside of Inter Miami and Seattle Sounders, the two MLS teams that had already qualified for the tournament finals, on Saturday, LAFC were the envy of their MLS counterparts.
And according to Cherundolo, the win was a seminal moment not just for LAFC, but for MLS as a whole.
'As a club, I think it puts you above and beyond many, many other clubs in the MLS,' Cherundolo claimed. 'I think it puts you at a different level. And it is also a help for the entire league of putting the league on the map at the Club World Cup with one more team. I think it's an important night for everybody involved in our sport in this country and more specifically in this league.'
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While LAFC is a young club it is certainly no slouch in Concacaf. In 2020 LAFC eliminated a favored América side in the semifinals of the Champions Cup. Since then LAFC has added players, sold key personnel and overhauled its squad like most MLS clubs do every offseason.
'We maximize and stretch every single dollar to try to compete with the best in our region,' Cherundolo said. 'And now we get to compete with the best in the world, but it is not always going to work like that. You do need to stay competitive financially, as well.'
Against América, a team with internationals at nearly every position, LAFC had Hugo Lloris in goal, a World Cup winner with France in 2018. Former Arsenal center forward Olivier Giroud entered in the second half and made a big impact, despite playing a small part in LAFC's 2025 season thus far.
LAFC's most influential French national, however, is Bouanga. In typical fashion, the Gabon international was a threat all night with his tireless running and clever dribbling. 'I'm always hungry,' Bouanga said through a translator in the stadium mixed zone. '(Extra time) felt like a third half. I love the game of football. I always try to give the best of myself. I always give 100 percent in every game.'
'This guy's relentless, man,' LAFC defender Aaron Long said of Bouanga. 'He's the best. There's not enough good things you can say about Denis. He shows up every game, plays 90 minutes, every game. He can run forever. He just puts fear into anyone he's playing against. And by the end of the game, he just wears you down. It was a fantastic performance. I'm happy it was him that scored the winning goal. He deserves it.'
LAFC was truly the better team. Perhaps Cherundolo's comments on Friday were as intentional as they sounded, though. Despite being confident in his team's preparation for the match, Cherundolo didn't mince words when asked to compare the two teams.
'We're the underdogs,' he said with a straight face. The game, however, told a different story. LAFC was the aggressor throughout the night. They had Club América on their heels and should've put the game away on numerous occasions. The extra time period was a reprieve for the Mexican side.
It became a second chance to steal the victory from the supposedly undermanned MLS outfit. When former LAFC winger Brian Rodríguez converted an América penalty in the 64th minute, it briefly energized a team that had begun to show signs of wear and tear. América stood their ground and in the 89th minute, Jardine went to his bench, making a number of substitutions in an effort to close out the 1-0 win.
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The decision backfired. LAFC defensive midfielder Igor Jesus scored from a corner kick seconds later and sent BMO Stadium into an absolute frenzy. After the match Jardine was pressed by multiple Mexican reporters about that sequence of events. Jardine has considerable equity in Mexico.
No coach had ever won three straight Liga MX titles until he did. On Friday, Jardine was asked if he envisioned himself at the club for the long-term. If he wanted to emulate former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and remain with América for double digit years. Jardine shook off the question, but after the loss to LAFC, he was being battered about his tactics and late-game adjustments.
'It hurts. We're all very hurt,' Jardine said, before acknowledging that the criticism may be justified.
América's fall from grace will be debated heavily in Mexico. Stateside, LAFC will enjoy the momentary hype that comes with earning a Club World Cup berth. América may not agree, but the play-in match lived up to its billing.
'This feels amazing,' Cherundolo said. 'And there's no better way to qualify for a tournament than winning games. When the idea was presented to us, we all kind of shrugged. But after seeing and living through that tonight, what a great idea. I think both teams fought extremely hard for it.'
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