LAFC are set to host Deportivo Toluca FC in the first leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final at BMO Stadium. The match pits the top two teams in the new continental rankings against each other. A place in the final is the prize.
A Clash of the Continental Titans
Toluca are the number one ranked team in Concacaf, with LAFC in second place. This makes their meeting one of the most anticipated of the round. Some are calling it a ‘final in advance’.
The return match between Toluca and LAFC is scheduled for 6 May at Estadio Nemesio Díez in Mexico. The winner of the two-match series will advance to the final on 30 May. They will face either Tigres de la UANL or Nashville.
This will be the first time the two teams have ever met in the tournament.
LAFC Without Key Forward
LAFC will be without their leading scorer, Denis Bouanga, for the first leg. He is suspended due to accumulated yellow cards.
David Martínez, LAFC forward, acknowledged Bouanga’s importance. “We know that Denis is one of the most important and destabilising players we have in attack,” he said. “We have other players who can do the job. He is a player who contributes a lot to the team, but we have good players who will give their best.”
LAFC’s Road to the Semi-Final
LAFC enter the match in good form after eliminating Cruz Azul, the defending champions, with a 4-1 aggregate score. In the first leg, Martínez scored twice, and Son Heung-Min added a third in a 3-0 victory at home.
In the return leg, played at Estadio Cuauhtémoc in Puebla, Bouanga scored a penalty in a 1-1 draw that sealed their qualification.
LAFC coach Marc Dos Santos highlighted the importance of winning the first leg and taking an advantage to Toluca. “Obviously we want to win by many goals, but we know that we are facing a great opponent,” added Dos Santos.
- This is LAFC’s third appearance in the semi-finals of the continental tournament.
- On the two previous occasions, they advanced to the championship match.
- The last time they faced a Liga MX rival at this stage was in 2020, when they eliminated Club América 3-1 in a single match during the pandemic.
Toluca’s Formidable Attack
Toluca, returning to a Concacaf semi-final since 2014, are coming off a dominant performance against the LA Galaxy in the quarter-finals. They won the first leg 4-2 in Toluca and then 3-0 in Los Angeles in the return leg. Paulinho scored five goals in that series.
Dos Santos acknowledged the danger posed by Paulinho. He said that he has followed the player closely since he played in Europe.
“He is very good inside the area, he works hard,” said Santos.
The first leg is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. at BMO Stadium.