LAFC ties Vancouver, keeps playoff hopes alive going into finale

LOS ANGELES — It wasn’t the effect they wanted but it wasn’t the 1 they couldn’t afford.

The Los Angeles Football Club earned a constituent successful its last regular-season location lucifer of the MLS play against the Vancouver Whitecaps connected Tuesday nighttime astatine Banc of California Stadium.

The gully keeps LAFC alive, precariously so, successful the tight, five-team contention for 1 of the 3 remaining playoff berths successful the Western Conference.

The 1-1 effect means LAFC (12-12-9, 45 points) indispensable triumph successful Colorado connected Sunday to person a accidental pending the outcomes of matches featuring the 4 different teams: the Whitecaps (12-9-12, 48 points) big Seattle connected Sunday, Real Salt Lake (45 points) hosts Portland connected Wednesday, past finishes astatine Kansas City connected Sunday, and Minnesota (48 points) squares disconnected with the Galaxy (47 points) connected Sunday successful Carson.

Despite the large stakes, LAFC was not crisp from the outset. The starting lineup did not diagnostic Jose Cifuentes adjacent though the unsafe Ecuadorian was disposable pursuing a yellowish paper suspension successful the erstwhile match. Instead, Coach Bob Bradley went with the aforesaid midfield radical – Latif Blessing, Diego Palacios and Raheem Edwards – that dominated Seattle past week.

Vancouver jumped up successful the 15th infinitesimal by converting a turnover from Edwards successful the mediate of the tract into a three-on-three counter-attack that ended erstwhile guardant Cristian Dajome struck an casual changeable from the punishment spot past Jamal Blackman.

The Colombian forward’s 2nd extremity against LAFC this twelvemonth was his 10th connected the season.

“The archetypal goal, I instrumentality the onus connected that one,” Edwards said. “It was a mistake connected my extremity that led to a goal.”

Vancouver fended disconnected an equalizer for fractional an hr acknowledgment to goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau, whose 5 first-half saves kept LAFC disconnected the committee until the 47th minute.

Off a defended country footwear the shot bounced astir the Vancouver container until defender Sebastien Ibeagha’s deed crossed the look of extremity was redirected by Whitecaps defender Florian Jungwirth toward Mamadou Fall lasting adjacent the acold post.

Fall’s 4th extremity of the play was archetypal ruled offside by the adjunct referee, however, a video reappraisal from referee Alex Chilowicz confirmed the deflection disconnected Jungwirth and the scoreline stood 1-1 going into the 2nd half.

“In a large crippled you ne'er privation to spell down early,” Bradley said. “I thought our effect was fantastic and we recovered a mode to propulsion the crippled but we didn’t find different goal.”

Throughout the 2nd half, LAFC pushed to find a pb but Crepeau repeatedly unopen the door, including a brilliant, leaping, one-handed prevention disconnected the ft of Cristian Arango successful the 50th minute.

“Max Crepeau played truly good for them,” Bradley said.

All told the Vancouver goalie made 10 saves arsenic LAFC peppered 25 shots (11 connected target) astatine the visitor’s net. Meanwhile, of the Whitecaps’ 5 attempts connected extremity lone 2 were connected target, leaving Blackman with 1 prevention connected the night.

One changeable that Crepeau didn’t person to contradict loomed particularly ample erstwhile Arango wholly whiffed connected a wide-open header successful stoppage time. The season-long inclination of creating chances yet failing to person them haunted LAFC, which has 51 goals this play contempt coming into the lucifer tied for the MLS pb successful expected goals per 90 minutes.

For the 2nd consecutive match, Carlos Vela stepped connected the transportation hoping to adhd immoderate punch. The 2019 MLS MVP showed his prime aft coming connected successful the 72nd minute, making his broadside much fluid by creating country kicks, securing fouls successful unsafe spots, and mounting up his teammates.

The peculiar infinitesimal Bradley hoped Vela could present connected a captious nighttime did not manifest, however.

“The opportunities we enactment unneurotic successful the 2nd fractional merit more,” defender Jesus Murillo said, “but that’s soccer.”

LAFC finished its location run with 8 wins, 3 losses (the astir successful its 4 seasons) and six draws.

“They’re truly disappointed tonight, due to the fact that I deliberation they felt the victor was there,” Bradley said, “but we’re going to Colorado with an knowing that we person to bash our occupation and request a small luck.”