LOS ANGELES — Goal scorers get the headlines.
For the Los Angeles Football Club, that was the case three ways Sunday at BMO Stadium.
Current stars Denis Bouanga and Son Heung-min both scored as LAFC legend Carlos Vela watched with his family on a night dedicated to his enormous contributions with the club. The Black & Gold beat Real Salt Lake 4-1 for the second time in five days.
For the pair of explosive attackers, this was the fifth game in a row that they scored each of LAFC’s goals — a total of 14 over that span.
“When they are both as prolific as they are, it gives the rest of the team energy,” LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo said. “It gives their defensive work and suffering purpose, and that is very important. If you are a defender, you will run gladly for 100 minutes, however long we play, if your attackers are finishing plays like Denis and Sonny are finishing plays.”
Bouanga’s initial score for his second hat trick in three games came in stoppage time of the opening half and leveled the contest after RSL jumped ahead in the 14th minute on a wicked strike by Colombian defender Brayan Vera, his first of the season.
Working off a deft assist from Son, the goal made the 30-year-old French winger the only player in Major League Soccer history to complete back-to-back-to-back 20-goal seasons.
“I feel very good right now,” Bouanga said. “We continue on a very good path. I try to be decisive in every game, which can be scoring a goal or passing.”
Bouanga’s effort topped Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Josef Martinez and David Villa, each of whom repeated 20-goal campaigns.
“Scoring 20 goals in one season, some people would be very happy about it,” said Son, who shared the 2021-22 Golden Boot award in the Premier League with 23 goals for Tottenham. “And scoring three seasons in a row is a massive, massive thing. Obviously, credit to Denis, because he works hard to help the team and score a lot of goals. It’s not random. It’s not lucky. He works really hard to always be in the position to score goals and we should appreciate that.”
Last Wednesday, Bouanga’s 94th goal with LAFC moved him past Vela for the most with the club.
With five games to go in the regular season, Bouanga said he wants to reach 100 by the close of Decision Day on Oct. 18. He scored his 96th in the 73rd minute thanks to Andy Moran’s first assist with LAFC, and capped the evening with No. 97 from Jeremy Ebobisse in the 87th minute.
Bouanga tied Lionel Messi for the lead in this season’s Golden Boot race with 22.
“The only thing we accomplished was three points,” Cherundolo said. “And, yes, I understand the individual accolades players get and deserve. Denis is an incredible attacker. Tonight we celebrated Carlos, another incredible attacker. Oh, and there’s Sonny, too. It’s incredible to have coached all three of those players, and now two at the same time.”
On an emotional evening, knowing that their fourth consecutive MLS Cup playoff berth under Cherundolo was clinched the day before when San Jose lost at home, LAFC took the pitch seeking its ninth point in nine days following two dominant road wins.
The team was not particularly sharp for the opening 35 minutes. But once Bouanga scored, there was little RSL (10-16-4, 34 points) could do.
Ahead of the halftime whistle, Son connected from outside the 18, taking two touches to his left and striking a dipping shot inside the far post for his sixth MLS goal.
Before kickoff, Son and Vela exchanged a nice moment before the Mexican icon was inducted into the newly formed LAFC Ring of Honor, located on the southwest side of the stadium.
“After all these years, I feel proud of where we are,” Vela said as the announced crowd of 22,901 showered him with love. “I feel proud of all the moments we shared. I think the team is in a good time now, so I’m happy.”
Vela, 36, became the first player to sign with LAFC in 2017, and he served as the face of the franchise through his retirement on May 27 of this year. He was subsequently signed as the first Black & Gold Ambassador.
“El Rey” announced the end of his days as a professional footballer after a decorated 19-year run for club and country. His final appearance came with LAFC in a playoff match against Vancouver last October.
Following stints in Spain and England, Vela’s skills translated exceedingly well to Major League Soccer, where he holds an assortment of league records, including several from 2019 during arguably the best single season in MLS history.
Recipient of the most valuable player award for a team that secured the Supporters’ Shield in 2019, Vela scored the most goals (34) and made the most goal contributions (49) in a single season. His 1.10 goals per game average remains a record.
The all-time leading Mexican goal scorer in MLS was a four-time All-Star (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) and three-time Best XI selection (2018, 2019, 2022). As captain, Vela led LAFC to the MLS Cup and a second Supporters’ Shield trophy in 2022.
“It was good to see him on the pitch and everybody was happy to see him,” Son said. “One day, I want to be like him as well when I’m retiring and come back to L.A. I hope everybody welcomes me like this.”
Vela wrapped up the joyous night in front of the 3252 supporters in the North End, singing the celebratory “sha la la” with the team, which is fourth in the Western Conference, five points above Seattle with a game in hand.
LAFC (14-7-8, 50 points) visits 13th-place St. Louis City next weekend.
“I can tell you that this team is locked in and focused to maximize our potential,” Cherundolo said. “And whatever the rest of the season has in store for us, we feel very good about ourselves at the moment. We’re going to use every bit of confidence and momentum we have to finish the season as strong as possible going into playoffs.”
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