It's good to be back.
Tonight's friendly against Vissel Kobe felt less like a preseason match and more like a reunion with 18,000 of my closest friends. Yup, you read that correctly, 18,000 at Banc of California Stadium for a preseason friendly... on a weeknight... in LA.
The football on display wasn't always the best, but there were moments. It is preseason after all. And while the play on the pitch was disjointed at times, the level in the stands never seemed to waver. The chants grew louder by the minute, and in the end, the fans were rewarded with a couple of nice goals, the chance to see three World Cup winners, and an LAFC win at the end of the 90 minutes.
Here are the takeaways from LAFC's 4-1 victory over Vissel Kobe:
Some Good, Some Bad
Look, we're just two matches into preseason. There's no point in belaboring mistakes or drawing grand conclusions thus far. But when people asked me after the match how I felt about it, the best I could muster was to say it was ok.
As the subhead of this section denotes, that's not to say it was all bad. There were some nice combinations across the field. For Carlos Vela's second goal, André Horta turned out of a congested area on near the touchline to find Lee Nguyen centrally before he quickly helped it on to Vela with one defender to beat and acres of space ahead of him.
Vela, of course, took it from there. But there were other plays where there was a touch too many or a decision made a fraction late that resulted in lost opportunities and sometimes presented the opposition with a chance of their own. And while LAFC had a gilt-edged chance early, there were stretches where Vissel Kobe had them pinned back and looked almost certain to score.
Again, that's preseason though. And there's work to do, but earning a 4-1 result is a positive.
Vela x2
A half hour into this match, things were looking pretty choppy. The balance of the match seemed to be tipping towards Vissel Kobe. Andres Iniesta was starting to get on the ball more and the visitors put LAFC under pressure with a series of set pieces.
Then up stepped Carlos Vela.
The Mexican international put LAFC up for good with two quintessentially Vela goals. The first being one of his trademark curlers from just inside the right corner of the penalty area and the second a tidy finish after leaving his marker in the dust down the touchline.
In a match that featured three World Cup winners in Andres Iniesta, Lukas Podolski, and David Villa, Vela put on a show to close out the first half. He didn't come out for the next 45 minutes, and to be honest, he really didn't need to.
Not Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts
André Horta, Lee Nguyen, and Eduard Atuesta started once again at the center of LAFC's midfield for the second match in a row. And while each of them had their moments, they never seem to maintain those moments and never at the same time.
It wasn't that the midfield was bad, they just never clicked together. And as a result, LAFC never totally dominated the match the way the scoreline would suggest. Individually, each player seemed to have spurts of play. Horta, in particular, had a really nice spell and nearly scored had his 30-yard blast not found the crossbar.
That lack of cohesion seriously limits the type of things LAFC can do though.
When the three midfielders are in sync, LAFC is usually in complete control, creating chances and recovering balls with regularity from the opposition. That just wasn't the case on Thursday against Vissel Kobe.
Still The Maestro
Has there ever been a player that can show so much with so few touches?
Andres Iniesta just seems to know exactly the right amount of touches necessary. He knows when to keep the ball and when to keep it moving. There was more than a few times LAFC players seemed to have him under wraps, yet he came out the other side with the ball still close to his boots.
His balance remains uncanny and his awareness of space is unquestionably world class. It was a pleasure to see him live on the pitch at Banc of California Stadium.
Another Goal From A Draftee
Peter-Lee Vassell picked up a goal in LAFC's first match via a penalty. Not to be outdone, Kevin Mendoza bagged the final goal of the night. Not a bad finish either.
LAFC pressed Vissel Kobe and Mendoza was the beneficiary of a slack pass. But he still had work to do to get to goal. The attacker juked past one defender, creating an extra yard of space. Before the goalkeeper could get his feet set, Mendoza had picked his spot and buried LAFC's fourth. It was a nice direct piece of play and a precise finish from the rookie.
