LAFC remained unbeaten at home with a convincing 5-0 win over Nashville SC on Saturday night at BMO Stadium. Denis Bouanga, the 2023 MLS Golden Boot winner, scored his first goals of the season, tallying once on either side of halftime after Timothy Tillman had given LAFC an early lead. Cristian Olivera and Eduard Atuesta added late goals for LAFC to give the club its biggest win of the season.
With the win, LAFC improves to 2-2-1 on the season for seven points, leaving the club three points out of first place in the Western Conference.
LAFC entered the game without a goal in the last 305 minutes of action but were able to go in front just 9 minutes into the game thanks to Tillman’s second goal of the season. Nashville defender Taylor Washington saved an Aaron Long header on the line, but Tillman was there to fire home the rebound from close range, making the score 1-0. That goal ended LAFC’s scoreless drought at 314 minutes, four minutes shy of the club record of 318 minutes.
Bouanga doubled LAFC’s lead just nine minutes later, converting a penalty kick after Tillman had been fouled inside the box, for his first goal of the season.
The score stayed that way into halftime before Bouanga put the game out of reach just three minutes after the break with his second goal of the match. Olivera fired a low cross through the box that Bouanga was able to curl inside the far post to make the score 3-0 in the 48th minute.
In the 61st minute, Nashville were reduced to 10 men when goalkeeper Joe Willis was sent off for a handball outside the box.
Olivera added the fourth for LAFC in the 75th minute, tallying his first goal of the season with a right-footed shot from the center of the box. David Martinez, who had entered the game nine minutes earlier, was credited with his first assist of the season on the goal.
Late in stoppage time, Atuesta made the score 5-0, heading home a Bouanga cross for his first goal of the season and first for the club since September 2021.
Hugo Lloris kept a clean sheet for the second consecutive home game, making one save on the evening. In three games at BMO Stadium, he is yet to concede a goal from open play and has not allowed a goal in the last 198 minute of action at home.
The Black & Gold head to Commerce City for their next match against the Colorado Rapids on March 30.
NEWS & NOTES
- With the win, LAFC is now 2-2-1 on the season for seven points. All seven points have come at home where the club is 2-0-1 so far this season.
- This was the 11th time in 197 all-time regular season games that LAFC had scored five or more goals. LAFC was the home side in seven of those 11 games.
- Tillman scored his second goal of the season in the 9th minute. LAFC has scored in two of its five games this season, and Tillman has opened the scoring in each of those matches.
- That goal snapped a streak of 314 minutes without a goal dating back to the season opening win over Seattle on February 24. That streak was four minutes shy of equaling the club MLS regular season record of 318 minutes without a goal, which was set in June 2023.
- Denis Bouanga, who scored an MLS-best 20 regular season goals in 2023, opened his 2024 account with a pair of goals. This was his sixth multi-goal regular season game for LAFC, tying him with Diego Rossi for the second-most in club history. Only Carlos Vela with 13 has more multi-goal regular season games than Bouanga.
- Since joining LAFC in 2022, Bouanga has 12 multi-goal games in all competitions, having also done so twice in the MLS Cup Playoffs, twice in the Concacaf Champions League and twice in League’s Cup.
- Bouanga’s first goal was an 18th minute penalty kick. He is now 4-for-4 when taking a penalty for LAFC in the MLS regular season.
- Bounaga was credited with an assist on LAFC’s fifth goal of the night. That was his first assist of the season and just the third time in his career that he had a goal and an assist in the same regular season game.
- Cristian Olivera scored his first goal of the season in the 75th minute. That was his first goal for the club since October 7, 2023. He had entered tonight’s game with 11 shots and seven shots on target.
- Olivera also had an assist in the game. That was his first-ever in an MLS regular season game.
- Hugo Lloris made one save to earn his second clean sheet of the season. He has not allowed a goal from open play at home this season and has not conceded at all in the last 198 minutes of action at BMO Stadium.
- Defender Sergi Palencia made his first start of the season, replacing Omar Campos who was on international duty with the Mexico U-23 National Team.
- Nathan Ordaz came off the bench in the second half, replacing Olivera in the 76th minute. He played 90 minutes for El Salvador on Thursday night in a 1-1 draw with Bonaire at Audi Field in Washington D.C.
