“It’s been not an atypical offseason for us,” John Thorrington said at the beginning of his 20-minute Q&A with reporters Wednesday at the LAFC Performance Center, where he addressed the team’s annual roster build. “We try to keep the continuity that we can afford and decide to keep, as well as bring in some additions that will continue our push for more trophies.”
Thorrington, the only player personnel chief LAFC has ever had—and the MLS Sporting Executive of the Year for 2024—touched on a few specific topics regarding the state of the Black & Gold, which has less than four weeks until its first real match of 2025, on Feb. 18 in Colorado.
ACTIVE OFFSEASON
Following the recent re-signing of defensive linchpin Aaron Long, plus the additions this winter of a trio of midfielders and veteran MLS goal scorer Jeremy Ebobisse, Thorrington said that the next few days will bring even more talent to the team that finished first in the Western Conference three months ago. “If we get everything we want … this will be right up there with maybe the deepest group we’ve had to start a season,” Thorrington said.
“We had to make some painful decision based on [MLS salary] rules,” Thorrington continued, alluding to the departures of 2024 captain Ilie Sánchez and centerback Jesús Murillo, among others. Last winter the team didn’t have to prepare for a prestigious international tournament that began in February. This offseason, however, “Champions Cup is such a priority that we wanted to be in position to compete as of game one … We felt like there was a higher priority on the beginning of this season than maybe there was last year.”
ADDING DEPTH
“There were a lot of things [last season] that were really good, so this is not some sort of revolution we’re talking about,” Thorrington added. “We just felt like we needed some tweaks.
“Because of the cost [of] going for it in every competition, we felt like we needed to develop a group that was younger and a bit more robust to be able to handle that, as well as deeper, to allow the coaches to rotate a bit more.
“What you will see in the next few days,” he continued, “once the group becomes more complete, is you will see basically two-deep at every position to enable us to rotate and compete on all the fronts we want to attack this year.”
The club’s main focus is the aforementioned Concacaf Champions Cup, the region's premier club competition, which features 27 top-ranked clubs from across North America, Central America and the Caribbean. LAFC will need a changing room full of willing, high-quality footballers to contend for the Concacaf title while simultaneously managing the workload of its MLS regular-season schedule.
With a dealmaker’s glint in his eye, Thorrington teased that in the coming days “there are four pieces coming.”
HERE AND THERE
When asked about the status of Carlos Vela, the Mexican legend who holds practically every offensive record in LAFC history (and a few MLS records as well), Thorrington said that he and his staff are in conversation with the unsigned forward and that Vela’s story with LAFC is not over yet. Thorrington hinted at some “exciting upcoming announcements” regarding Vela, “but now would not be the time to comment on those.”
One of the players who will be counted on to raise his level in the attacking third in 2025 is Venezuelan teenager David Martínez. “Our supporters are rightfully excited about David,” Thorrington said of the MLS 22 Under 22 selection, who registered four goals and one assist in just 363 regular-season minutes and became the first LAFC player 18 or younger to register at least five goal contributions in a single season.
Thorrington also addressed the status of Mateusz Bogusz, one of the centerpieces of LAFC’s attack in 2024, who has attracted attention from international clubs over the last year. That attention increased this offseason, but a deal “is not done,” Thorrington said, “and until it’s done there’s nothing to report."
If Bogusz has played his last game in LA, Thorrington added, “then it’s up to us to find the next version of Mati. It’s something we’ve done before.” Bogusz, after all, was languishing in Spain’s second tier before LAFC acquired him two years ago and helped him become (with Denis Bouanga) part of the second-most prolific scoring duo in MLS last season (behind only Miami’s Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez).
“Whether it’s the exact same group of players, or new players,” Thorrington said, “the standards don’t change here.”
NEW FACES
Thorrington described recent acquisition Odin Thiago Holm, a 22-year-old Norwegian who comes to LAFC from the Scottish Premiership, as “supremely talented, technically gifted [and] versatile, can play any position in midfield.” Twenty-one-year-old Brazilian Igor Jesus, signed earlier this week, is a midfielder with a “different profile,” Thorrington said. “He is a six … a pivot player in midfield.” Jesus arrives after playing the first half of the 2024-25 season in Portugal’s top tier and is ready to contribute now, Thorrington added.
MLS veteran Mark Delgado, acquired this week from the LA Galaxy, is a workhorse midfielder who “has always been one of the most underrated players in our league,” Thorrington said. “He is the type of guy that every successful team needs.” The club expects Delgado to arrive at the team facility on Friday at the latest, Thorrington said.
As for Ebobisse, LAFC’s GM suggested that the 27-year-old striker’s 60 career regular-season goals speak for themselves. Ebobisse’s arrival in free agency speaks to a club that is girding itself for a congested 2025 schedule that is filled with trophy opportunities—just like 2023 and 2024, when LAFC played more total games than any other MLS club (103).
But this team isn’t waiting until the Concacaf opener on Feb. 18 to start competing, Thorrington said. “What depth also does is it adds competition every single day in training. That is what top teams need,” he said.
“So, when I answered the first question as to where I see the team, I think this will be as competitive a group for starting positions as we have had in a while."
LAFC begins its 2025 season on the road against the Colorado Rapids in Concacaf Champions Cup action on Feb. 18. The Black & Gold opens MLS regular-season play on Feb. 22 against Minnesota United at BMO Stadium. Season ticket information. Single-game ticket info.
