LAFC Continue Their Winning Ways at Home Versus Real Salt Lake.
Los Angeles, CA – LAFC returned to the Banc to host Real Salt Lake City. The Black and Gold came home after a 3-game road trip where they earned two wins and suffered one loss. Now, Bob Bradley’s team was looking to get in some consecutive wins. In this 13th match of the 2021 season, LAFC got off to a fast start. In the 10th minute, Diego Rossi put his team up early 1-0. They looked to capitalize early and pressure Real Salt Lake offensively since The Black and Gold are not known for playing top-notch defense.
The visiting team did not take long to score however. They equalized just eight minutes later. Aaron Herrera put the ball into the net in the 18th minute. The goal was assisted by Everton Luiz on a fast break. LAFC seemed to have a plethora of opportunities to take the lead but could not complete. The visiting team appeared to have some clear chances as well but could not break past the LAFC defense. Both teams ended up going into the half with a 1-1 tie.
In the first half alone, LAFC had 11 total shots. 7 of those shots came from inside the box. They kept knocking on the door, but to no avail.
In the second half, Bob Bradley’s team came out attacking once more but still was not able to score. A huge part of that was Real Salt Lake’s goalie, David Ochoa. The young 20-year-old goalie had various phenomenal saves. One of those saves was a penalty kick attempted by Carlos Vela. Everyone in the stadium expected Vela to score, however, Ochoa had other ideas. It was still early in the second half and LAFC kept the offense on high octane. Real Salt Lake had no answer to the LAFC onslaught as the home team dominated the game. In the 79th minute, that relentless attack finally paid off. Vela scored on a very tight angle, crossing the ball to the opposite side of the goal to put LAFC up 2-1. Vela and company held on to the 2-1 in victory. The score could have easily been 5-1, but excellent goalkeeping by Ochoa and the missed opportunities by LAFC ended differently. LAFC wins its 3rd game out of the last 4. They now have a record of 6-3-4. Real Salt Lake dropped to 4-3-5 in the Western Conference.
