Last week, LAFC coach Steve Cherundolo announced he will leave the club at season’s end and return to Germany — where the California native played professionally and where he met his wife.
On Sunday, the team gets an early taste of life without Cherundolo.
When LAFC hosts St. Louis City, Cherundolo will not be on the sidelines. He will miss the match after drawing a red card during the second half of his team’s 3-3 draw on April 19 in Portland for leaving his team’s bench to argue an official’s call.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my team’s performance,” Cherundolo said after the tie. “I thought we showed a lot of grit and quality. They deserved much more and unfortunately, it wasn’t much more. It was one of those games where the officials’ decisions decided the game and for LAFC, it was in a negative way.”
Denis Bouanga saved LAFC (4-4-1, 13 points) from a defeat by converting a penalty kick in the 90th minute. French center forward Olivier Giroud also scored his first goal since joining the team last year.
St. Louis (2-4-3, 9 points) also comes into this one after playing Supporters’ Shield leader Vancouver to a 0-0 deadlock on April 19 at home and holding what was the league’s highest-scoring outfit to one shot on frame.
It was the fifth clean sheet St. Louis City have posted, but also the third time this year they have settled for a 0-0 draw. They appeared to score in the 25th minute via Marcel Hartel, but a video review indicated an offsides violation that negated the goal.
St. Louis coach Olof Mellberg criticized the officials for overturning the goal, but praised his team’s work to keep Vancouver off the score sheet.
“I was happy with the game plan and the guys did really well,” he said. “They looked confident out there. We were ready for how they play.”
LAFC owns a 3-0-1 lead in the brief series between the sides and has yet to allow a goal.
–Field Level Media
