Cherundolo's Tactical Masterclass Provides LAFC a Chance at CCL Redemption

A rematch of the greatest game in MLS history - this time for a trip to the CONCACAF Champions League Final.

Once again, LAFC hosted Philadelphia Union in Los Angeles for a primetime showdown. Penalties in MLS Cup have been the only thing to separate these two sides in their past five meetings, every one of which has been level after regular or extra time.

The same was the case in the first leg of this CONCACAF Champions League Semifinal. Kellyn Acosta giving away a penalty and scoring in the last ten minutes ensured a dramatic 1-1 result in Philadelphia.

Whichever team could finally separate themselves in Los Angeles would earn the latest MLS bragging rights while reaching a historic CCL Final.

For Philadelphia, it would be their first ever CCL Final - becoming the eighth MLS club to reach the pinnacle of North America’s continental competition. LAFC are already one of the seven MLS clubs in that group, having stumbled at the final stage against Tigres in 2020. For the Black and Gold, a trip to the CCL Final would mean becoming only the second MLS team to reach multiple CONCACAF Champions League/Cup Finals, joining cross-county rivals LA Galaxy (1997, 2001).

A rematch of 2020’s CCL Final could still be on the cards as well, where LAFC would be eager to get revenge. First though, the reigning MLS Cup Champions had to fend off a revenge challenge of their own from the Philadelphia Union.

Steve Cherundolo’s Tactical Masterclass

In the second half of the first leg, LAFC Head Coach Steve Cherundolo made a tactical tweak in midfield, moving from the traditional dual-8 midfield in LAFC’s 4-3-3 into a double pivot of Ilie Sánchez and Kellyn Acosta. This change allowed LAFC to slow Philadelphia’s build-up and chance creation through the center of the park.

“If it’s working, why change it? were sort of our ideas for tonight.” Steve Cherundolo went on to point out. Makes sense.

It was working - and it continued to work for 90 minutes - but what exactly is “it”?

In the traditional Black and Gold 4-3-3, Philadelphia was able to build up play before playing dangerous diagonals which often resulted in threatening crosses. Other times the center-backs would go directly over the top to the strikers.

However, with a double pivot, the third midfielder ends up in the #10 position - a much better area to help the front three press. Timothy Tillman began the game in that position, scoring the opening goal in his Man of the Match performance. José Cifuentes finished the game in that position, bagging an assist on Bouanga’s goal while finding the second assist on Opoku’s.

“Sometimes you need to take the strengths of your opponents. We had to put pressure because when they have control of the long balls they are really good. That’s what Philly is really strong at.” Timothy Tillman told me when asked about his positioning.

His pressing as a second striker next to Vela created a front four, clogging the passing lanes in Union’s buildup. “The idea is to step up your pressure a little bit - add another player in your press.” Cherundolo elaborated.

This organized press forced Philadelphia to play long. Now - rather than Jack Elliott and Jakob Glesnes having time to pick up their head to ping dangerous diagonals - the Union was forced into contested direct balls, slowing their attack. Helping to contest aerial duels in the second half, Denil Maldonado replaced Jesús Murillo for tactical reasons as well as a bit of precaution for the Colombian center-backs hamstring. Despite the difficulty of entering an intense, physical match halfway through, Maldonado was dominant when contesting these long balls from Philadelphia defenders.

“ allowed - not just to have one more player in that central area - but also allowed our forwards to be more confident stepping and putting some pressure on the center-backs from Philadelphia.” Ilie Sánchez dissected post-match while praising his head coach and teammates.

I would take it a step further. The pressing #10 we don’t normally see from LAFC also allowed for fluid movement of Vela and Bogusz dropping into midfield. Carlos Vela as a false-9 is something we have seen before to great effect. He seemed to enjoy the fluidity again against Philadelphia.

Mateusz Bogusz starting ahead of Mahala Opoku was also a key component. His natural position is in midfield, therefore he is more comfortable dropping in to connect play in possession or fill passing lanes out of possession than Opoku.

Super-Subs Finished Philadelphia Off

The Ghanaian youngster did eventually replace the Polish youth international shortly after Olivier Mbaizo was sent off for Philadelphia. The Union fullback earned his second yellow for cutting down Bouanga on a counter-attack after he earned the first for a silly after-the-whistle shove on Jesús Murillo.

Super-sub Mahala Opoku ended up putting the game away in the 82nd minute with assistance from fellow super-sub José Cifuentes. The Ecuadorian opened up play for LAFC while shrugging off a tug on his shirt from Nathan Harriel. He then fed Carlos Vela in stride and made a darting run toward the penalty spot. His run pulled Jakob Glesnes just slightly inside, allowing Vela to feed Opoku on his third-man run for the 3-1 aggregate lead, effectively ending the tie.

Cifuentes went on to assist Bouanga for an exclamation mark in the last minute of the match as LAFC remain unbeaten against Philadelphia in their six-year history.

The defending MLS Cup and Supporters’ Shield Champions have now earned the right to fight for yet another trophy under Steve Cherundolo - this time the biggest one on the continent. Their opponent will be a Liga MX superpower either way - Tigres or León. With Tigres of course, a potential chance for revenge is on the horizon.

Regardless of the opponent, LAFC will be ready. The Black and Gold are “probably, you can argue, the best team in league history” according to Philadelphia Union Head Coach Jim Curtin - but just as important - this team remains hungry. As goalkeeper John McCarthy told me after yet another clean sheet, “I want that trophy. I want that big guy.”

Check out Area Sports Network on Twitter & Instagram and Subscribe to our YouTube Channel. We just hit 1k subscribers and look to continue to grow the channel. Stay tuned for more content going forward!