With a less-than-inspiring 1-1 draw looking like the outcome for LAFC on Wednesday night, Son Heung-min and Nkosi Tafari flipped the script late. Son's cross in the opening minute of stoppage time perfectly found Tafari, who drilled it home with his head to send the BMO Stadium crowd into a frenzy and seal a 2-1 victory.
Los Angeles is now 5-0-2 in tournament play this year and holds a streak of seven consecutive home matches in the tournament without a loss. The critical victory puts the Black and Gold up 2-1 on aggregate heading into the second leg on the road next Wednesday in Toluca, 8,750 feet above sea level.
"We're a strong team on the road," said Tafari. "We know about the elevation. It's going to be difficult, but we handled it in Cruz Azul, so we just have to go there and get the job done."
The services of both Denis Bouanga and Eddie Segura were unavailable for the match as the pair each served a one-game suspension for yellow card accumulation. Despite their lack of presence, LAFC found a way to generate an attack following a slow first half.
L.A. did not have a shot on goal through the opening 45 minutes, but managed to keep the game scoreless thanks to another big-time moment from Hugo Lloris . The Frenchman turned away a pair of shots back-to-back in the 44th minute from Toluca midfielder Nicolás Castro and defender Jesús Gallardo.
Lloris entered Wednesday's contest with 21 saves and an 84% save rate through the first six matches of the tournament, ranking third among the 21 goalkeepers who have participated.
Timothy Tillman broke through for LAFC in the 51st minute, corralling a short pass from Son and firing a right-footed strike across his body past the dive of Toluca goalkeeper Luis García. For Tillman, the score marked his second of the tournament and first since Feb. 17.
"Timmy arrives well in the box," said head coach Marc Dos Santos. "He showed up in a lot of big games for us since the beginning of the season. He knows he has to be a little bit more consistent in other games...but, he had a very good game tonight."
Just two minutes later, Jacob Shaffelburg nearly provided his first signature moment with the club, adding what appeared to be a second LAFC score. However, following a lengthy VAR check at the monitor, the goal was disallowed for offside, and the score remained 1-0.
Head coach Marc Dos Santos sounded off on the call following the match, demanding accountability from Concacaf for what he believed was the wrong decision.
"Who drew that line at VAR? It's my daughter Jasmine, when she was five years old," said Dos Santos. "It's embarrassing...it's a scandal. Concacaf has to be better."
The goal reversal gave Toluca the spark they needed, and midfielder Jesús Angulo drilled the equalizer in the 73rd minute. Despite the defeat, Angulo's goal could prove critical, serving as the potential tiebreaker if both sides have the same number of goals following the conclusion of the second leg. Whichever side accumulates the most goals on the road would advance in that scenario.
LAFC snapped Toluca's three-game winning streak against MLS opponents in the tournament, which had all come in this year's edition. Before that, the defending Liga MX champs had only recorded two wins in nine such matches.
It will be a quick turnaround for the Black and Gold as they return to MLS play on Saturday, visiting San Diego FC at Snapdragon Stadium. Dos Santos once again voiced his frustrations, this time regarding the scheduling challenges that his team continues to deal with as the season progresses.
"The schedule is a scandal," said Dos Santos. "Who's the guy in the office that says, 'This is a good idea to have them play in San Diego ?' MLS has to help MLS teams. I want to meet that guy, because at some point it's enough."
Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT.
