Carlos Vela. Image @Twitter
LAFC vs PU Dream11 Match Preview: Having opened the season with a close 1-0 win over Inter Miami, Los Angeles FC will be looking to maintain a perfect start to the 2020-21 Major League Soccer (MLS) season when they play hosts to Philadelphia Union at Banc of California Stadium on Monday morning (IST).
LAFC broke many records last season on their way to Western Conference coronation, came unstuck in the playoffs conference finals against Seattle Sounders. The team managed to hold onto their superstar players and they are favourite once again to at least win the conference.
Philadelphia Union, meanwhile, didn’t have the best of the start after opening the season with a 2-0 away defeat at FC Dallas. They were one of the surprise packages of last season as they finished 3rd in the Eastern Conference regular-season rankings.
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Match Details
Date- Monday morning, March 09
Kick-Off- 08:00 AM (IST)
Venue- Banc of California Stadium
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Los Angeles FC
Injuries are piling up for Los Angeles FC and head coach at this early in the campaign, with no less than four players out, while two more could end up on the sideline.
Players missing from this game through injuries are- Defender Danilo Silva (left hamstring), forwards Adama Diomande (fractured metatarsal), Bradley Wright-Phillips (sports hernia surgery) and Adrian Perez (anterior cruciate ligament injury).
Players who are listed as doubtful are: José Cifuentes (right ankle injury) and Danny Musoski (sports hernia repair).
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Philadelphia Union
As for Philadelphia Union, defender Kai Wagner will miss the match because of a lower leg injury.
Two more players could miss this game for the Union, as forward Andrew Wooten and midfielder Warren Creavalle are both suffering from upper leg strain.
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Los Angeles FC (Expected Playing 11)- Vermeer (GK), Harvey, Segura, Jakovic, Blackmon, Ginella, Kaye, Blessing, Rodriguez, Vela, Rossi
Philadelphia Union (Expected Playing 11)- Blake (GK), Real, McKenzie, Glesens, Gaddis, Fontana, Monteiro, Bedoya, Aaronson, Santos, Przybylko
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Carlos Vela is the face of this league now. And why not, he is racking up goals for fun and is one of the hottest players in Major League Soccer in the current form. Perhaps the best. He topped the scoring charts last season and played a starry tole in his team’s run to the Western Conference finals. The former Real Sociedad and Arsenal player is already up and running for the season with a divine chip goal in the last game against Inter Miami.
Kacper Przybylko was a beast last season as he topped the scoring charts for the team with 15 goals. He will be looking to match those numbers at leas if no better them.
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Diego Rossi was the second-best player for Los Angeles FC last season as far as scoring is concerned. He is a vital cog in this team. Considering this is a home game for LAFC, choosing him is a no-nonsense choice.
Sergio Santos was influential on both ends of the pitch. Always has an eye for a pass, and is more than capable of scoring goals as well.
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Goalkeeper: A Blake
Defenders: E Segura, J Harvey, D Jakovic
Midfielders: J Monteiro, A Bedoya, A Fontana, L Blessing, M Kaye
Attackers: D Rossi (VC), C Vela (C)
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