First-half goals from Mateusz Bogusz and Kei Kamara and second-half scores from Denis Bouanga and Lewis O’Brien sent LAFC on to the final of the Leagues Cup with a 4-0 win over the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday before a sparse BMO Stadium crowd announced at 15,953.
LAFC will travel to Ohio on Sunday to play the Columbus Crew for the tournament title. The game will be a rematch of last December’s MLS final, won by the Crew 2-1. But just by reaching the championship game, LAFC has earned a berth in next year’s CONCACAF Champions Cup, the region’s most prestigious club competition.
“That’s the first priority in this tournament: To gain one of those coveted Champions [Cup] spots,” LAFC coach Steve Cherundolo said. “But if you do find yourselves in a final, I’m pretty sure that every player would like to win a final and raise a trophy.”
Frustrated through much of the opening period, LAFC went ahead to stay in the 42nd minute when Bogusz bent a right-footed shot inside the far post from just outside the box. Defender Jesús Murillo got the assist on the score and after that the dam burst, with Kamara doubling the lead three minutes later.
Another defender, Ryan Hollingshead, assisted on Kamara’s goal.
Bouanga made it 3-0 in the 59th minute, scoring his tournament-leading sixth goal of the Leagues Cup at the end of a counterattack launched by Olivier Giroud’s headed clearance of a Colorado corner kick. Hollingshead got this second assist of the night on that goal.
O’Brien, a former Premier League midfielder who joined the team on loan three weeks ago, closed out the scoring with his first LAFC goal in the 75th minute.
All that proved more than enough for LAFC keeper Hugo Lloris, who has conceded just a goal in his last four games.
Wednesday’s win, which extended LAFC’s unbeaten streak to eight games in all competition, left LAFC with just one loss in its last 22 games.
Columbus earned its berth in the tournament final with a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Union in Wednesday’s other semifinal.
