The penultimate edition of this year’s Sunday Night Soccer presented by Continental Tire slate heads to the City of Angels, as red-hot LAFC<\/a> \u2013 led by a dynamic duo scoring goals at a clip never seen before in MLS \u2013 host an Atlanta United<\/a> side for whom little has gone right this year (9 pm ET | MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+<\/a>).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n This one feels like the \u201cHydrogen Bomb vs. Coughing Baby\u201d meme come to life. It\u2019s been that kind of second half of the season for the Black & Gold, and that kind of\u2026 everything for the Five Stripes.<\/p>\n So yeah, it feels pretty one-sided. But remember: this is MLS. Strange things can happen!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Believe it or not, the Black & Gold still have a very, very slim chance of taking the Supporters\u2019 Shield. If they win all four of their remaining games and the Union<\/a> take two or fewer points from their final two outings, then LAFC would climb above the current leaders.<\/p>\n Of course, that wouldn\u2019t be enough \u2013 they\u2019d also need Cincinnati<\/a> and Vancouver<\/a> to drop points over their final few games as well.<\/p>\n It is extremely unlikely. But it is on the board, as of this being published Thursday afternoon.<\/p>\n What\u2019s much more achievable is topping the Western Conference table, and with that claiming home-field advantage (potentially through MLS Cup). LAFC have a game in hand on the \u2018Caps and two in hand on both Minnesota<\/a> and first-place San Diego<\/a>, all of whom are catchable.<\/p>\n And there should be, I think, some real urgency to get out of the four seed, at the very least, because that\u2019s your best bet for avoiding Seattle<\/a> in Round One. There is a significant drop-off in quality behind the Sounders in seeds six through nine in the standings.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Nothing like the above. Every minute for about the past month, and every minute of their final three games, is about the players trying to prove they should stick around for next season. If they can play spoiler along the way? Well, that\u2019s nice too, I suppose.<\/p>\n But yeah, this is about the long-term. Atlanta spent a record amount last winter, between Latte Lath and Miguel Almir\u00f3n<\/a>, and proceeded to miss expectations to the point that it\u2019s fair to wonder what sort of roster turnover awaits.<\/p>\n That could extend to head coach Ronny Deila, too. The Norwegian guided New York City FC<\/a> to their 2021 MLS Cup triumph; his second go-round in MLS has been a much more somber affair.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n I had questions about how Son and Bouanga would fit since both guys, traditionally, have been left-wingers who are at their best in transition attacking at pace against scrambled backlines. I thought they\u2019d overlap \u2013 if there was one guy at the top of the game in Europe who I felt Bouanga most resembled, it was Son. I was certain there would be some growing pains.<\/p>\n There were not. And it\u2019s not just tactically that these guys have jelled. Look at this:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n I don\u2019t know that I\u2019ve ever seen vibes instantly so good between superstar goalscorers in MLS. The only other pairs in the running, I think, were Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins when they joined forces just over a decade ago in Seattle, and then waaaaaay back in 1996 when Jaime Moreno arrived at D.C. United<\/a> mid-season and had that legendary connection with Ra\u00fal D\u00edaz Arce.<\/p>\n Obviously, LAFC head coach Steve Cherundolo has done the smart thing and built all LAFC does around getting these guys into space. The big change has been shifting to a 3-4-2-1 (which has actually been a 3-5-2 a couple of times, with both Son and Bouanga up top) and asking the wingbacks to get forward but stay wide \u2013 pulling opposing defenders a few more yards away from the dynamic duo.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 22, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Note that diagonal from Tafari, by the way? I\u2019m telling you \u2013 this guy is very, very good.<\/p>\n Also to Cherundolo\u2019s credit, this team is much more likely to get on the ball, and much better at using it to control games, than they have been the past couple of years. Adding Mark Delgado<\/a> before the season (still and forever the most underrated player in the league) surely has something to do with that, but it\u2019s also clearly a mentality change.<\/p>\n This team\u2019s won four straight by a combined 15-4. They feel irresistible right now.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Sadly for Atlanta, they have not been the immovable object. They have shown little ability, at any point this season, to prevent teams from getting out into transition. This was just last week and, dear reader, I assure you that Carles Gil<\/a>\u2019s on-ball acceleration, while impressive, does not compare to Son’s or Bouanga\u2019s:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 28, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Turnovers are deadly for Atlanta. Compounding that, Deila has actively encouraged this team to get into spots and cross the ball as often as possible, which\u2026 early crosses can be good. Low crosses can be good, and pullbacks across the six-yard box are excellent.<\/p>\n These are not the kinds of crosses Atlanta hit. What they do is play a 4-2-3-1, bring the fullbacks up fairly recklessly, and then cross from wide positions. Those types of crosses are often cleared directly up the middle, and when they are, if the opponents win the second ball, then it\u2019s off to the races.<\/p>\n It has happened time and time again this year. I will be surprised if it doesn\u2019t happen once or twice in this game as well.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n I\u2019m expecting two changes from last week\u2019s starting lineup, one in midfield, where Timothy Tillman<\/a> will return after missing a week via suspension, and one in goal, where Thomas Hasal<\/a> replaces regular starter Hugo Lloris<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lloris was involved in a nasty collision early in LAFC\u2019s 3-0 win<\/a> at St. Louis<\/a> last weekend. He finished out the half, then Hasal replaced him at the break and did fine. No reason to rush Lloris back, right?<\/p>\n Also, keep an eye on right winger Andrew Moran<\/a>. He likes to drop into central midfield as a playmaker and then play the types of through-balls that Son and Bouanga feast upon.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n I’m guessing Latte Lath is back in the lineup, as he\u2019s fully fit. Also, I’m guessing no other changes from last week\u2019s 2-0 loss<\/a> at the Revs<\/a>, though nothing would really surprise me at this point.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nLAFC<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Atlanta United<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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LAFC<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Atlanta United<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n