LAFC falls to San Diego FC in Son Heung-min’s home debut

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LOS ANGELES — Hosting San Diego FC for the first time, the Los Angeles Football Club showed up with grand plans.

Their guests had something else in mind.

With South Korean superstar Son Heung-min’s home debut garnering the bulk of the attention at BMO Stadium on Sunday – the announced crowd of 22,937 was the most for an LAFC match since BMO Stadium opened eight years ago – Western Conference-leading SDFC stole the show, winning 2-1.

Anders Dreyer scored the game-winner after assisting Hirving Lozano earlier in the match, ruining a beautiful finish from LAFC’s Denis Bouanga that appeared to put the home team on the right track.

The loss dropped LAFC 15 points behind San Diego (17-7-5, 56 points), with eight games remaining in the regular season.

In front of a heavily Korean crowd that showed up in force to see their 33-year-old hero, the pent-up stadium, which went four weeks without an LAFC home match, buzzed from start to finish.

“Today was very special,” Son said. “I feel the fans were amazing. That’s why I’m more upset. They deserve more than one goal or zero points. I think they were fantastic. I can’t wait to play again at home. It felt like really, really home. They welcomed me. I couldn’t wait for this night. I feel I let the fans down but we are gonna keep our heads up, accept the result. As a professional, you can’t always win the game.”

Six hundred visiting fans loved the outcome, banging drums and chanting while LAFC’s 3252 supporters group showed its passion in the club’s second regular-season clash.

San Diego won in March, becoming the first expansion team to beat LAFC (11-7-8, 41 points) in nine tries.

Competing without midfielder Igor Jesus, who went on the season-ending injury list with a knee injury, LAFC used two instead of their usual trio in the middle of the park. Mark Delgado and Mathieu Choinière started in front of three center backs – Nkosi Tafari, Eddie Segura and Ryan Porteous in his first start for LAFC – while Son and Bouanga worked alongside David Martínez.

Son’s companions in the attack combined for the game’s opening goal in the 15th minute.

From 40 yards out, Martínez found Bouanga down the middle with a chipped pass that bounced once inside the box before the Frenchman tipped it over goalkeeper CJ dos Santos for his 15th goal of the regular season.

Said Bouanga: “It’s hard to score first and see the outcome of the game.”

LAFC entered the match with a stellar record when it got the opening goal, going 14-1-6 in all competitions in 2025 before Sunday. Under head coach Steve Cherundolo, LAFC is now 58-4-7 in the MLS regular season when it connects first.

“Tonight, I think if you look at the stats (17 shots compared to six shots, with both teams putting four on target), xG (2.7 to 0.7), and the moments we have in front of goal, it’s crazy you walk away with nothing,” Cherundolo said.

“The execution was a little déjà vu for us,” he added. “We’ve seen this motion picture before this season. It’s kind of been the story of the year. You play well enough. You play very well. But you’re not getting the results that maybe you deserve.”

Before Bouanga’s finish, neither side established dominance. They moved from one end to the other, with San Diego preferring quick passing in small spaces to LAFC’s more direct attacks.

Shortly after the half-hour mark, a few minutes after Bouanga nearly scored a second, SDFC tied thanks to their big-name international, Mexico’s Hirving Lozano. Circling around Tafari, Lozano collected a first-time volley over the top by Dreyer. Tafari attempted to get back in the place and defend, but for the second straight week, an opponent scored on a shot that deflected off the center back’s long legs past LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Son’s clearest opportunity of the opening 45 minutes came near the end. With LAFC swarming the San Diego box, Bouanga had a crack that was blocked. The ball worked its way to Son, who turned and put it on his left foot. Son’s shot was hit well, enough to make his supporters in the stands cry out in anticipation, but it lacked the pace or placement needed to give LAFC an edge at the half.

The regional rivals pushed and pulled, looking to break the deadlock.

In the 66th minute, San Diego capitalized when Dreyer added his 14th goal to go with his 18th assist from Lozano’s ninth finish. The MLS most valuable player contender received a long ball in behind, charged into the box, cut back once, smoothly let another defender slide by, and put away his left-footed shot.

Unbeaten in six straight, San Diego stayed perfect against Californian opposition, sweeping the Galaxy and LAFC, with a chance to do the same to San Jose at the end of September. They remain one point behind Philadelphia in the Supporters’ Shield race.

Though LAFC fought to salvage a point through the remainder of regulation and nine minutes of stoppage time, those opportunities came and went.

Son slammed a shot off the post in the 78th minute. In the 82nd, Bouanga found himself alone in the opponent’s box but couldn’t get the ball out of his feet before the San Diego goalkeeper closed him down.

The attackers, joined by Nathan Ordaz from the 54th minute on after Martínez got the bad end of a 50/50 duel, created havoc. Sometimes with teammates. Sometimes alone. However, they didn’t create a second goal, leaving LAFC where it began the weekend, fifth in the west.

LAFC returns Sept. 13, playing San Jose at Levi’s Stadium. In the meantime, LAFC will send Son (South Korea), Bouanga (Gabon), Martínez (Venezuela), Choinière (Canada), Ordaz (El Salvador) and Adrian Wibowo (Indonesia).

“When I come back from the national team, we have a very important period for two months,” Son said, “so we have to push for that.”