LAFC earning League eight MLS Clean Sheet 1-0 win at Minnesota United
LAFC defeated Minnesota United 1-0 on Saturday at Allianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota. LAFC now stands at 6-W-2L-2D on the season for 20 points.
LAFC head coach Marc Dos Santos made seven changes to the starting eleven that took the field in an earlier midweek draw against the Colorado Rapids with regular starters Son Heung-Min, Mark Delgado, Ryan Porteous, and Sergi Palencia resting at kickoff, and Nathan Ordaz, Ryan Hollingshead, and Artem Smoliakov on the field. Midfielder Stephen Eustáquio made his first start for LAFC since he sustained a leg injury on March 7.
In the ninth minute, a clever interchange between Eustáquio, David Martínez, and Timmy Tillman placed the ball in front of an advancing Martínez, who finished at a difficult angle to give LAFC a 1-0 lead and provide the game’s only goal. It was the 20-year-old Venezuelan’s third MLS goal and seventh in all competitions this season.
Minnesota also rotated its roster with recently acquired Colombian star James Rodríguez making his first career MLS start. James delivered a 28th-minute corner kick that was headed on frame by Jefferson Diaz and looked destined for goal until Tillman cleared it off the line, keeping LAFC’s 1-0 advantage intact ahead of half time.
The second half saw fewer chances for both sides. Late on, with the game opening up, LAFC forward Denis Bouanga broke out in transition in the 85th minute and sent a cross to second-half substitute Jeremy Ebobisse, but Minnesota goalkeeper Drake Callender saved Ebobisse’s point-blank shot to hold the Black & Gold’s lead. Callender made two more saves on close-range Bouanga attempts in the 87th minute and at the 90’+3 mark.
LAFC returns home on Wednesday, April 29, to face Liga MX club Toluca in the first leg of their two-game, home-and-away matchup in the Concacaf Champions Cup Semifinals. Kickoff at BMO Stadium is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PT. The match will be broadcast live on FS1, with local radio coverage on ESPN LA 710 AM, the ESPN LA app, KFWB La Mera Mera 980 AM (Spanish), and K-Radio 1230 AM (Korean).
LAFC returns to MLS regular-season action on Saturday, May 2, with a road match at San Diego FC. Kickoff at Snapdragon Stadium is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. PT. All MLS matches are broadcast live on Apple TV with local radio coverage on ESPN LA 710 AM, the ESPN LA app, KFWB La Mera Mera 980 AM (Spanish), and K-Radio 1230 AM (Korean).
LAFC is in the midst of a stretch of 13 matches in just 44 days, including Concacaf Champions Cup matches, for an average of one match every 3.3 days.
Eddie Segura made his 151st regular-season appearance for LAFC. He is now one away from tying Carlos Vela for the most in club history. Vela played 152 regular-season games for LAFC between 2018 and 2024.
Denis Bouanga started the game for LAFC, making him the only player to start each of the club’s first ten regular-season games.
Midfielder Stephen Eustáquio made his first MLS start for LAFC since the club’s 1-0 win over FC Dallas on March 7. He came on as a substitute at midweek against Colorado (April 22) but had missed the previous eight games in all competitions with a leg injury.
Hugo Lloris collected his eighth clean sheet in MLS play in 2026 (the most in MLS) and is already two-thirds of the way to his clean-sheet total in 2025, when he ranked second in MLS with 12 shutouts.
Lloris has recorded four clean sheets against Minnesota in five career starts against the Loons.
Lloris now has 31 shutouts in the regular season since signing with LAFC ahead of the 2024 season, more than any other MLS goalkeeper in that span.
