LAFC had everything except the goals. Minnesota United had the goals, and that was the whole story at BMO Stadium on Sunday night.
The Loons, who had been shut out in each of their previous four meetings with LAFC, scored twice in five minutes late in the first half. In the 29th minute, Cherrion Valerius's long throw bounced around the box and fell to a completely unmarked Joaquín Pereyra, who fired it left-footed into the bottom right corner. Five minutes later Valerius finished the move himself, running into the box to volley home Kelvin Yeboah's headed pass past Hugo Lloris — the right back's first career goal, in his sixth MLS appearance. Yeboah's assist was a career-high fifth of the season, per the Associated Press report.
LAFC pushed the game onto Minnesota for most of the night — 22 shots, seven on target — and goalkeeper Drake Callender turned it back with six saves. The pressure never became a goal, and the longer it stayed 2–0, the more the night tilted toward the visitors. Field Level Media's match account records the same shot count and the same wall in front of it.
Watch the match highlights
The clincher came in the 81st minute: Mauricio González sent Pereyra through, and the Argentine's curling, driven shot beat Lloris for his second of the night and fifth of the season. Sergio Vásquez's 89th-minute volley kept LAFC off the shutout line, nothing more. Minnesota's night got one more lift late, when midfielder Peter Stroud came on for a long-awaited return from injury to help see the result out, as the club's official recap records.
The creator turned finisher
The matchup's two chief creators came into the night side by side on Previously's own MLS assists board — and the one wearing light blue decided the game as a scorer. On the Previously Stats Hub assists table, Pereyra stood third in the league with 15 assists when the night began, one place and one assist ahead of LAFC's Son Heung-Min (14), with only Rodrigo De Paul and Evander (16 each) in front of him. On Sunday he added no assists. He did something louder: two goals on the two shots the official line credits him with, the first breaking a four-meeting scoring drought against this opponent, the second killing the game with nine minutes left.
| Statistic | Pereyra (MIN) | Son (LAFC) |
|---|---|---|
| Assists, Stats Hub board | 15 (No. 3 in MLS) | 14 (No. 4) |
| Season goals entering the night | 3 | 7 |
| Appearances this season | 30 | 29 |
| Goals on the night | 2 | 0 |
The team numbers told the same story in reverse. LAFC's 22 shots produced seven on target and one goal. Minnesota scored three times and needed Callender's six saves to protect them — the goalkeeper entered the night with 97 saves on the Stats Hub board and left it with 103.
What it does to the table
The win pulls Minnesota (10W-12L-11D, 41 points) within two points of the Western Conference's final playoff spot with one match to play, and runs their unbeaten streak to six (3W-0L-3D). The math for Decision Day is simple and unforgiving: beat San Jose at home on Saturday, and get help — Seattle and Colorado, the two teams two points ahead of them, both have to slip.
LAFC (12W-10L-11D) had already clinched a playoff berth, but the loss ends their four-match unbeaten run and costs them a top-four finish and home-field advantage in the best-of-3 first round; they close the regular season at Seattle on Saturday.
A month ago this fixture had a routine feel to it — LAFC had kept Minnesota scoreless four straight times. On Sunday the Loons scored three in their house, kept their season alive, and made Decision Day matter. The full match page, with lineups and the complete scoring record, is on the Game Center.
Sources · 5 sources
- Associated Press (via TSN) — Pereyra, Valerius help Minnesota United stay in postseason hunt with victory over LAFC — the wire report of the game: the goals, Valerius's first career goal, Yeboah's career-high fifth assist, and the standings picture.
- Field Level Media (via Deadspin) — Minnesota keeps playoff hopes alive with 3-1 win over LAFC — LAFC's 22 shots and seven on target, Callender's six saves, the four-meeting shutout history, and the Decision Day scenario.
- Minnesota United FC — Loons outclass LAFC to keep playoff hopes alive — the club's official recap: the scoring sequence and Peter Stroud's return from injury.
- ESPN — LAFC 1–3 Minnesota United — match page — the official match line behind the night's player numbers, including Pereyra's two shots.
- Previously Stats Hub — MLS Stats Hub — our own leader boards: Pereyra No. 3 in assists (15) entering the match, Son No. 4 (14); Callender's 97 saves entering the night.
