LOS ANGELES — Two weeks into training camp, less than a month before a CONCACAF Champions Cup match opens its season in Colorado, the pieces required for the Los Angeles Football Club to move forward in the continental tournament and beyond are taking shape.
Following this week’s additions of physical Brazilian Igor Jesus and two-time MLS Cup champion Mark Delgado, LAFC aims to bring in another four players between now and the start of competitive play on Feb. 18.
“I think what you’ll see in the next few days, once the group becomes more complete, is you will see two deep in every position to enable us to rotate and compete on all the fronts we want to attack this year,” LAFC co-president and general manager John Thorrington said on Wednesday at the club’s performance center.
LAFC is unlikely to add a third Designated Player alongside Denis Bouanga and Olivier Giroud in the winter. Long reported to be another Frenchman, Antoine Griezmann, Thorrington offered a “maybe” when asked about the Atletico Madrid star.
“If the right DP is not available now we will likely build our roster in such a way that is flexible and able to add a DP in the summer,” he said. “If that’s the right decision for the club.”
In the meantime, Yaw Yeboah, a wingback who scored against LAFC in the 2023 MLS Cup final at Columbus, and highly regarded center back Nkosi Tafari (FC Dallas) could arrive soon.
“We feel with the announcements to come we’re adding some real key additions that know the league, that know what it takes to win in this league, and we’re also adding some young exciting talent that we’ve also seen examples of that type of player really flourishing here at LAFC,” Thorrington said.
Coming off a campaign that fell short of a third straight trip to the MLS Cup final meant operating absent the budget crunch that coincides with winning in Major League Soccer. So the offseason afforded LAFC a chance to improve.
“The scalpel wasn’t quite as sharp as it had to be in years past,” Thorringon noted.
Contrary to last year, when the summer window brought Giroud and was used to strengthen the roster, hitting the ground running in 2025 is a clear priority, as is developing a younger, more robust group capable of giving head coach Steve Cherundolo quality options for lineups in the face of a potential third 50-match season in a row.
To reach the half-century mark again, LAFC will need to go on runs in the MLS Cup playoffs, Leagues Cup and Champions Cup on top of its 34-game league schedule. Unconfirmed as of yet is LAFC’s participation as defending champions in the U.S. Open Cup.
The group, built with lessons learned about managing a heavy schedule, has been arranged to cope with the anticipated physical demand.
“This will be up there with maybe the deepest group we’ve had to start a season,” Thorrington said.
As of now that includes Cristian Olivera, however the 23-year-old Uruguayan forward has not reported to camp.
“It’s not excused,” said Thorrington, noting there is no news involving Olivera’s possible departure. “We are working with him and I expect him to be back very soon.”
The other contracted player absent from training has been Mateusz Bogusz, whose breakout 2024 made him a target for inquiries about outbound transfers. Liga MX’s Cruz Azul is reportedly linked to Bogusz for a fee above $9 million, but the deal is not done.
“If indeed a transfer comes it’s only because Mati agrees it’s the right thing for him,” Thorrington said. “And for us it’s never something we want to do where one of the top players in our league moves on, but we understand it’s a part of the business.”
Losing Bogusz, who scored 20 goals to go with a dozen assists in all competitions, puts the onus on other attackers not named Bouanga to make up for the Polish player’s amped production.
As it did with Diego Rossi, Brian Rodriguez and even Carlos Vela, Thorrington expects the next man up to deliver, be it 18-year-old David Martínez, 38-year-old Olivier Giroud, free agent newcomer Jeremy Ebobisse or someone else.
(Discussions regarding Vela’s future with the club are ongoing. Thorrington stopped short of sharing details about any arrangements with the Mexican great, whose home in Malibu burned down during the Palisades fire this month.)
“I think this will be as competitive a group for starting positions as we’ve had in a while,” Thorrington said. “When we have teams that every single day there’s competition, we win.”