Offloading a ton of youth in recent weeks, the Los Angeles Football Club got old fast.
The second-oldest roster in MLS right now, LAFC head coach Marc Dos Santos noted on Tuesday.
An overhaul of the LAFC roster going into 2024 made them one of the youngest teams in the league that season. Close to half of the squad was 23 or under.
When Nathan Ordaz was shipped to D.C. United last month for $2.375 million in cash, that left forward David Martínez, still just 20, as the lone remaining LAFC player from a group that included Omar Campos, Mateusz Bogusz, Erik Dueñas, Cristian Olivera and Tomas Angel.
For the past few months, Lorenzo Dellavalle (22), Adrian Wibowo (20), Matt Evans (20), Amin Boudri (21), Artem Smoliakov (21) and Ordaz (22) also moved on in some form or fashion.
With a couple of weeks left before the secondary transfer window closes on Sept. 2, LAFC (10-6-4, 34 points) has work to do to lower its average age again and, more importantly, find reinforcements for the stretch run leading into the MLS Cup playoffs.
The front office is limited, however, with what it can do during the window.
MLS roster construction rules prohibit the team from signing a third Designated Player in 2026.
They could make as many as two U22 Initiative signings.
Thus far, one of the club’s additions in the summer has gotten minutes. Ukrainian defender Yevhen Cheberko, 28, appears to be an upgrade at fullback.
Otherwise, integrating 23-year-old German forward Armindo Sieb, who was acquired from Bayern Munich last week on a permanent transfer, won’t be rushed, Dos Santos said.
Losing access to young legs without inbound transfers offsetting those absences prompted Dos Santos to skirt the edge and allow more minutes to many of his regulars than he’s comfortable with.
Coming off the World Cup, Dos Santos said he would manage minutes across the roster, especially during August when the team was assured of playing eight times, including every Saturday and Wednesday for three weeks straight.
For focal point Son Heung-min, when it comes to “managing minutes” that has meant starting each of LAFC’s games since July 17. Not including an MLS All-Star Game appearance, Son averaged 82 minutes, playing 657 of a possible 720 over eight matches.
The 33-year-old attacker hasn’t had more than four days of rest between games over that stretch.
In the wake of back-to-back 90-minute performances, Dos Santos said he is “afraid of how much we’re using” Son. The South Korean star’s last appearance, a 1-0 home loss to San Diego, snapped his four-game MLS scoring streak.
Prior to flying with all of his available players for a mile-high match near Denver against the Colorado Rapids, Dos Santos extended that sentiment across his team, which also played at altitude a few months ago during a pair of CONCACAF Champions Cup matches in Mexico.
“There’s some players at a certain age that we just have to manage a little bit,” Dos Santos said . “For me, Sonny would be on the field all the time. The team is better with him. The team is more dangerous. But at the same time we understand that we cannot have a player always playing three games in a week for weeks in a row and expect that the level of performance and freshness is always going to be very high. Not only Sonny, but also for Denis [Bouanga]. We have to be careful with that.”
Extra concern about playing at elevation against the Rapids, who favor a possession approach and counter pressure to recover lost balls, seems manageable compared to competing at 8,750 feet in Toluca.
LAFC center back Nkosi Tafari equated the difference to eating two slices of cake rather than the whole thing in one sitting.
“For anyone that’s played in Mexico, specifically Toluca, you would know what I’m talking about,” Tafari said. “It’s a different beast.”
The Rapids (8-10-1, 25 points) did not qualify for the CONCACAF or Leagues Cup tournaments this year, leading to two weeks off as LAFC faced a trio of Liga MX opponents this month. Wednesday’s hosts will be trying to win their third MLS match in a row for the first time this season.
LAFC AT COLORADO
When: Wednesday, 6:30 p.m. PT
Where: DICK’S Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, Colo.
TV/Radio: Apple TV/710 AM, 980 AM, 1230 AM, SiriusXM FC 157