Former Arsenal ace Carlos Vela may have surprisingly switched European football for the Major League Soccer in the United State of America about 2 years ago, his skill and finesse in front of goal is undoubtedly undeniable, a reason why the Los Angeles FC(LAFC) took a giant leap to bring him over, and only 2 seasons on, LAFC are reaping the dividend. With the Mexican International leading the attack, LAFC sits aloft of rival clubs on the MLS Western Conference league table with 49 points after 22 matches (W15-L3-D4), some 12 points ahead of the nearest challenger and city rival Los Angeles Galaxy(37 points after 21 matches).
MLS week 21 league match paired LAFC against equally high flyers Atlanta United and once again Vela was inspiring and among the goal scorer in his team's battling 4-3 win, his 22nd goal of the season. The last time both teams met, it was Atlanta United that ran over their opponent in a 5 nil whitewash win, and another whitewash seemed on the card when the visitors and the defending MLS Cup champion raced to an early 2nd-minute goal through Mohammed Adams, LAFC however, responded with a 1st-half 12-minute goal rout that was started by Adama Diomande in the 33rd minute , Diego Rossi, Carlos Vela and Eduard Atuesta completed the turnaround and capped off a crazy scoring spree with a 4-1 lead. Nevertheless, LAFC got complacent and conceded a 1st-half late goal through Josef Martinez, to go into the break 4-2. They conceded another goal in the 51st minute through an own-goal by Eddie Segura, to make the remaining minutes of the match a nervy one, but kudos to LAFC, they held their nerves to edge the match 4-3.
While the Swede superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic often time make the headlines on and off the pitch, the Mexican International focused on his on-the-pitch performances, and his performances sure speak for him. He's already been voted as player of the week 3 times and counting, the league-leading scorer with 22 goals from 21 matches, 6 goals ahead of the Swedes(16 goals) and 5 goals ahead of nearest scorer on 17 goals(Josef Martinez) , the 22 goals coming from a total of 47 shots on target(league highest), from a total of 108 shots(also the league highest). Vela's game is not just about scoring, he provides assist too, and he is the league joint assist maker with 13 alongside NYCFC's Maximiliano Moralez. Vela is also ranked highest by Audi's player index rankings with 886 points ahead of nearest performer New England Revolution's Gustavo Bou on 750 points, check here for more stats. The total goals for a single season by a player was Josef Martinez's 31 goals for Atlanta United last season, however, with Vela's present scoring rate, he is well on course to break Martinez tally before the season ends.
2 years after playing her 1st MLS game in a 1 nil victory over Seatle Sounders FC, LAFC is on course for the playoffs and a probable title with Carlos Vela pulling the strings for the Black and Gold.
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