Denis Bouanga reignites Leagues Cup form in shootout victory over Chivas | OneFootball

By Harrison Hamm

Denis Bouanga has done it again for LAFC.

The star forward scored a gorgeous first-half goal before converting the opening penalty in LAFC’s shootout win over Chivas de Guadalajara. In the process, Bouanga regained his place atop the all-time Leagues Cup scoring list, tying Inter Miami CF superstar Lionel Messi with 14 goals in the competition.

His heroics secured a crucial two points for the Black & Gold on the Leagues Cup table.

“It was a great show for the fans,” manager Marc Dos Santos said post-match. “Good attitude from our guys. And then winning in penalty shots — this extra point can be important.”

Bouanga bullseye

LAFC weathered early possession from Chivas and pounced on the counterattack, with Bouanga sliding home a David Martínez assist in the 38th minute to take the lead before Chivas quickly equalized.

After netting six goals in each of the 2023 and 2024 editions of the tournament, Bouanga is off and running as he seeks to finish among the Leagues Cup top scorers again this season.

"The goal is a golazo from us," said Dos Santos. "The goal is a golazo, and the play is really good."

Amazing atmosphere

The match was the first-ever meeting between the two sides and took place in front of a raucous crowd at BMO Stadium. Dos Santos took note of the impressive atmosphere and high quality of play, as both sides battled throughout an intense 90 minutes.

“This tournament gives us an experience that’s hard to get,” he said. “Look at the stadium today. What an environment. You see that they’re a big club.

"Only big clubs bring this amount of fans and supporters. It is a good team, a team with quality, a team that has four or five players in the World Cup. They challenged us a lot under pressure.”

Adding, “It takes a lot of energy to play a team like Chivas."

Homegrown hero

After a tightly played second half, LAFC went into the penalty shootout looking to nail down the extra point in front of their wild 3252 supporters’ section.

There, a penalty save from goalkeeper Thomas Hasal gave 17-year-old homegrown midfielder Jude Terry the opportunity to play hero with their sixth spot kick, and he did exactly that, calmly stepping up and potting his kick in the upper right corner past Mexican international goalkeeper Raúl Rangel to secure the win.

The extra point could be a springboard for LAFC in Leagues Cup as they look to continue their sparkling post-World Cup form against top-seeded 2025 LIGA MX champions Toluca on Saturday (11 pm ET | Apple TV, FS1, Univision).

“Saturday is going to be very demanding for us,” Dos Santos said.

Still, the manager is confident that his group, led by in-form superstars Bouanga and Son Heung-Min, is equipped for it.

“[Our guys] never stop,” said Dos Santos. “It’s not easy. We’ve had difficult games.

“The mentality of this group is excellent right now.”

WATCH: LAFC outlast Chivas in penalties for opening Leagues Cup win