In the wake of an undefeated, winning start to the 2025 MLS campaign, there was a sense of increased optimism as the Black & Gold approached their continental match-up against a perennial foe, Los Angeles Football Club. Fond memories of the 2023 MLS Cup victory, the Crew’s most recent 5-1 demolition of LAFC away from home last July, and the Black & Gold’s run to the final in the tournament’s previous edition remained at the forefront of many minds. Despite not being at the fortress that is Lower.com Field, Wilfried Nancy’s high-pressing style of play is daunting for any opponent. 

But on a nightmarish eve in which the Crew looked a shadow of their usual selves, it was LAFC’s Denis Bouanga whose torment of defenders gave the Black & Gold goosebumps. As Crew defenders braced themselves, Bouanga braced himself, scoring two goals on the night to cement a 3-0 deficit for the Crew in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16 tie. A late third goal for LAFC substitute Nathan Ordaz buried the game for the home side and made the Black & Gold’s uphill battle in next week’s second leg much steeper. 

Bouanga opened the scoring for LAFC in the 20th minute, capitalizing on a Steven Morreira lapse in judgement. As Morreira attempted to return a pass to Evgen Cheberko while playing out of the back, Bouanga swooped in to pickpocket the defender, taking the ball from his feet before dribbling left around Patrick Schulte and slotting the ball home. Rossi had the Black & Gold’s only real chance in the first half off of a through ball from Sean Zawadzki, but his shot from the center of the box rose over the crossbar. A near “Olimpico” directly from a Bouanga corner kick as the first half came to a close gave the Crew a scare, but Schulte was quick to claim the ball in his grasp. Bouanga’s goal had seemed to cause the Crew to falter, as the chance had spawned so suddenly from their own mistake, but the Black & Gold kept their opponents at bay for the remainder of the first half. 

Any chance for the Crew to bounce back early in the second half was squashed nearly immediately, as Bouanga let off a beautiful, curling strike from his right boot into the upper right corner of the net in the 46th minute, the ball grazing the bottom of the crossbar as it glided out of Schulte’s reach. A diminished Black & Gold side was left to pick up the pieces as LAFC’s winger exhibited continued persistence down the left flank. Two more close chances from Bouanga in the 52nd and 68th minute forced Schulte to react quickly, with the young shotstopper getting down quickly to evade what felt like an inevitable Bouanga hat trick in motion. Five minutes into his time on the pitch, LAFC substitute Nathan Ordaz fired off a first-time volley in the 81st minute off of a headed deflection from a corner kick into the roof of the net, rounding off a resounding 3-0 win for LAFC. Crew substitute Max Arfsten gave the Black & Gold a glimpse at a consolation goal two minutes into injury time, as his left-footed strike ricocheted off the outer left post. 

Despite the worrying scoreline, the Black & Gold held the majority of possession in the match (68%) and completed more than double as many passes as their opponents. But the lack of attacking threat in the final third was glaring. Following Cucho Hernández’s transfer to Real Betis in La Liga last month and the departures of Alexandru Mățan, Yaw Yeboah, and Christian Ramirez in the offseason, the Black & Gold’s main attacking threats are Diego Rossi and Jacen Russell-Rowe, both of whom have had strong starts to the MLS campaign with two goals each across two matches.

The Crew’s starting lineup for the match with Rossi in the central striker role instead of on the wing and Russell-Rowe benched was likely a blend of experimentation and managing player workload ahead of a busy fixture schedule, but it showcased the Black & Gold’s current limited depth and lack of confidence in front of goal. Though the thought of a “remontada” or comeback in the return leg in Columbus seems implausible, Nancy’s time at the helm of the Crew has seen his side defy expectations time and time again. It remains to be seen if the Black & Gold have what it takes to turn the tie around, but this match showed there is work to be done to remain in the competition and in what may be a season of rebuilding for the Columbus Crew.