LAFC head to Toluca on Wednesday with a slim aggregate lead and everything to play for.
Marc dos Santos’s side won the Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final first leg 2-1 at BMO Stadium, courtesy of a Timothy Tillman opener and an injury-time Nkosi Tafari header that turned the tie on its head.
Now it’s Mexico’s turn.
The hosts go into the second leg with the away goal already on the board, following Jesús Angulo’s 73rd-minute equaliser in California. The Estadio Nemesio Díez will be loud, and Toluca have the wind (and height) of expectation behind them.
The current Liga MX champions are chasing a sixth Concacaf final and a third continental title.
LAFC arrive unbeaten in seven during this Champions Cup campaign, five wins and two draws, and are the only undefeated side left in the competition.
It is the club’s best continental unbeaten run in its history, and dos Santos has them 90 minutes from a third final in six years, after finishing runners-up in 2020 and 2023.
The man making it tick is Son Heung-Min. The South Korean assisted both LAFC goals in the first leg, taking him to seven assists in seven appearances and clear top of the assist chart for the 2026 edition. If Toluca commits numbers forward chasing the tie, Son in transition is exactly the player you do not want to exploit that space.
Toluca’s threat starts with Paulinho. The Brazilian forward is tied at the top of the Champions Cup scoring chart with six goals in five appearances. Antonio Mohamed’s side will likely dominate possession as they did at BMO and will need to be more clinical with it.
The first leg gave us three goals, a six-minute VAR check and late drama. Expect more of the same. Both sides have reasons to back themselves. Both teams scored at BMO. Both teams to score in Toluca is the smart bet.
The winner books a final against Tigres UANL or Nashville SC.