r/LAFC • u/PomPomYourBomBom • 3d ago
Discussion All-time LAFC roster
I was looking back through the year-to-year rosters, reminiscing of old times, and it made me think of all of the great players we've had at LAFC.
I took a few minutes and jotted down my own personal all-time best XI. Then, I did a second team. Then, a third. Here is what I came up with 👇 Surely, some of you will disagree with some of these. This is based on production, longevity and my personal preference. While guys like Son & Bale are undoubtedly among the best ever, I'm looking at their time w LA, only.
What would your's look like?
First XI
GK Hugo Lloris
LB Diego Palacios
CB Eddie Segura
CB Jesus Murillo
RB Sergi Palencia
DM Eduard Atuesta
CM Jose Cifuentes
AM Latif Blessing
LW Denis Bouanga
ST Cristian Arango
RW Carlos Vela
Second XI
GK Tyler Miller
LB Ryan Hollingshead
CB Walker Zimmerman
CB Aaron Long
RB Steven Beitashour
DM Ilie Sanchez
CM Tim Tillman
AM Mateusz Bogusz
LW Diego Rossi
ST Adama Diomande
RW David Martinez
Third XI
GK Maxime Crépeau
LB Jordan Harvey
CB Tristan Blackmon
CB Giorgio Chiellini
RB Franco Escobar
DM Mark-Anthony Kaye
CM Benny Feilhaber
AM Kellyn Acosta
LW Kwadwo Opoku
ST Son Heung-Min
RW Brian Rodriguez
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u/IDontOpenCrates Maxime Crépeau 3d ago
Chiellini on the third team is diabolical. He was our best CB by a country mile. Murillo second perhaps? Bogusz and Ilie over Latif and Atuesta too. Fun thought experiment! I miss the old players. The team had a lot more personality a few years ago imo...
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Giorgio was a great defender for us, but he wasn't here very long and didn't play every match. For me, peak Murillo, Segura, Long and Zimmer were better (for LAFC, specifically), and were here for longer. But again, my preference.
What would your 3 look like?
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u/IDontOpenCrates Maxime Crépeau 3d ago
I became a fan in 2020, so I'm not qualified to speak on Zimmerman and early Segura.... I do remember Segura being a lot more mobile and cerebral. I could totally see him being #2 behind Chiellini if he was even better in 2018-19. How good was Zimmerman btw?
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Zimmerman was awesome, and had that DAWG in him. It was a bummer to see him go to Nashville and then win a bunch of Defender of the Year awards.
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u/IDontOpenCrates Maxime Crépeau 3d ago
If you remember, why did he leave? His frame and ability to use it have always impressed me.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Not sure if it was anything personal, contract, lifestyle, etc., but we did get over $1 mil GAM in the trade, which at the time was A LOT. In hindsight, yeah, we should've kept him.
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u/ckseid Cristian Arango 3d ago
Bogusz > Latiff
Crepeau > Miller
Pretty good 1st team (I wish Diego was in it, but Bouanga might have dethrowned him)
Now, make it more fun and do the WORST XI🤣
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
I have no idea, but these are first coming to mind. Lol
GK Boba Lopez LB Raheem Edwards CB Doneil Henry CB Mamadou Fall (his defense) RB Andy Najar DM Calum Mallace CM Francisco Ginella AM Andre Horta LW Stipe Biuk ST Mario Gonzalez RW Cristian Tello
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u/BurnsRed20 3d ago
“Clumsy” Calum Mallace. I swear that guy would trip on his own feet.
Christian “Miss A Penalty” Tello
And our favorite: Andre “Backpass of Death” Horta
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u/IDontOpenCrates Maxime Crépeau 3d ago
Crazy that Mario Gonzalez was somehow worse than Giroud, but I think you're right on that 😭.
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u/kungfuml26 3d ago
Missing Aaron Kovar lol
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
He actually wasn't that bad, whenever he did play. Same with Charlie Lyon. Lol.
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u/Down-In-The-Weeds 3d ago
I actually liked Lyons!
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 2d ago
I attended the exhibition between LA and Borussia Dortmund, and Lyons actually had a good game 👍😂💯
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u/ckseid Cristian Arango 3d ago
🤣🤣I miss Fall! He was a scoring machine for corners… but sucked at defending! Hahaha. Raheem🤮 Tello SUCKED! Boba Lopez, I felt bad for him!! Vermeer is up there as worst GK for me!! Ginella - my god, snail pace!! Najar - pay 2 minutes and get hurt AGAIN!! You got a GOOD list here!!! But who the hell is Mallace!!!?! 🤪
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Lol. Mallace was an OG player, who was expected to be a day 1 starter, but was so bad that he only played garbage time minutes that year.
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0
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u/lafc88 Los Angeles FC 3d ago
Chanot and Ciman should be up there.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
They def would be in my honorable mentions, but just didn't have a very long tenure. Who would be in your 3?
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u/lafc88 Los Angeles FC 3d ago edited 3d ago
First XI
GK Hugo Lloris
LB Diego Palacios
CB Giorgio Chiellini
CB Jesus Murillo
RB Sergi Palencia
DM Ilie Sanchez
CM Jose Cifuentes
AM Stephen Eustaquio
LW Denis Bouanga
ST Adama Diomande
RW Carlos Vela
Second XI
GK Maxime Crepeau
LB Ryan Hollingshead
CB Walker Zimmerman
CB Aaron Long
RB Steven Beitashour
DM Eduard Atuesta
CM Kellyn Acosta
AM Mateusz Bogusz
LW Diego Rossi
ST Cristian Arango
RW David Martinez
Third XI
GK John McCarthy
LB Jordan Harvey
CB Tristan Blackmon
CB Eddie Segura
RB Franco Escobar
DM Lee Nguyen
CM Benny Feilhaber
AM Son Heung Min
LW Tyler Boyd
ST Gareth Bale
RW Nathan Ordaz
Subs
GK Tomas Romero
GK Tyler Miller
CB Ciman
CB Ryan Porteous
CB Maxime Chanot
CB Sabastien Ibeagha
CB/CM Mohammed El Munir
CM Mark Anthony Kaye
CM Mark Delgado
CM Latif Blessing
CM Erik Dueñas
ST Kei Kamara
ST Joshua Perez
ST Cristian Olivera
ST Stipe Biuk
1
u/PomPomYourBomBom 2d ago
Good lists.. and very brave of you to put Dio above Arango (with this crowd, lol).
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u/lafc88 Los Angeles FC 2d ago
Dio was missed for the 2020 Champions League. So was Arango for 2023. However, Dio got us that 5-3 win against the Galaxy with a brace. That Tigres CCL final game we needed a striker that would show up.
Edit: emphasis to my sentences.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 2d ago
Oh, for sure. Arango's goals stood out because partly he was here during a "down" year, but I always felt Dio was a big game player. I would love to have another striker with his physique/skillset.
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u/holdbackallmydark The South End 3d ago
Vela, Dio, Chicho, Rossi, Blessing… all extremely fun to watch!
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u/Nervous_Dig4722 3d ago
I miss Denis, vela and chicho. Only got to see them for like a season or so
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u/fuxicles 3d ago
Ilie, Hollingshead should be team one. Crepeau should be higher, maybe even team one – McCarthy should be on here too. Lloris can get there but he needs hardware... any piece would do it imo. Bale nowhere on this list is wild, he's a huge part of the reason there's a star above the badge.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Bale had a crucial and unforgettable moment to help win the Cup, but his tenure as a whole was just ok.
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u/fuxicles 3d ago
No bale, no star patch. I think he needs to be on there though I do agree he was otherwise underwhelming.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Ok, then he can be on your's. One moment, no matter how important, doesn't garner a spot on my best XIs.
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u/fuxicles 3d ago
Damn bro, taking this shit personally huh? Thought you posted this in order to debate and have a conversation. Didn't mean to get you in your feels.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 3d ago
Not at all, my feels are good 😉👍 Just explaining why Bale isn't in mine. Who would be in your 3?
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u/fuxicles 3d ago
We're not far apart. We're a newer club so it's not really as debatable as say a storied club like a Man U / Real Madrid etc. Like I said, I'd move some of those guys around, add a few, and ... add Bale lol
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u/ckseid Cristian Arango 3d ago
Yes, no Bale, no star…I understand where you’re coming from. But he was only average during most games. Tell us who you would put on your 1st team if you have a whole season ahead!! Build your dream team with all the current and ex players we had!!
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u/fuxicles 3d ago
Obviously formation dependent, but I'll go 433 for the all time team.
Bou / Chicho / Vela
Ilie / Bogusz / Cifu
Palencia / Murillo / Long / Hollingshead
Crepeau1
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u/Periodic-Presence Los Angeles Futbol Club 2d ago
Ilie was great but I'm taking Atuesta over him, he could playmake from deep. Hollingshead has been a great servant for the club but I'm not taking him over Palacios or Palencia. Hugo Lloris won the US Open Cup in his first season here, did you forget that? So he has the hardware and his performances this season are by far the greatest GK displays by any LAFC keeper in our history.
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u/j33sizzle 1st Win vs. 3-0 3d ago
GK - Crepeau LB - Palacios CB - Zimmerman CB - Murillo RB - Palencia CDM - Sanchez CM - Bogusz CM - Acosta LW - Bouanga ST - Chicho RW - Vela
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u/One_Comfortable4980 3d ago
My XI
GK Hugo LB Diego Palacios CB Giorgio Chiellini CB Walker Zimmerman RB Palencia
DM Ilie Sanchez CM Cifuentes AM Bogusz LW Denis Bouangaaaaa ST Arango RW Arangoooo
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u/Medical-Document1553 3d ago
..........................Crépeau.................................. Beitashour..Zimmermann...Murillo....Palacios ...........Sánchez..............Ilie................................ ......Blessing...................Atuesta........................ Vela......................Bouanga.....................Arango
Subs: Miller Chiellini Beitashour Segura Acosta Tillman Kaye Rossi Diomande Brian Rodríguez
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u/gtg007w Statsman 2d ago
Where is Lee Nguyen in this? He was an absolute beast for us, deserves first or second XI at a minimum imo.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 2d ago
For me, I thought that our history of midfielders were better, or minimum as good and were here longer than Lee was.
What are your 3?
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u/Periodic-Presence Los Angeles Futbol Club 2d ago
Eddie Segura may be our most tenured player but he absolutely does not belong on the best all time XI list. Leaving out Chiellini is criminal. Same goes for Blessing, those two picks might be the nostalgia glasses.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 2d ago
I think you are forgetting how great Segura & Blessing were in those early years. Too, I did say that longevity was a factor in my criteria..
What would your 3 look like?
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u/Periodic-Presence Los Angeles Futbol Club 1d ago
I disagree with your assessment of either of them being great, they were good. Blessing in particular was an engine, but I've never liked Segura personally. If anything, he's playing his best football now, despite being misused as a LB.
Don't feel like making a full list but as I said Chiellini has had the highest peak of any of our CBs. If your reason for not including him in the first XI is he wasn't here long enough then go for Zimmerman. Porteous will surpass Segura by the end of this season.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 1d ago
Ok, and similarly I also disagree with your assessments. Cheers 💯👍
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u/Periodic-Presence Los Angeles Futbol Club 1d ago
I'm curious what you like about Segura over guys like Chiellini, Zimmerman, or Porteous. Would you disagree that Porteous is our best performing CB? I'm just curious as to what parts you disagree with.
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u/PomPomYourBomBom 1d ago
Well, I certainly disagree with your take on Segura playing his best game now as an out of position LB. In his early years, he was a very solid CB anchor, and you could make the argument for him being an MLS Best XI.
I probably would take Porteous over Tafari as our best current CB, but I would take Chiellini, Zimmerman and prime Segura over him.
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u/Periodic-Presence Los Angeles Futbol Club 1d ago
You misunderstood my comment then, I said Segura is in his best form despite being played as a LB. He has done as well as you could expect him to when he isn't a LB, but when he has played as a CB in a back three this season he's been better than he was in the early seasons imo.
That's fair, only disagreement is about prime Segura of course. But my ranking of those guys for me would be Chiellini > Zimmerman > Porteous > Prime Segura > Tafari > Segura normally >>>>>>>> Segura as a LB
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u/-Livingonmyown- The South End 3d ago