Los Angeles FC head coach Steve Cherundolo believes that Son Heung-min and Denis Bouanga's recent form has been down to a collective effort from his squad. 

The pair have been in sensational form of late, with Son netting a brace in LAFC's 3-0 win against St. Louis City SC last time out, with Bouanga also getting on the scoresheet. 

Indeed, the dynamic duo have contributed to 31 of LAFC's 60 regular-season goals in 2025, with only Lionel Messi (24) scoring more than Bouanga (23) in the MLS this season. 

But ahead of welcoming Atlanta United to BMO Stadium this weekend, Cherundolo was quick to emphasise the role Son and Bouanga's team-mates had played during this run. 

"Those are two really good players," Cherundolo said. "The other eight players on the field are doing a great job of putting them in positions to succeed.

"We really see this as a team effort. Those are the guys finishing plays at the moment, but the amount of work that goes into those plays by everybody is wonderful to watch.

"I'm a very happy coach right now to see everything functioning."

LAFC's triumph over St. Louis was also Cherundolo's 100th in charge, though he was quick to play down the magnitude of his achievement. 

"Personally, not a whole lot that I get out of it. For me, it's just an accomplishment," he added. "The club supports the endeavour with good players and a winning mentality.

"And everybody is pointing in the right direction at LAFC, so it's something we should all share, and I’m very proud of it."

And Atlanta boss Ronny Deila understood the difficulty of stopping Son and Bouanga as they aim to bounce back from their 2-0 defeat to the New England Revolution. 

"We need to have enough people around the [defensive] area," Deila said. "That's going to be good to force them wide, be very compact in center of the pitch.

"We also have to make progress for them. You cannot just go there and sit in and defend. You also have to go the other way as well."

The Five Stripes have already been eliminated from the playoff picture, and will be looking to end a disappointing campaign on a high in their final three regular-season matches.

Atlanta have managed just one victory in their last 15 MLS encounters, though Deila was feeling positive after receiving some timely injury boosts ahead of this weekend. 

"We have consistency," he said. "We don't have many players come up with injuries. We have the same selections every week, and that is important to get success."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

LAFC – Son Heung-min

Son has been in sensational form since swapping the Premier League for the MLS back in August, registering 10 goal contributions (eight goals, two assists) for LAFC.

But he is not the only one finding the back of the net. Bouanga and Son have both scored in LAFC's last four regular-season matches.

Each of LAFC's last 17 goals have been scored by either Bouanga (nine) or the former Tottenham star (eight).

Atlanta – Miguel Almiron

Almiron created seven chances in Atlanta's last match, his third career MLS game with at least seven chances created.

Indeed, he is one of two Atlanta players to record three career games with at least seven chances created, along with Thiago Almada.

MATCH PREDICTION: LAFC WIN

LAFC and Atlanta have scored 14 goals across their five all-time matches, but 12 of those were scored in the first two meetings in 2018 and 2019. The Five Stripes have also been held scoreless in each of the last two matches in the fixture.

And it is Cherundolo's side who come into this game with momentum. LAFC have won four straight matches, scoring three or more goals in each victory. The only teams in MLS history to have more consecutive league matches scoring three or more goals while also winning are Toronto FC (six in 2017) and Inter Miami (five in 2024).

Atlanta, meanwhile, have struggled away from home. They have scored the fewest road goals (nine) in MLS this season, posting the worst goal differential (-20). Their fewest road goals in a single league campaign is 13 in 2020, while their fewest in a non-shortened term was 16 last year.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

LAFC – 67.6%

Draw – 17.9%

Atlanta – 14.6%