Recap: Dejan Joveljic strikes again as Sporting falls 3-1 at LAFC

Sporting Kansas City (4-9-4, 16 points) saw its four-game unbeaten run end in a 3-1 road loss to LAFC (7-4-5, 26 points) on Sunday night at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.

Serbian striker Dejan Joveljic continued his red-hot run of form with Sporting’s go-ahead goal in the 39th minute—extending his scoring streak to four consecutive appearances with his team-leading 10th goal of the season—but prolific winger Denis Bouanga spearheaded LAFC’s comeback with a goal and two assists as the hosts pushed their unbeaten run to 10 matches across all competitions and 10 games without a loss in the head-to-head series against Kansas City dating back to 2021.

With half of the 34-game regular season in the books, Sporting will play five of the team's next six matches in the friendly confines of Children's Mercy Park. The home-heavy summer stretch begins Saturday when FC Dallas visits for a 7:30 p.m. CT kickoff with tickets available via SeatGeek and live coverage on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

Interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin made two changes to Sporting’s starting lineup from a 3-1 win at Houston Dynamo FC last weekend. Midfielder Memo Rodriguez earned his first start since the previous matchup with LAFC on March 22, replacing Zorhan Bassong who was on international duty with Canada. Further up the field, winger Shapi Suleymanov started in place of the injured Erik Thommy.

Eight days after beating Club America on home soil to book a spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, LAFC created the game’s first chance midway through the first half. Bouanga received a pass with his back to goal, nutmegged his defender and pulled the trigger from a tight angle on the right side of the area, but Sporting goalkeeper John Pulskamp dropped low for a smart save. Only a minute later, Bouanga was on the receiving end of a teasing ball to the back post, but his first-time volley struck teammate Marlon to spare Sporting’s blushes.

Sporting drew first blood on a brilliantly worked team goal six minutes before halftime as three newcomers combined to pierce the LAFC backline with quickfire incision. Suleymanov played centrally for midfield maestro Manu Garcia, who exchanged passes with Joveljic before setting up the striker for a shot from 12 yards that beat LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Joveljic’s 10 goals are third most in MLS and he becomes one of two Western Conference players—alongside Vancouver forward Brian White—with double-digit goals in both 2024 and 2025. The 25-year-old now has five goals in his last four appearances and boasts a four-game scoring streak, the longest active run in MLS. Joveljic has also scored in three straight away games after each of his first five strikes this year came at home. Fellow Designated Player Garcia, meanwhile, has a team-best five assists in 2025.

Sporting center back Jansen Miller did superbly to deny Bouanga a quick equalizer in the 41st minute, retreating to the goal line for a crucial clearance after the Gabon international smacked a low shot on target, but the visitors relinquished their lead on the stroke of intermission. Bouanga’s out-swinging corner kick was nodded into the left corner by central defender Eddie Segura, who etched his name onto the LAFC scoresheet for the first time since 2020.

LAFC were a constant threat in the second half as Sporting defended bravely to keep head coach Steve Cherundolo’s men at bay. Left back Logan Ndenbe produced a huge block to thwart Sergi Palencia from 15 yards before Bouanga hit the outside of the left post from a tight angle and saw another goal-bound shot repelled off the line by Miller.

However, Bouanga’s persistence was rewarded in the 57th minute when he drew a foul on Memo Rodriguez inside the box. Referee Ricardo Montero wasted no time pointing to the spot and Bouanga buried the subsequent penalty kick for his eighth goal of the MLS campaign.

Pulskamp was busy in the late stages and conjured an excellent save in the 72nd minute, adjusting well and tipping aside a free kick from French World Cup winner Olivier Giroud that took a wicked deflection through traffic. Giroud was stymied again seven minutes later, his close-range flick-on attempt smothered by Pulskamp off a Bouanga cross. Sporting then survived a moment of mayhem near the goalmouth as multiple LAFC players had a bite at the apple, only for Kansas City to manage a desperate clearance.

With a result still in sight, Sporting pushed forward in the dying embers and saw three speculative efforts go begging—a side volley from Joaquin Fernandez, a long-range blast from Garcia and a 30-yard piledriver from Miller that Lloris was forced to touch over the crossbar. LAFC then put the result to bed with a goal on the counterattack, Giroud slotting home off a Bouanga feed.

2025 MLS Regular Season | Match 17
BMO Stadium | Los Angeles, California
Attendance: 17,031
Weather: 72 degrees and sunny

Sporting Kansas City: John Pulskamp; Khiry Shelton, Jansen Miller, Joaquin Fernandez, Logan Ndenbe (Tim Leibold 81'); Jacob Bartlett, Manu Garcia, Memo Rodriguez (Jake Davis 60'); Shapi Suleymanov (Santiago Munoz 71'), Dejan Joveljic, Daniel Salloi (C) (Stephen Afrifa 81')

Subs Not Used: Ryan Schewe, Andrew Brody, Ian James, Mason Toye

LAFC: Hugo Lloris (C); Sergi Palencia, Marlon, Eddie Segura, Ryan Hollinsghead (Artem Smoliakov 90+4'); Igor Jesus, Timothy Tillman (Ryan Raposo 85'), Mark Delgado; Yaw Yeboah (Frankie Amaya 65'), Jeremy Ebobisse (Olivier Giroud 65'), Denis Bouanga

Subs Not Used: David Ochoa, Maxime Chanot, Aaron Long, Nkosi Tafari, Adrian Wibowo

Scoring Summary:
SKC -- Dejan Joveljic 10 (Manu Garcia 5) 39'
LAFC -- Eddie Segura 1 (Denis Bouanga 4) 45+1'
LAFC -- Denis Bouanga 8 (penalty kick) 59'
LAFC -- Olivier Giroud 3 (Denis Bouanga 5) 90+3'

Misconduct Summary:
LAFC -- Ryan Hollingshead (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 27'
SKC -- Jake Davis (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 67'
LAFC -- Sergi Palencia (yellow card; unsporting behavior) 88'

Referee: Ricardo Montero
Assistant Referee: Eric Weisbrod
Assistant Referee: Kevin Lock
Fourth Official: Gerald Flores
VAR: Michael Radchuk
AVAR: Joshua Patlak