LAFC are off to one of the best starts in MLS through six weeks, and with Friday's news that former star attacker Diego Rossi has officially been permanently transferred to Turkish side Fenerbahce, the Black & Gold could be poised to further bolster their roster.
Rossi's permanent transfer affords LAFC an open Designated Player spot, and head coach Steve Cherundolo told reporters on Friday that they've already been scouting to identify potential targets. Although, he qualified that a move will only be made if there's certainty that it's the right fit from both sides.
"Yes, we've been doing our homework and we've positioned ourselves to make a move in the summer transfer window," Cherundolo said. "We will be ready if the right situation comes about at that time and both parties feel it's the right situation and we will make a move. If not, we won't. We will not bring somebody in just to bring somebody in, just to fill a spot. So, it has to be the right fit for both parties, which I'm very confident that we will do so."
Adding a DP-caliber talent to the roster could stand to enhance an LAFC side that has already been flying in the early going during the 2022 season. In their first year under Cherundolo, LAFC won four of their first five matches of the season before finally taking their first loss in Week 6 during a hard-fought El Trafico bout with the LA Galaxy.
An additional subplot for LAFC is the status of one of their current DPs: Superstar attacker Carlos Vela, whose contract expires on June 30, with the 33-year-old yet to sign an extension.
Vela's future remains up in the air, and Cherundolo said the fine points of those discussions will take place between Vela's camp and LAFC club brass. However, the coach did express confidence that there will be a resolution in the near future.
"The only time I would speak to a player about a contractual situation would be if it's affecting his performance," said Cherundolo. "I do not engage in those talks, and I don't have to with Carlos. He's at a place in his career where he can manage that and the club and Carlos have a great relationship, as I do with him. So that will be figured out in due time, when both parties are ready to come to a decision.
"In the meantime, he's a player like everybody else and the coach-player relationship remains the same. It's just a part of the business that I certainly understand and have been around a lot and Carlos has as well. So it's not really an issue between he and I."
For now, LAFC's focus turns back to a busy portion of the schedule, which sees them host Sporting Kansas City at Banc of California Stadium on Sunday (4 pm ET | ESPN, ESPN Deportes) before kicking off US Open Cup play against USL Championship side Orange County SC on Wednesday (10:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE on ESPN+).
Coming off the 2-1 loss to the Galaxy, Cherundolo said he feels good about the adjustments his team has made on the training ground after seeing their undefeated start come to an end in Carson.
"Film is pretty objective. It's pretty straightforward, it's very clear the mistakes we made, which weren't very many, but we were punished for those," Cherundolo said. "And we've made those corrections, we've looked at it. It takes a day or two to digest everything and to work through; we've done that. Since then our focus has been purely on KC, so it's just a bump in the road."
