Erling Haaland, say hello to Rodolfo Cota. Kevin De Bruyne, meet Ángel Mena. Pep Guardiola, this is Joel Campbell — he's a genius just like you.
Club León captured their first-ever Concacaf Champions League crown by defeating LAFC 1-0 (3-1 on aggregate) on Sunday night at BMO Stadium, putting themselves on a collision course with Manchester City (or Inter Milan) at December's Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia.
After finding themselves fortunate to only be trailing by a goal after the first leg in León, LAFC had clear chances to pull level in the return leg's opening 10 minutes with Denis Bouanga whiffing on one and Aaron Long failing to convert a free header.
León then punished LAFC in the 20th-minute as Lucas Di Yorio squeezed a shot between Giorgio Chiellini and Sergi Palencia that goalkeeper John McCarthy couldn't handle.
LEÓN SCORES FIRST @clubleonfc goes back up by two on aggregate! pic.twitter.com/ERLHnpmgLa
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 5, 2023
LAFC had further chances to pull one back and make a game of it — totaling 14 shots with three on target — but Cota would not be beaten. León players started dropping like flies to waste time, while Long went down after splitting his skull open following a head-to-head collision.
Hay sangre
Durísimo choque de cabezas el que acabamos de ver⚫ 0 (1-3) 1
EN VIVO: https://t.co/BBVLXETb4E
TUDN#TuLigaDeCampeones pic.twitter.com/09mH4KzALd— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) June 5, 2023
LAFC couldn't find the goal to get Owen Wilson and Dr. Dre up out of their seats, and Major League Soccer's one-year reign as kings of Concacaf is at an end.
Dr. Dre in the house. #LAFC https://t.co/nbBp5mVc6c
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) June 5, 2023
