LAFC, Austin FC focus on playoff prep in last-season matchup

Short-handed Los Angeles FC will put a six-match winning streak on the line when they visit Austin FC on Sunday night in a meeting of playoff-bound sides. After a 2-0 home win over Toronto FC on Wednesday, LAFC (17-7-8, 59 points) enter the weekend in third in the Western Conference and one point behind San Diego FC and Vancouver, with the Whitecaps playing their penultimate game on Saturday. While LAFC still could secure the top overall seed in the conference, manager Steve Cherundolo says this is the time for fine-tuning in anticipation of the postseason. "It's very detail-oriented work that we're currently finding ourselves in," Cherundolo said. "But we're also making headway and that's good. That's great news." The Black & Gold will remain without stars Denis Bouanga and Son Heung-Min, who are still away on international duty, for Gabon and South Korea, respectively. The duo had scored 17 consecutive LAFC goals between them before the Wednesday win in which Jeremy Ebobisse and Frankie Amaya found the net. Bouanga, who is trying to help Gabon qualify for its first-ever World Cup, could fall behind Lionel Messi again in the MLS Golden Boot chase. Messi is expected to play for Inter Miami as the pair begin the weekend tied on 24 goals. Austin (12-12-8, 44 points) has lost three consecutive matches in all competitions, the most painful being a 2-1 home defeat to Nashville SC in the U.S. Open Cup final at the start of the month. The Verde & Black will also be impacted by international call-ups, with team scoring leader Myrto Uzuni among those absent. Uzuni is competing for Albania. Sixth-place Austin is looking to avoid the West wild-card match that will feature the eighth- and ninth-place teams. Austin FC currently have three- and four-point leads over the teams occupying those spots, FC Dallas and Real Salt Lake. The more important thing might be bolstering confidence in the last two regular-season matches against LAFC and then at San Jose, although coach Nico Estevez disputes any notion the Verde & Black are undeserving of their playoff qualification with a point total that wouldn't be high enough in the East. "I don't understand the narrative that we haven't earned it, because we did our job and the other teams didn't," Estevez said. "And we're in the playoffs because we did a really good job throughout a lot of months, and this is a whole-season (project)." –Field Level Media

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