Son Heung-min converts penalty to keep LAFC's knockout hope alive at Leagues Cup
Los Angeles Football Club forward Son Heung-min, right, buries the penalty kick against Querétaro goalkeeper Guillermo Allison in extra time during the Leagues Cup Phase One match at BMO Stadium, Los Angeles, Wednesday (local time), in this Imagn Images photo. Reuters-Yonhap
Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) have earned their second shootout victory in a continental tournament, with their Korean superstar Son Heung-min converting his spot kick.
Son was the second of five successive LAFC kickers to score their penalties in a 5-3 shootout victory over Club Queretaro of Mexico's Liga MX at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on Wednesday (local time).
This was LAFC's third and final match of the opening phase of the Leagues Cup, a tournament featuring 36 teams from Major League Soccer (MLS) and Liga MX. During the leagues phase, teams play three matches against opponents from the other league. The top four teams from each league will then advance to the knockout stage.
In the first phase, a win is worth three points, a shootout victory is worth two points and a shootout loss is still good for one point.
LAFC, who had a 5-4 shootout win over Chivas de Guadalajara and then defeated Toluca FC 1-0, finished the first round with seven points.
LAFC are currently third on the MLS side, with Columbus Crew and Real Salt Lake having already qualified. Austin FC and Chicago Fire FC each have six points with one match remaining, and results in their final leagues phase matches on Thursday will determine LAFC's fate.
Queretaro scored the match's first goal in the 12th minute on Ali Avila's header and held LAFC to just one shot on target in the first half.
LAFC drew even a dozen minutes after the restart, courtesy of Denis Bouanga. Then they kept pressing for a go-ahead goal, with Son setting up Bouanga for a shot in the 59th minute and Son himself being denied by goalkeeper Guillermo Allison on a counterbreak in the 72nd minute.
Five minutes later, Son then released a left-footed shot from the left side of the box that missed the target to the right.
Leagues Cup matches go directly to penalties without extra time. All five LAFC players scored, but Queretaro's fourth kicker, Daniel Parra, struck the crossbar.
Son has gone goalless in all three Leagues Cup matches so far. He found the back of the net in four consecutive MLS regular-season games coming out of the FIFA World Cup break last month.
The Leagues Cup will continue through early September. The top three teams will qualify for the Concacaf Champions Cup, the top regional competition.