LAFC GM John Thorrington says everyone is ‘buying in’ as new era begins
LOS ANGELES — Two weeks from the start of his team’s 2026 season, Los Angeles Football Club general manager and co-president John Thorrington likes what he sees.
New head coach Marc Dos Santos and his staff have offered up ideas to tweak how LAFC will play in its ninth season, and after a few weeks of training and a couple of tune-up games it’s evident to Thorrington that the players have taken to them.
“I’ve been really pleased, frankly,” Thorrington said at the club’s performance center on Monday. “Really pleased. I think it’s always interesting to see how well you can plan and put everything in place, and then you’re always just waiting to see the product live.”
Coming off a competitive and important 2025, a mostly intact roster headlined by Son Hueng-min’s first full year with LAFC offers continuity and a sturdy foundation for Dos Santos to count on heading into competitive games, beginning with leg one of a CONCACAF Champions Cup series in Honduras versus Real España on Feb. 17.
Following the Korean’s arrival last August, Son and Denis Bouanga comprised the most dangerous goal-scoring duo in MLS. They were undeniable, tearing up defenses while helping LAFC bank enough points to qualify for the Champions Cup based on the Supporters’ Shield standings.
Aided by Nathan Ordaz (who continues to mature after a massive leap last year), David Martínez (who turns 20 on Saturday), and the savvy Jeremy Ebobisse, offensive tactics for Dos Santos should favor three forwards most of the time. Speedy newcomers Jacob Shaffelburg, sidelined until the spring, and Tyler Boyd would help stretch defenses past the breaking point if things go to plan.
Despite the scoring potential among the attackers, the notion of breaking up Son and Bouanga seems incomprehensible. That hasn’t stopped clubs from trying.
Inter Miami ($13 million) and Brazilian power Fluminense ($15 million) reportedly made overtures for Bouanga, the only player in MLS history to reach 20 goals in three consecutive seasons.
“For me, my job, our job, is both the long-term health of the organization as well as our competitiveness, and to balance the two of those,” Thorrington said. “So anytime there’s interest in a player we need to make sure, certainly, that the economics are right. But the other part of it is how dramatically will it affect the competitiveness of the team. And if both those things are there and the economics are right and we feel like we have a replacement, whether that’s through recruitment or internally, and the player wants to go, then that is when we do execute on these transfers.
Thorrington declared that transferring the 31-year-old Gabonese international, who has two years remaining on his contract plus a club option for one more, would mean meeting LAFC’s enormous expectations, “but nothing has happened with Denis, with others, because we haven’t found both of those things which are both requirements for us to agree to a deal.”
Thorrington also would not comment on reports that Canadian men’s national team vice captain Stephen Eustáquio was ready to depart Portugal’s FC Porto for Los Angeles, except to say that the 29-year-old midfielder is “a great player” and that a move intended to offset Igor Jesus’ missing physical presence in the middle of the park was likely.
“I think we have one of the deepest and best midfields in the league with the players that we do have and the way that we’ll play this year,” Thorrington suggested.
Signing 21-year-old Swedish midfielder Amin Boudri, who is expected to compete for playing time right away, is a major reason why.
“Based on what we’ve seen and scouted we think that he fits very well with what we’re trying to do and how Marc wants to play,” Thorrington said. “That was a long and protracted transfer process because we were so convinced he was the one.”
Son, Bouanga and crew head to the desert this week as camp continues with a closed-door match against the San Jose Earthquakes before the Black & Gold’s only preseason contest that is open to the public: on Super Bowl Sunday against New York City at the Coachella Valley Invitational.
“There’s a really great energy in the group,” Thorrington said. “Everything is positive. Everybody is really buying in. The commitment, the attitude of the players and staff has been really impressive so far.”