León coach Nicolás Larcamón critical of referee despite home win

Club León put on a masterclass on footballing dominance this past Thursday evening at their home in Estadio León that was reminiscent of olden times when Liga MX squads would mince MLS teams with ease.

But luck – or rather, the referee according to León's young Argentine coach Nicolás Larcamón – complicated things slightly for La Fiera.

"It was important to win, and we did," he said. "That feeling of the last goal remains, but we still showed the team we can be. I remain with that confidence and the games that we have also played as visitors against great rivals, this will not be the exception."

Larcamón's reference to Guatemalan ref Walter López Castellanos who was positioned in a perfect spot to cancel a header by Osvaldo Rodríguez that would've given León a 3–nil lead in injury time, gave enough of a bolster for LAFC to score moments later and make a case for a possible victory at home in the BMO.

Larcamón did not hide his sentiments against the ref even as he praised his squad's performance, calling the decision-making in the final minutes "clearly wrong" and "unfortunately had a very big impact on the final result."

With León having a narrow advantage going into Sunday's match in Los Angeles, LAFC can take the title by scoring two goals or more as the away-goals rule will not be used like in earlier rounds. If they're even on aggregate after regulation ends, two 15-minute periods will be played, with a penalty shootout following if no one goes ahead.