The Japan Times - 'Thin' chance against Chelsea but nothing to lose: LAFC's Lloris

The MLS side are underdogs against the Premier League giants, who secured their return to the Champions League this season and won the UEFA Conference League.

"We have nothing to lose, especially against an opponent like Chelsea," Lloris, who signed for LAFC in 2024, told reporters Sunday in Atlanta.

"We want to compete, we want to give our best, even if we know that our chances are really thin.

"We just want to make our fans, our club proud of us."

Lloris said LAFC had to "keep the focus high" in the clash in Atlanta, and be wary of the increased pace of the game in comparison to league football in the United States.

"This type of game is also an opportunity for us to over-perform," added the 38-year-old, a World Cup winner with France.

Los Angeles coach Steve Cherundolo said veterans Lloris and former Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud, who also won the World Cup with Les Bleus in 2018, had offered a lot of advice to his largely young side.

"Both of them bring leadership, also by doing and not just in words," explained the coach.

"I think this year the players have had more of an ear for both of them, and those two have also had a voice -- describing the speed of play, describing how certain teams, more specifically Chelsea plays, the players they have, what to look out for."

The American coach said his team were fully prepared for the challenge posed by Enzo Maresca's side.

"I've learned when you start hoping as a coach, you're doomed," he said.

"It's kind of the beginning of the end. So we try not to hope, we prepare and have plans for everything that can come our way."

LAFC qualified for the tournament with a dramatic play-off win over Mexico's Club America to replace Club Leon, who were barred from the tournament by organisers FIFA for violating rules on multi-club ownership.

"It's a pleasure to be here and we don't see it as challenge or an obstacle," added the coach.

"It's just a huge opportunity for us."

K.Inoue--JT