Denis

AUSTIN, Texas — Denis Bouanga had two goals and an assist on Sunday night to help LAFC beat Austin FC 4-1 and sweep the best-of-three series in the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs.

LAFC, which won Game 1 2-1, plays at second-seeded Vancouver in the one-game Western Conference semifinals.

Son Heung-min added a goal and an assist for No. 3 seed LAFC. Jeremy Ebobisse replaced Son in the 88th minute and capped the scoring in the third minute of stoppage time.

Son, on the counter-attack, hesitated to freeze defender Ilie Sánchez at the top of the area and then exploded toward the left end line and blasted a shot from the corner of the six-yard box inside the back post to open the scoring in the 21st. About four minutes later, Son fed Bouanga for a finish — the 30-year-old’s 100th goal across all competitions for LAFC — into a wide-open net to make it 2-0.

Bouanga cut inside to evade defender Brendan Hines-Ike — who fell to the ground — and then flicked a shot into the net from the left center of the area in the 44th minute.

Bouanga is the only active player — and is one of just nine in history — with at least 10 career goals in the MLS Cup playoffs.

LAFC’s Hugo Lloris — who was second in MLS with 12 shutouts in the regular season — had three saves, including a diving stop on a penalty kick by Myrto Uzuni in the 39th minute after a hand ball in the area by Bouanga.

Ryan Porteous was shown a yellow card for a foul in the area and Dani Pereira converted from the spot in the sixth minute of stoppage time to make it 3-1 at halftime.

CJ Fodrey appeared to have cut sixth-seeded Austin’s deficit to 3-2 in the 71st minute but an offsides call nullified the would-be goal.

Denis Bouanga scored in his sixth consecutive match Sunday night, connecting in the 86th minute to send LAFC past Atlanta United 1-0 for its fifth consecutive victory.

Late in a frustrating evening for LAFC stars Son Heung-min and Bouanga, the French star pounced when a long cross into the box deflected to him off the head of Atlanta’s Enea Mihaj. In his 100th MLS match, Bouanga hammered home his 99th goal for LAFC.

LAFC has been turbocharged by Son’s arrival, losing just once in all competitions since July 25 while streaking up the standings and becoming the Western Conference’s highest-scoring team.

Bouanga and Son have scored LAFC’s last 18 goals, an MLS record, while combining to score 19 total goals in their nine matches together.

Son’s four-match goal-scoring streak was ended by 14th-place Atlanta’s cautious game plan, which included a five-man back line with 10 men frequently behind the ball. Atlanta attempted just three shots and nearly disappointed a packed stadium eager to watch exciting soccer, with a particularly huge turnout of Son fans during Korea’s Chuseok mid-autumn holiday.

LAFC is fourth in the Western Conference after this victory, but with two games in hand on first-place San Diego and third-place Minnesota.

LAFC nearly broke through in the 57th minute, but Atlanta goalkeeper Jayden Hibbert saved Mark Delgado’s point-blank shot with his trailing hand. Son then got a corner to an unmarked Ryan Hollingshead in the 64th minute, but the LAFC defender barely missed the net.

Atlanta got a rare chance in the 70th minute, but Bartosz Slisz hit the post.

Son and Bouanga are both headed off for international duty this week, and they’ll be absent when LAFC hosts Toronto on Wednesday. LAFC must make up postponed matches after earning a spot in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Denis Bouanga scored three goals, his second hat trick in the last three games, and LAFC beat Real Salt Lake 4-1 on Sunday night at BMO Stadium.

Bouanga, who has scored in four consecutive games, has 22 goals this season, tied with Lionel Messi for the most in MLS. Bouanga had 20 goals in each of the last two seasons and is the first player in MLS history with at least 20 goals in three consecutive seasons.

The 30-year-old Bouanga, who also had three goals in a 4-2 win over San José on Sept. 13, has a club-record four career hat tricks in the regular season, one more than Carlos Vela.

Son Heung-min added a goal and two assists for LAFC (14-7-8).

LAFC, which clinched a playoff spot when St. Louis beat San José 3-1 on Saturday, has 50 points and is fourth in the Western Conference. Third-place Minnesota has 54 points and Seattle is fifth with 45.

Son, who had his first MLS hat trick in LAFC’s 4-1 win over Salt Lake on the road Wednesday, has seven goals in the past three games.

Salt Lake (10-16-4) has lost five of six.

Bouanga scored in the first minute of first-half stoppage time and Son bounced a shot from outside the area off the near post and into the net a couple minutes later to give LAFC a 2-1 lead at halftime.

Bouanga added goals in the 73rd and 87th minutes.

Brayan Vera scored his first goal of the season in the 14th minute on a left-foot shot from well outside the area that slipped under the crossbar and inside the back post to give Salt Lake a 1-0 lead.

Son Heung-min secured his first MLS hat trick on a sliding finish in the 82nd minute and LAFC beat Real Salt Lake 4-1 on Wednesday night.

Salt Lake (10-15-4) has lost four of its last five matches.

Son, who joined LAFC (13-7-8) a month ago from the English Premier League, scored on a breakaway in the third minute for a 1-0 lead. He was left wide open in the middle of the field in the 16th and scored from distance to make it 2-0.

Son ran with Denis Bouanga from midfield on a 2-on-1 breakaway and scored an easy tap-in for a 3-1 advantage. Bouanga scored six minutes later on another breakaway to break a tie with league legend Carlos Vela for the most goals in club history with 94.

RSL missed a penalty kick in the 45th when Rwan Cruz’s attempt hit off the right post and went across the goal line to goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who had gone the other way.

Teenager Zavier Gozo scored on a beautiful bicycle kick for RSL in the 76th.

SANTA CLARA — Denis Bouanga finished with a hat trick after Son Heung-min scored in the first minute and LAFC beat the San José Earthquakes 4-2 on Saturday night at Levi Stadium.

Son gave LAFC (12-7-8) the lead when he used passes from rookie Artem Smolyakov and Mark Delgado to score 54 seconds into the match. It was Son’s second goal in five matches since transferring from Tottenham Hotspur. He ties for the third fastest goal in club history. Smolyakov’s assist was his first in his 19th appearance and Delgado’s was his career-high eighth.

Bouanga took over from there — scoring in the ninth, 12th and 87th minutes for his third career three-goal effort in regular-season play. Bouanga, who won the Golden Boot Award in 2023, has 18 goals on the season — three behind league leader Sam Surridge of Nashville SC.

Preston Judd scored in the 18th minute for the Earthquakes, whose final tally came on an own goal by LAFC defender Sergi Palencia in the 90th minute. Judd’s netter was his career-best seventh. Palencia had assists on two of Bouanga’s goals.

Hugo Lloris saved three shots for LAFC (12-7-8).

Daniel De Sousa Britto totaled two saves for the Earthquakes (9-13-8).

LAFC pulls one point behind the fourth-place Seattle Sounders in the Western Conference with the top four seeds earning home-field advantage in the best-of-three first round.

LAFC travels to play Real Salt Lake on Wednesday. The Earthquakes host St. Louis City on Saturday.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. — Denis Bouanga scored on a penalty kick in the 81st minute to rally LAFC to a 2-2 draw with the Chicago Fire at SeatGeek Stadium on Saturday night.

Bouanga notched his 14th goal of the season for LAFC (10-6-7) after subbing in for Mathieu Choinière in the 61st minute. The PK was awarded after Son Heung-min — in his debut with the club — was fouled by defender Carlos Terán.

Chicago (10-9-6) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute on Terán’s first goal this season. Philip Zinckernagel collected an assist on the score. Terán has one goal in five straight seasons.

LAFC pulled even in the 19th minute on a goal by defender Ryan Hollingshead — his second. Nineteen-year-old midfielder David Martínez picked up his first assist this season after notching two in 17 appearances last year.

The Fire took a 2-1 lead in the 70th minute on a goal by Jonathan Bamba — his fourth in his first season in the league. Zinckernagel snagged another assist — his 13th — and Brian Gutiérrez earned his second.

It was the first of three straight home matches in Bridgeview for the Fire whose home these days is Soldier Field. Chicago is 102-55-72 in regular-season play at SeatGeek.

Chris Brady saved four shots for Chicago.

Hugo Lloris totaled one save for LAFC.

Chicago began the day in possession of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference as it tries to make the postseason for the first time since 2017.

LAFC entered the day sixth in the Western Conference, but the club has at least two matches in hand on all five teams above it.

Denis Bouanga scored on a first-half penalty kick and Hugo Lloris made it stand up for his third straight clean sheet as LAFC edged Minnesota United 1-0 on Wednesday night.

Bouanga scored his 11th goal when he sent a right-footed shot past Dayne St. Clair in the 42nd minute. The PK was awarded after Jeremy Ebobisse was fouled by defender Nicolás Romero, who received a yellow card.

Lloris finished with three saves for his league-high-tying ninth clean sheet of the season for LAFC (10-5-5).

St. Clair entered with nine shutouts and totaled five saves for Minnesota United (11-5-7), which falls to 6-3-3 at home.

Minnesota United has just one home win over LAFC, which joined the league in 2018. That came in March of last season in the debut of Minnesota manager Eric Ramsay.

LAFC posted a 1-0 victory over Minnesota United at home in the season opener.

LAFC improves to 2-3-4 on the road. The club was coming off shutout wins at home over the Colorado Rapids and FC Dallas by a combined 5-0 score.

LAFC will host the Galaxy on Saturday.

Denis Bouanga scored on a penalty kick and assisted on Nathan Ordaz’s goal as LAFC defeated FC Dallas 2-0 at BMO Stadium on Saturday night.

Hugo Lloris made one save as LAFC (9-5-5) recorded its second straight shutout and won for the second time in three games since it went winless during the Club World Cup.

LAFC put 10 shots on goal.

Ordaz took a pass from Bouanga in the penalty box, spun and booted a right-footed shot into the right side of the goal in the 31st minute.

Bouanga made it 2-0 when he converted into the right side in the 45th minute, after he was fouled by Shaq Moore.

LAFC captain and defender Aaron Long was carted off in the 76th minute for an apparent leg injury.

Denis Villeneuve will direct the next James Bond film, the 26th official entry in the historic franchise. Villeneuve will also serve as executive producer, alongside Tanya Lapointe.

Amy Pascal and David Heyman are producing the project, as had been previously announced. The pair came onto the film after the series’ longtime producers, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, made a deal to give up creative control to Amazon MGM Studios earlier this year.

In a statement, Villeneuve, a four-time Academy Award nominee, said, “Some of my earliest movie-going memories are connected to 007. I grew up watching James Bond films with my father, ever since ‘Dr. No’ with Sean Connery. I’m a die-hard Bond fan. To me, he’s sacred territory. I intend to honor the tradition and open the path for many new missions to come. This is a massive responsibility, but also, incredibly exciting for me and a huge honor. Amy, David, and I are absolutely thrilled to bring him back to the screen.”

Also in a statement, Pascal and Heyman commented, “Denis Villeneuve has been in love with James Bond movies since he was a little boy. It was always his dream to make this movie, and now it’s ours, too. We are lucky to be in the hands of this extraordinary filmmaker.”

Villeneuve’s last film, “Dune: Part Two,” earned more than $700 million worldwide. He is preparing to begin shooting the third “Dune” movie this summer with a scheduled release date of Dec. 16, 2026.

Daniel Craig and Ana de Armas in “No Time to Die,” which marked Craig’s final film in the James Bond franchise.

(Nicola Dove / MGM)

The prior film in the Bond franchise, 2021’s “No Time to Die,” finished off Daniel Craig’s five-film run in the role, which began with 2006’s “Casino Royale.”

A screenwriter hasn’t yet been named and no announcement has been made as to who will take over playing the famed British secret agent.

Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, said in a statement, “We are honored that Denis has agreed to direct James Bond’s next chapter. He is a cinematic master, whose filmography speaks for itself. From ‘Blade Runner 2049’ to ‘Arrival’ to the ‘Dune’ films, he has delivered compelling worlds, dynamic visuals, complex characters, and — most importantly — the immersive storytelling that global audiences yearn to experience in theaters. James Bond is in the hands of one of today’s greatest filmmakers and we cannot wait to get started on 007’s next adventure.”