The Vancouver Whitecaps will be in a battle to keep hold of the top spot in the Western Conference when they host Los Angeles FC on Saturday night.

The Whitecaps (10-3-3, 33 points) hold matches in hand over LAFC and the San Jose Earthquakes immediately below them, but have returned from the World Cup break in middling form.

After dealing with Canadian Premier League side Cavalry FC in the Canadian Championship — earning a win and a draw in the set — the defending conference champions fell 4-3 at FC Cincinnati and fought Minnesota United to a scoreless draw on the road.

To further complicate matters, the team confirmed the sale of Sebastian Berhalter to Middlesbrough on Tuesday, leaving a hole in the midfield that has yet to be filled.

“It’s not a big surprise for me,” Vancouver head coach Jesper Sorensen said in a press conference that day. “It’s not in the short term strengthening us because Sebastian was playing at such a high level, but we also know that when people leave, it will open up opportunities for others.”

On the flip side, Vancouver has been strengthened by the returns of Designated Player and captain Ryan Gauld and left back Sam Adekugbe from lengthy injury-induced absences — the latter played his first competitive match in 419 days when he subbed on late against Minnesota on July 25.

The Whitecaps also bolstered their depth with the acquisition of Canadian international forward Kwasi Poku from Belgian side RWDM Brussels on Thursday.

In contrast, they will face a Los Angeles team (10-5-3, 33 points) in faultless form since its return. Son Heung-Min and Denis Bouanga have terrorized opposition defenses, helping the Black and Gold outscore their opponents 10-1 in July en route to three wins.

Both head to Vancouver on three-match scoring runs, Bouanga nabbing a brace and an assist in a 4-0 win against Sporting Kansas City in their last outing. Son netted two goals in the MLS All-Star Game on Wednesday and was named MVP.

“When he came back from the World Cup, there was a lot of talk of us getting a Sonny that mentally was not in a good place,” LAFC head coach Marc Dos Santos said. “But I always said… inside our bubble here, I never felt him with a lack of focus or confidence.”

The match will mark the two teams’ first encounter since last year’s conference semifinals — won by the Whitecaps — and Dos Santos’ first clash against his former team.

–Field Level Media

The Chicago Fire will search for their first win since the World Cup break when they host Charlotte FC on Saturday.

Chicago (8-6-2, 26 points) dropped consecutive road games to Inter Miami and New York City FC despite the arrival of legendary forward Robert Lewandowski. Lewandowski, replacing league-leading goal scorer Hugo Cuypers (13 goals), has yet to score in his first two appearances for Chicago.

“Candidly, we’re still figuring it out,” head coach Gregg Berhalter told the media on Thursday. “That’s the reality. But we’re doing it, and the guys have been working hard and getting into it. So it’s almost fun to work through this and solve this puzzle.

“Hopefully, on Saturday, we’ll start to see that come to fruition.”

The Fire will be without star defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi for an extended period after the South African center back suffered a serious thigh injury in training.

Charlotte (7-6-4, 25 points) travels to Soldier Field on a four-game unbeaten streak (3-0-1). After hosting an All-Star Game that saw star Pep Biel and head coach Dean Smith participate, the club will play five games in only two weeks. With the inclusion of the Leagues Cup in the schedule, Smith plans to to balance rest with competitiveness.

“It’s back to our bread and butter now,” Smith said on Thursday after the All-Star Game. “We’ve known we have these games coming up anyway, so we’re ready and prepared.”

Charlotte will miss key attacker Kerwin Vargas, who finalized a transfer to Brazilian side Athletico Paranaense on Friday. Vargas’ departure means the club will go through the rest of the season without its two starting wingers after Wilfried Zaha became a free agent at the end of June. Charlotte will likely look to forwards Biel (15 goal contributions), Liel Abada (three assists), and Idan Toklomati (five goals) for attacking firepower.

Although new arrival Allan Saint-Maximin secured his visa, the star winger won’t make his club debut as he is scheduled to leave France on Sunday. Smith noted that Saint-Maximin, who will be a Designated Player, could debut during the Leagues Cup.

“Speaking to him, he’s been working hard to keep up his fitness,” Smith said. “Obviously, he’s not played a match since the French Cup final (May 22), but he might have to get match fit during games. That’s one option that we’ll look at… but we’ll assess him when he gets here.”

–Field Level Media

Former Kansas City Chiefs safety Bobby Hunt, who started in Super Bowl I, has died at age 85, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame & Museum announced this week.

Neither the cause of Hunt’s death nor the date have been released.

Hunt recorded a career-best 10 interceptions in 1966, a season that concluded with the Chiefs losing 35-10 to the Green Bay Packers in the first Super Bowl. Overall, he had 42 interceptions in 112 professional games (108 starts) with Kansas City and the Cincinnati Bengals.

He shares the Chiefs franchise record of four interceptions (1964) in a game with Bobby Ply (1962) and Deron Cherry (1985). His 37 interceptions with the Chiefs rank sixth in franchise history.

After being a two-way college player at Auburn, Hunt was drafted in the 11th round (81st overall) in 1962 by the then-Dallas Texans. He had eight interceptions as a rookie and earned first-team American Football League All-Pro Honors.

The Texans then relocated to Kansas City and Hunt had six interceptions for 228 return yards and three fumble recoveries in 1963. One year later, he was a second-team All-Pro and earned a Pro Bowl berth while intercepting seven passes, including the four in one game, returning one of those picks for a touchdown.

He was a second-team All-Pro pick in 1966 when his 10 picks tied for the AFL lead. Only Emmitt Thomas (12 in 1974) has more interceptions in a season in Kansas City history.

Hunt intercepted five passes in 1967, his final campaign with the Chiefs.

Hunt finished his career by playing two seasons for the Bengals, who claimed him in the expansion draft prior to the 1968 season.

At Auburn, Hunt played quarterback and safety. In 1961, Hunt led the Tigers with 703 passing yards and six rushing touchdowns, ranked second with 347 rushing yards and tied for second with three interceptions on defense.

Hunt led Auburn with 552 rushing yards and seven scores on the ground in 1959. He rushed for a then-school single-game rushing mark of 216 yards against Mississippi State that season.

Hunt was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame & Museum in 2015.

–Field Level Media