Carlos Vela gets mad at Bob Bradley for taking him off too early
There was a miscommunication between the Mexico international and the Los Angeles FC coach after the player received a foul in the 22nd minute.
Carlos Vela made his season opener appearance in Major League Soccer with Los Angeles FC on Saturday 17 April against Austin FC. LAFC had their first game of the 2021 season at the Banc of California against the new franchise from Texas, whose co-owner is Matthew McCounagey.
Misunderstanding with Bob Bradley
Early in the game Vela attempted to dive for a ball as he was trying to find the back of the net and felt a little muscle discomfort after the play. The LAFC captain took his time to get up and started limping as he was walking down the sideline, asking for the medical staff to assist him.
Vela was then assisted by a doctor from the team and his intentions were clear that he wanted to continue. But the coaching staff thought that LAFC’s No 10 was asking for a sub because he would not be able to continue and in the 22nd minute Kwadwo Opoku took his place.
After Vela heard he was being replaced, he looked at Bob Bradley yelling “why did you take me out” and the assistant coach looked confused because he thought Vela was asking for a substitution. So the ‘Black & Gold’ player started walking to the locker room and never came back.
When asked about the situation Bradley told Fox Soccer: “Yeah! I might’ve jumped the gun and I think that was my fault. He [Vela] gave us a sign earlier on and I thought he wanted a substitution so maybe it was my fault."