Carranza and McCarthy on Best XI for CCL second leg quarterfinals

Philadelphia Union forward Julian Carranza and Philadelphia native John McCarthy both made the Best XI for the second leg of the Concacaf Champions League quarterfinals.

Carranza had a brace in a 2-2 draw with Atlas FC that saw the Union advance to the semifinal 3-2 on aggregate.

McCarthy, who won the PK shootout against his former team to decide the 2022 MLS Cup, recorded his third clean sheet of the 2023 CCL campaign in LAFC’s 3-0 win over Vancouver.

Best XI

GK John McCarthy, Los Angeles FC – McCarthy now has three clean sheets in the 2023 SCCL after registering his second straight in LAFC’s 3-0 win versus Vancouver in which he made seven saves.

DF Jesus Angulo, Tigres – Angulo made his presence felt in the 28 minutes he was on the field for Tigres with a goal and 75 percent of passes completed.

DF Aaron Long, Los Angeles FC – Long was excellent on the LAFC back line against Vancouver with three steals while completing 52 of 54 passes.

DF Fidel Ambriz, Club Leon – Club Leon are on their way to their first ever SCCL semifinal thanks in part to Ambriz, who completed 94 percent of his passes in the team’s narrow 2-1 loss at Violette.

MF Luis Quinones, Tigres – Quinones was dynamite for Tigres in the 5-0 win against Motagua. In addition to scoring a goal, he contributed three assists, marking the second time he has had three assists in an SCCL match.

MF Jose Cifuentes, Los Angeles FC – Cifuentes made things happen on both ends of the field in a half of action for LAFC with two steals and a goal.

MF Steeven Saba, Violette – Like always, Saba was a composed presence in midfield for Violette in the 2-1 win versus Club Leon. He finished the night with 28 of 30 passes completed, four steals and an assist.

MF Carlos Vela, Los Angeles FC – Vela now has eight goals in nine career matches and three goals in four 2023 SCCL games following his two-goal performance against Vancouver.

FW Julian Carranza, Philadelphia Union – The Union are on their way to their second semifinal thanks to Carranza, who scored both Philadelphia goals in the 2-2 draw at Atlas.

FW Andre-Pierre Gignac, Tigres – The 2020 SCCL Best Player Award and Top Scorer Award winner was at his best in the 5-0 victory against Motagua with two goals on six shots, plus a steal.

FW Miche-Naider Chery, Violette – Chery finishes the tournament with a sparkling return of four goals in four games after accounting for both Violette goals in the 2-1 win over Club Leon.