🏆 LAFC thump Columbus; Tigres snatch draw in Cincinnati; Pumas cruise | OneFootball

The Concacaf Champions Cup round-of-16 first-legs are upon us, and there are some mouthwatering ties to sink our teeth into.

Here is what has gone down so far Tuesday evening.

LAFC thrash Columbus to take command of all-MLS tie

Scorers: Bouanga 20', 46', Ordaz 81'

LAFC took a commanding lead in their tie against Columbus with an emphatic first-leg win in Los Angeles.

These two sides have seen plenty of each other in knockout competitions in recent years, yet their meetings never fail to entertain.

The hosts were dangerous on the break from the opening whistle and they were rewarded for their efforts when Denis Bouanga pounced on some lazy Crew buildup out of the back before rounding the keeper and slotting home the opener into an open goal.

Bouanga was undeniable once again after the break, and he showed why he is one of the elite attackers in North America when he curled a long-range effort into the back of the net from an acute angle.

While Columbus huffed and puffed to nab an all-important away goal, the veteran LAFC rearguard remained solid to hold onto the two-goal advantage.

The cat was truly put amongst the pigeons when Nathan Ordaz came off the bench and laced a rebounded ball into the top corner to put LAFC ahead, and well in control of the tie heading back to Columbus.

Pumas cruise past Alajuelense

Scorers: Ergas 38', Funes Mori 73'

Pumas took control of their tie with Costa Rican giants Alajuelense, bagging two first-leg goals and clean sheet to take into the second leg next week.

Alajuelense did little to trouble their Mexican hosts in the opening 45 minutes, though the game was seemingly stuck in midfield with little goalmouth action to speak of.

In the final 10 minutes of the half the Pumas engine room finally started to grow into the game, and they opened the scoring with some lovely play capped off by the unlikely scorer Robert Ergas.

While Alajuelense seemed to grow into the game after the break, Pumas found the potential dagger in the final 20 minutes of the first-leg when big-game man Rogelio Funes Mori fired home a bullet header to put the home side two goals ahead on the night and in the tie.

Tigres earn hard-fought draw in Cincinnati

Scorers: Bucha 3' ; Ibañez 17'

It was a rip-roaring start from the hosts who were looking to bounce back after a disappointing defeat over the weekend, as Pavel Bucha found the opener in the tie inside of three minutes thanks to some super link-up play.

But Liga MX sides always find a way to fight in the Champions Cup, and Tigres pulled level with a potentially crucial away goal just 14 minutes later when Nicolas Ibañez out-jumped the Cincinnati defense to head home the equalizer.

While it was Cincinnati who had the better of the chances in the second interval, their visitors from Mexico were stubborn in defense, not seeming to want to budge an inch.

With the honors even on the night, the tie will be settled next week in Mexico at El Volcán, though Tigres do hold an advantage on away goals for now.

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