Getting Reacquainted with the Vancouver Whitecaps, Cascadia's Afterthought

"I forgot I had to bring something."

Thumbnail History
To begin, the Vancouver Whitecaps have never had a great season. That’s a big thing to hold in the back of your mind anytime you see a pundit push them toward the hype train before or during any given season. Over 14 MLS seasons, the ‘Caps have not once advanced past the quarterfinals in the playoffs. On the one hand, yes, they reached the CONCACAF Champions’ League semifinals in 2017 – which took beating peak, if off-season Red Bull New York (e.g., the Red Bulls won the Shield again in 2018) – on the other hand…c’mon, who gave ‘em a snowball’s chance of beating Tigres UANL or Pachuca CF to win the whole thing? A gentler scale than mine might have rewarded them for four wild card appearances (2012, 2014, 2021, and 2024), but I call them “Joy Points” for a reason - i.e., stalling at the quarterfinals the two times you make them spells “s-u-c-c-e” at most, as opposed to “success.” It’s been a slog for them, basically, and yet Vancouver has had their players. Alphonso Davies, who unwittingly auditioned for Bayern Munich by playing for Vancouver, tops the list, of course (and, lord, was he a blast to watch), but that list gets pretty damn short from there. Despite all of the promising candidates that have auditioned for the No. 10 jersey (or its equivalent role) - Camilo Sanvezzo comes to mind, Ryan Gauld can’t be avoided, of course (also don’t think he actually wears No. 10) and, um…Davide Chiumiento? - the ‘Caps have struggled more than most MLS teams with landing “impact players,” particularly on the attacking side of the pitch. Lest they be accused of not trying, Vancouver has also gone with signing battering ram forwards to increase goal production - think Eric Hassli and Lucas Cavallini – but Hassli neither did much nor lasted very long, and Cavallini’s chief talent was pissing off opposition CBs. At any rate, none of it came all the way off (see below) and the length of that short list only underscores the 'Caps' ongoing failure to get enough things right. I could walk through the same issue in the defense, name some names, and so on…but, well, what’s the point? Long story (very) short, the Whitecaps have never managed to squeeze enough of good players onto the same roster, or to hire a coach who could squeeze that little something extra out of the players that they did have available. The end, if until they finally get that new beginning.

Total Joy Points: 0 (lifted to zero by Canadian Championships, fwiw)

Portland Timbers v Vancouver Whitecaps: Remedies for Constipation?

Contemplating approach play with unseen obstacles

For all the moments of respectability, it is still totally fair to call the Whitecaps Cascadia’s fifth wheel. And yet with Vancouver one thin point behind Portland in the standings, that’ll be cold comfort if the Timbers can’t get ‘er done. Now, the numbers:

Vancouver Whitecaps
Record/Basics: 7-9-4, 25 points; 5-2-3 home, 2-7-1 away; 22 gf, 33 ga, -11 differential
Last 10: WLWWLWTWLT (5-3-2, 2-2-1 on road; in all, a pretty vigorous work-out)
Oppo: v FCD, @ CLT, @ SKC, @ RSL, @ SEA, @ FCD, v NE, v LAFC, v MIN, @ CIN

What We Know About Them
When it comes to Vancouver, I suspect most people know a couple names – e.g., Ryan Gauld, Lucas Cavallini, Maxime Crepeau...who now plays for LAFC – plus some deeper cuts like Cristian Dajome, Russell “Terrier” Teibert and Jake Nerwinski. They’ve freshened the line-up with some familiar names – e.g., Cody Cropper (out for terrifying injury), Tristan Blackmon, Florian Jungwirth – while swinging for some bigger signings like Pedro Vite (who is not, so far, a 90 minute player) and, their flashiest, newest signing, Andres Cubas. They’ve also developed a habit for going on late runs over the past couple seasons and, on their recent record - i.e., 15 points from 30, with six games on the road, and against solid competition (all but two of the last 10 teams they played are over the playoff line, the rest are near it) – one could argue they’re on one again.

Their stats leaders include the usual suspects: Cavallini (6g, 3a), Gauld (3g/3a, who’s still having a bit of an off-season), Dajome (2g/3a, real threat off dribble), and Ryan Raposo (2g/2a).

Notes on Recent Form
They’ve won some big ones lately – e.g., a home win over LAFC and away to Dallas (related, they seem to have Dallas’s number, along with SKC’s) – and, after a disastrous start, many of their positive road results have come in recent weeks. On the video/scouting side, it’s possible I caught them at their worst in all the tape I reviewed: injuries/various absences forced them to make due with a heavily-rotated squad at FC Cincinnati, which led to disjointed play and early defensive breakdowns (and yet they managed), and they fell into a gentle slumber in a 1-3 loss at home to Minnesota after losing some key players at half-time (e.g., Cubas, who looks really good, fwiw, and Godinho) and the visitors turning up the pressure.

Timbers Preview: Hopes and (...Restrained?) Expectations for a Weekend in Canada

The MLS Standings, in puffin form.

Courtesy of an invitation I can’t refuse (or, honestly, don’t want to), I may or may not actually catch this one. That said, this wouldn’t be a bad one to skip, at least based on what I expect to see. Let’s talk about why…

It’s not secret that the Portland Timbers have…not started strong. The Vancouver Whitecaps haven’t done any better - e.g., two fewer points than Portland, a guano-spattered roost immediately below in the standings (if with the one game in hand, along with most of the league); they have a -6 goal differential to Portlands…-4 (call it a teaser) and the ‘Caps have scored three, count ‘em, three goals in 2022 (0.6 goals per game, woo!). So, why is it so damn hard to see the Timbers coasting to victory up in Canada tomorrow night?

Both teams share similar patterns of play for one, e.g., two shit results aside, both on the road - for Vancouver/the record, their 0-4 loss at Columbus Crew SC in Week 1 and a 1-3 loss at Los Angeles FC in Week 4 (fuck it, I'm doing this once; here's the Form Guide; dig as the spirit moves you) - but both Portland and Vancouver have played the opposition close outside of that. Still, those shit results say both teams are capable of defensive collapses in the right situation. I’d be stunned if that happens to Portland in Vancouver, so stunned I’ll leave that thought there. To dig a little deeper

I have yet to dig deep or, more bluntly, give a shit about the Whitecaps’ in 2022. Between playing so many on the road and hosting tricky teams at home - e.g., they hosted a CCL-leggy New York City FC in Week 2 (0-0 draw), and Sporting Kansas City last weekend (1-0 W, for the ‘Caps) - Vancouver has by and large delivered the results I expected them to in each (i.e., losses, maybe draws), so what’s to investigate? Because I hop on every MLS in 15 highlight like a junkie, and knowing this game was coming up, I did dig into Vancouver’s win last weekend against SKC and, it gives off strong “only a mother/diehard can love this” vibes. The ‘Caps scored a half-trash goal somewhat late, with a big assist from SKC’s aggression approach to defense (two players eager to please “angry dad” (aka, Peter Vermes), bolted after the same ball, leaving the fatal space behind) and the chance for the shot getting tangled between Lucas Cavallini and Ryan Raposo (who actually scored it). Overall, the game had all the grace of a bunch of drunken Labradors chasing a ball on ice skates. The xG sucked (1.0 for Vancouver, a dismal 0.6 for SKC; also this isn't atypical) and no one looked particularly great outside moments, and the game didn’t dish many of those.

Vancouver Whitecaps 1-0 Portland Timbers: Unremarkable, Regrettable, Dull.

The 2nd image under "unremarkable" somehow.

I am struggling powerfully to come up with anything useful, meaningful, or even mildly interesting about the Portland Timbers’ season-opening loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps and all I’ve managed so far is to marvel at how Richard Farley managed to write so many words about a game that offered so little for The Mothership (then again, I sometimes think they get paid by the hype).

Ooh, just thought of a couple more: the game ended 0-1. Let’s see, what else? What else?

There’s the game’s lone goal, of course, via a loud, collective brain-fart the defense allowed by letting the ‘Caps large striker, Lucas Cavallini, slip into a wide patch of space for a free header off a corner kick. The Timbers appeared to let in another goal on a later set-piece, but that one was called back for either a handball or offside; beyond signs of continued shakiness on set-pieces, it’s hard to care about a non-goal that wouldn’t have changed the outcome of the game. Had Portland been knocking on Maxime Crepeau’s goal, that would have been a moment, obviously, but I didn’t see (or, to keep with the knocking metaphor, hear) anything worth noting. Related, I’m looking at The Mothership’s collection of highlight clips, which didn’t bother to include Felipe Mora getting a step behind Vancouver’s defense around the 89th minute. For what it’s worth, and on the grounds it felt unremarkable in the moment, I don't mind the omission.

Unremarkable. There’s a good word. Regrettable? Dull? Disappointed? Nah. I don’t have the energy for disappointment.

I have one external note: for good or ill (I’ll tell you in six-seven days), and because I don’t have (fucking) ROOT Sports at home, I actually watched this one at a bar. The place was pretty quiet, fortunately, but I still sat about 20 feet from the TV, so I couldn’t see very well. The combination of that distance, the weirdness of the setting (who among us gets out much?), and just operating outside what has become routine translated into something of a metaphorical distance; put it this way, I’ve gotten used to the quiet of isolation for these games. Going the other way, given the near-complete absence of tension and/or drama, what conceivable setting could have turned that dull fucker of a game into something compelling? Everything I can come up with (e.g., “being suspended over a giant pit of ______”) would only, and perhaps blissfully, provide an excuse to stop watching.

Portland Timbers 2-1 Vancouver Whitecaps: An Easy Hazing

You need the neck, man. And the collarbones.

I’d made an agreement with myself to stop watching this one at the 80th minute until I saw the Portland Timbers pull a near-complete line-change. The Timbers were up 2-1, I knew how it ended and the Vancouver Whitecaps looked no more likely to steal the result than to earn it. All the same, if the preseason isn’t about watching the undercard talent, I don’t know why they do it. For better or worse – I’m inclined to better – the Timbers continued to pick off the Vancouver Whitecaps passes and generally keep the field tilted toward the ‘Caps’ goal after all those subs came on. Better, when the new guys came on, they seemed to hit the same angles on their passes and cut out Vancouver’s passes the same way; you might want a player with a different skill-set to come on to change the focus of the attack, but you want most of the team to play within the same system when they take the field, to look like they know how to play with others without thinking about it too hard. Portland did that on Sunday, and that’s promising.

Moreover, they could call in players like Jeremy Ebobisse, Julio Cascante and, yes, even Dairon Asprilla during that line change, guys with real MLS minutes and moments – and that’s before getting to semi-regular presences like Renzo Zambrano. Those late subs weren’t the first to come on – Marco Farfan replaced Jorge Villafana and Andy Polo replaced Yimmi Chara on the right at the half – and I think the Timbers need competition in those two spots as much as any other ones…now that I think about it, Portland has competition like that in a lot of spots, if with a fair number of clear favorites for each role.

Before going any further, I have a caveat about Vancouver: I don’t rate them for 2020, and I didn’t see anything in Sunday's game to change my opinion on that. Sure, they have some dangerous pieces: Ali Adnan (Jr.?) showed what he can do with a cross multiple times, including the one that created the ‘Caps well-worked goal. Several of their expected key players (e.g., Hwang Im-Beom, Markinovic and Lucas Cavallini) combined to make that happen, but outside that moment, they struggled to get the ball to Cavallini and the 'Caps struggled to get players around the ball anytime Cavallini had it. As much as Cavallini looked big, strong and effective, Vancouver seems to have found a head for its team (Cavallini) but without investing enough in a neck, or even a pair of collarbones. Even after that, the issues are global, whether it’s Derek Cornelius’ lightly bone-headed pair of gaffes (one of them, the penalty kick that Portland’s Felipe Mora had no need to sell to the ref), or the still impressive Yordy Reyna slicing through pockets of space (even if they lead to dead-ends). It’s not quite contempt, so much as an expectation that the Timbers will be one of several teams who will take advantage of Vancouver in the season ahead.

Because it’s preseason, I don’t need to dig too deep on anything, so kindly file all the above away as I tick through a handful of bullet points to close out.