Good Monday morning Caps fans, hope you all are gearing up for a pleasant week, hopefully without the hot weather we have in our neck of the woods.

The Whitecaps took a big first step Saturday, notching their first road win of the season in league play and exorcising their CONCACAF Champions League demons all at once by beating LAFC 3-2 in an entertaining affair.

The fact that the Caps did this minus their best midfielder, their best young player, a starting CB and a frequent starting RB is pretty impressive. The absences forced Vanni Sartini into what seemed like an absolutely hairbrained formation … yet it worked, producing a stellar first half. Things were a bit less tidy in the second as the Caps saw less of the ball but they ultimately did enough to get this one over the line.

This match was a real marker in the tactical evolution of Sartini, who has matured and refined himself as a tactician during his stint with the Caps. This is perhaps not the narrative that some in the fanbase want to believe but it is true: Saturday night was a really sharp tactical performance and Sartini has been having more gameplans like that than some of the swings and misses we saw last season.

Part of this comes from simply not overcomplicating things. Julian Gressel doesn’t need to be deployed in a different position every week; just stick him in central midfield and let him cook. I feared Saturday’s tactical approach was a return to the days of overthinking but I am happy to report that I couldn’t have been more wrong.

The players, of course, were the ones to execute their marching orders and they did so brilliantly. Pedro Vite’s energy and quality were responsible for several dangerous moves and, while he couldn’t quite replace Gressel, he was a pretty good proxy for the purposes of this match. Andres Cubas expertly covered the space opened up in the new formation, further underscoring why he is the top defensive midfielder in MLS. And while the backline wasn’t awesome, credit to Luis Martins and Mathias Laborda for hanging in there against a tough LAFC side, despite playing out of their natural position.

The star of the show, as he so often is, was Ryan Gauld, who notched a goal and two assists and was, for much of the match, the most dangerous player on the pitch — a pitch that includes Denis Bouanga. Gauld is seemingly having his best season as a Whitecaps player, with four goals (two from the penalty spot) and four assists. This puts him on pace to record his most assists in a league campaign ever (he also had a goal and two assists across five Champions League and Voyageurs Cup matches).

There has been a lot of attention on the big names plying their trade in MLS and Gauld has raised a few eyebrows historically because of his status as a seemingly failed wonderkid, the Scottish Messi (though I wonder what happens to that narrative when he’s playing alongside the real Messi?). But few have given him the credit for being a top-class playmaker in a league brimming with those types of talents.

"That's the kind of performance and spirit we're going to need for the rest of the season." @saritareports chats with game MVP @ryangauld post-road win 🎤#VWFC| #LAFCvVAN pic.twitter.com/0lGfCRtL3W

— Vancouver Whitecaps FC (@WhitecapsFC) June 25, 2023

Gauld said after the match that their performance Saturday could be a springboard and a blueprint for the type of energy and commitment required the rest of the season. And, to be sure, the Scot has turned in some rather quiet performances this season. But if he keeps performing like he has been on aggregate, the Caps’ ceiling is quite high indeed.

Shameless Self Promotion

For more on a massive win over LAFC, we have our post-match and report card articles at your service.

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