Eighty Six Forever, Vancouver Whitecaps FC

The off-season is heating up in Vancouver

After a reasonably quiet holiday period, things appear to be heating up for the Vancouver Whitecaps, as they are just over a month away from their first competitive fixture against Tigres in the Champions Cup over on Vancouver Island.

Although the only official move of the off-season so far has been adding Damir Kreilach, the picture of where the Whitecaps are headed for the 2024 season is becoming clearer by the day. In many ways, the checklist for the club heading into the new season is much simpler than in years past: the Whitecaps are a good team and most of their key pieces are under contract going forward. Yet, because this team feels so close to taking the next step towards being a legitimate MLS Cup contender, every tweak they make to the roster is crucial.

With all this being said, let’s take a look at some of the key storylines that will help shape the month leading up to kick-off:

Richie on the move?

As reported by JJ Adams, contract negotiations between Nottingham Forrest and the Whitecaps appear to have arrived at an impasse. Vancouver does not want to use their final DP spot on a wingback, and it sounds as though league rules (which I can’t confess to ever fully understanding) might bar Richie from occupying a DP spot anyway. However, from Nottingham’s point of view, any fee they would be willing to accept would mandate that Richie occupy a DP spot in Vancouver. From the player’s perspective, it sounds like the terms of the contract offer in Vancouver are acceptable, but at the same time, I don’t think Laryea is at a point where he’s trying to force a move to Vancouver.

So, what happens now? I think the Whitecaps have made it clear by speaking publicly about the negotiations that they are calling Nottingham’s bluff. Nottingham wants to maximize the value of their asset but, realistically, they are not really in a position to do so. Their Premier League future is still unclear and their squad is a mess. At some point, Nottingham is going to be forced to clean their squad of players like Laryea, who they bought but have neglected to use. If Nottingham is willing to concede a loss, then I think there’s still a deal to be done. The question is, will they bend in time for it to align with the Whitecaps’ plans. Given the current status of negotiations, one has to think that Vancouver is currently exploring other options at wingback for the 2024 season.

A third attacker

I won’t spend too much time on this because our Caleb Wilkins will be dropping an article soon with potential targets, but it appears clear now that Vancouver’s focus for their third designated player spot is another attacking piece to field alongside Ryan Gauld and Brian White.

While Gauld and White were both terrific in 2023, it was obvious near the end of the season that opposing teams were doing everything they could, both in terms of personnel and tactics, to negate combination play between the two dynamic forwards, particularly, denying White the ball in hold-up play with physical centrebacks. Because Vancouver did not have any other consistent attacking threats that could expose this strategy by stretching out defensive lines, teams were able to get away with this approach mostly unpunished. If Vancouver can find the right attacking threat to complement the existing dynamic duo, this team could be even more entertaining to watch in 2024.

There is a knock-on effect of this approach, however. It signals in a very clear way that the Whitecaps believe scoring more goals is the solution to taking the next step as a team, rather than improving their defensive line, at least from a resource allocation perspective. Does this make sense? I think it just might.

Where in the world is the perfect centreback?

I’ve heard many cries this off-season that the Whitecaps should sign a “star centreback”. In many ways, I’ve probably led the charge on this issue as both myself and Alex Gangué-Ruzic have spent hours on The Third Sub podcast discussing the team’s defensive issues. Overall, the Whitecaps don’t need to be an elite defensive team to win an MLS Cup, but they do need to be better than they were last season. Equally, both data and the eye test suggest the Whitecaps could use a more decisive and physical force at the back, someone who can make a crucial play when things get messy.

The problem is, finding a player who can bring such a profile, but also play with the ball at his feet the way Vanni Sartini wants, is like finding a unicorn:  these players don’t come along very often, and when they do, the competition for their services is fierce. I’ve spent a good amount of time this off-season looking for a potential fit, but very few names leap off the page. Even when you do find a possible target, translating the profile to on-pitch impact can be a challenge. We’ve seen this in the West with teams like San Jose, Houston, and Minnesota, who have all spent big money at the centreback spot, with limited success.

So, if the Whitecaps are not going to take a big swing on a centreback this off-season, what should they do? I think you need at least one new player who has the possibility to fit the profile you are looking for, ideally someone with the physical traits who you believe has the skills to improve with the ball at his feet, or someone who has shown both abilities at a lower level (Amer Didić, for example, if that bridge wasn’t burned already). One possibility is a player like Donovan Pines, a current free agent from DC United, though he is rumoured to be in negotiations with Barnsley FC. At just 25 years old, the 6 foot 5 American is intriguing.

He was DC United’s highest-rated defender by most match rating metrics in 2023, had only one error which led to a goal against, and scored three goals in just over 1800 minutes – all while DC United was in absolute chaos. His passing, admittedly, leaves something to be desired, but I think the Whitecaps need to take a punt at some point on a defender who excels at the things they struggle with, even if it’s not a “star” player.

Portlan-ada

In a strange turn of events, three Canadian national team members are on their way to Portland.

Following the Kamal Miller trade from Miami, James Pantemis signed a free agent deal that looked like it might give him a chance to start in Portland, or so he thought, until Maxime Crepeau inked a deal with the Timbers mere hours later.

For Whitecaps supporters, if it wasn’t enough for Crepeau to ditch the Whitecaps in favour of LAFC the way he did back at the beginning of 2022, surely the move to a Cascadian rival will only increase the level of animosity Crepeau experiences within the confines of BC Place.

With former Canadian assistant Phil Neville at the helm, I truly have no idea what the Timbers will look like this season, but the rivalry matches should be highly entertaining at the very least. Late the hate flow through you!

Panic button time?

There’s a lot to like about this Whitecaps team, but standing still in MLS is the equivalent of going backward. Especially if the Whitecaps do lose Laryea, this team will have taken a step back from their 2023 form, that is until they can finalize any of their current targets.

So, while I would not advise pressing the panic button just yet, I do think it’s fair if your hand is hovering above the button.

If the Whitecaps are truly in win-now mode, as they should be, then this next month should be a busy one.

3 thoughts on “The off-season is heating up in Vancouver”

  2. Didić is not of MLS calibre. No recovery pace. They’ve already kicked the tires on him. It’s not happening.

    Reply

  3. MLS – stand pat, you go back- at this point, the Caps have chosen the former

    Axel has known about the needs to improve- an experienced, taller goalie; a quality CB, an AMF and a pacey, skillful striker- as we all know, his hands are tied by the cheap ownership group

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