Good Monday morning Caps fans, hope you all had a great weekend and if you are celebrating a religious holiday right now, I hope that is or was a lovely time. And, a reminder not to believe most of the things you see on the internet today.
The Caps righted the ship at home Saturday, despite seemingly let three points slip away. While Portland clawed their way back into the match after the Caps came out like gangbusters, Ryan Raposo notched a sweaty goal to push Vancouver across the finish line.
Overall, I think the Caps were good value for the win, even though it was concerning how much their levels slip after going 2-0 up. Still, the start to the match was excellent, with Ali Ahmed and Fafa Picault starting strong and underscoring how fluid this attack can be with some more pace. Ryan Gauld set the tone with his high energy and work rate and will be pleased to open his account for 2024.
The fact of the matter is, however, that maintaining those levels is hard and the Caps understandably ran out of energy. But they need to find a middle ground to manage leads, a common struggle last year and against RSL last week. The Caps were a bit loose with their passing, their shape suffered and a few guys, notably Mathias Laborda, struggled. Others, like Alessandro Schopf, faded as things wore on.
A second wind came in the second half and Fafa, who was the man of the match for me, remained energetic and asked questions. The Caps could’ve had a second half goal or two even before Picault flicked it to Raposo to tip across the goal line.
While the defensive shape was a bit sketchy at times, you can’t argue with the sheer quantity of chances created. Damir Kreilach remains a bit of a square peg in a round hole but the rest of the attack really clicked in a way they haven’t all year and to put to bed the weird home struggles was a positive. Plus, getting out ahead in the Cascadia race (especially with Seattle continuing to struggle) is a sweet bonus. The vibes are good and the Caps sit second with a game in hand. Not too shabby at all.
Shameless Self Promotion
For more on a dramatic Cascadia Cup derby, read our post match and report card recaps to get caught up. And check out our three thoughts on each week’s match, which we’ll share every week with our friends at Canada Soccer Daily.
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