By: Alexandre Gangue-Ruzic and Samuel Rowan

Sunday night at BMO Stadium, the Vancouver Whitecaps dropped the first match of their first-round best-of-three series against LAFC by a final score of 2-1.

After everything went right for the Whitecaps against Portland in the Wild Card match on Wednesday, they were able to build on many of those strengths with a strong start, though unfortunately they were not able to find the same clinical final touch that they had been blessed with in midweek.

It was a demonstration not only of the quality the Whitecaps possess, but also just how difficult it is to knock off a top team in crucial matches like this.

Inside the first 7 minutes, the Whitecaps looked poised to go up 1-0 after Stuart Armstong played a wonderfully imaginative pass that caught out both of LAFC’s central defenders and left Brian White all alone in front of goal. White’s shot beat Hugo Lloris cleanly, yet to the American striker’s dismay, his shot glanced off the inside of the far post and safely away from goal.

Pedro Vite had another good look for Vancouver at the edge of the area a few minutes later, before LAFC finally started to settle into the match and find some transition chances. 

In the 27th minute, a loose touch from Sam Adekugbe allowed LAFC to surge forward 3v2 into the Vancouver area, and although Tristan Blackmon was able to block the Mateusz Bogusz shot, it was deemed to be a handball after a VAR review.

Certainly, it’s difficult to know in 2024 what constitutes a “handball” or a “natural position” but I think the penalty decision probably falls into the category of harsh but fair, even if it was unclear as to whether or not it hit his front or rear arm. Denis Bouanga converted from the spot, and LAFC was up 1-0.

Just before the half, Vancouver had one more great opportunity in front of goal, as Ryan Gauld, after drawing a foul, fired a driven free kick off of the crossbar near the top right hand corner of the LAFC goal past the outstretched arms of Hugo Lloris. Gauld put his hands to his head in disbelief, and Vancouver trailed by a goal at the break, despite looking the better of the two teams in the first 45 minutes.

With LAFC leading and Vancouver searching for a goal, the home side gradually started to control proceedings in the second half – emphasizing the importance of Vancouver failing to score a first-half goal.

In the 56th minute, LAFC was able to find another breakthrough in transition. This time, Vancouver did a decent enough job defending, keeping LA’s threat to the outside, but even so, Cristian Olivera made life difficult for Yohei Takaoka with a high and powerful shot, one that was past the Whitecaps goalkeeper before he could react, putting LAFC up by a score of 2-0.

From there, life was pretty difficult for the Whitecaps, with Vanni Sartini not wanting to throw countless bodies forward, inviting LAFC to pounce in transition, but also needing to find a couple of goals in a short space of time.

Eventually, Brian White and Stuart Armstong were withdrawn, and it felt as though the Whitecaps got to a point where they were resigned to focusing on next weekend at BC Place.

They were still able to find a nicely worked goal late into stoppage time, as Ryan Gauld finished a tic-tac-toe passing play set up by Sebastian Berhalter and Damir Kreilach, ensuring they’d end the game on a positive note. At that point, though, the Whitecaps did not have enough time to make LAFC worry about the potential comeback, as the final whistle blew shortly after the game kicked back off. 

That goal at the death unfortunately means nothing, as LAFC takes the first match 2-1.

But for a few mistakes the Whitecaps were in this one, and that means a lot when you’re staring the first place team in the face

— The Third Sub (@The3rdSub) October 28, 2024

Alright, here are our three thoughts from the opening game of the first round:

Whitecaps Unable to Capitalize:

Early on, the Whitecaps looked to have picked up right where they left off in Portland, as they did well to cause LAFC problems in this match.  

After withstanding some early LAFC pressure, the Whitecaps had an excellent chance to open the scoring in just the seventh minute, as they capitalized on a loose turnover in midfield. From there, Stuart Armstrong, who once again looked like a man reborn after a strong performance vs. the Timbers, walked right down the middle and teed Brian White with a perfect through ball, one that White seemed sure to finish. 

Unfortunately, White was unable to convert the opportunity, as his finish was almost perfect, but it instead bounced off the post and stayed out to keep LAFC off the hook, but it was a good warning sign – the Whitecaps had come to play.

As a result, they continued to push and were on top of the game through the first 30 minutes. Sticking with their 4-3-2-1 formation they pulled out against the Timbers, they were making things happen in possession while remaining solid defensively. 

Because of that, it felt like they were the team likeliest to score the opening goal, as they were controlling more of the initiative. Against an LAFC team that’s proven they can hurt teams in all facets of the game, it was a remarkable start from the Whitecaps. 

For the most part, Denis Bouanga had been kept quiet, the Whitecaps were controlling the middle of the park, and they were starting to get their full backs more involved in possession. 

The only problem, however? They hadn’t turned that into more chances, as other than White’s seventh-minute look at goal, the rest of the Whitecaps opportunities were more half-opportunities. 

That’s a credit to LAFC – they are one of the top defensive sides in the league in terms of xG against – and they were reminding the Whitecaps of that. In particular, Aaron Long was excellent defensively, while Maxime Chanot dominated his aerial battles, making it hard for the Whitecaps to get the ball circulating in LA’s final third. 

At the same time, the Whitecaps had to feel they were close to finding that breakthrough, as they just needed to put together another sequence like the one they had in the seventh minute. 

Unfortunately, that all went out of the window in the 27th minute, however, as one loose moment in possession led to a dangerous LAFC transition moment, which led to the penalty goal. No matter how quiet Bouanga had been up until that point, he wasn’t going to miss that, and that put the Whitecaps behind the 8-ball after a half hour. 

Denis Bouanga buries the PK and @LAFC lead in the first half. 👊

📺 Watch free on Apple TV: https://t.co/wB4NH8bsBE // Audi #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/shdo0tMwmT

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) October 28, 2024

And that’ll have to be a big point of frustration for Vanni Sartini when rewatching this game. Ultimately, they got the game plan right from the start, especially defensively, and continued that throughout the game – the Whitecaps won the non-penalty xG battle, keeping LAFC to 0.96 non-penalty xG. 

Of course, there are some score effects to be had there, but even before the 2-0 goal, which cemented the idea that LAFC were going to win this game, the non-penalty xG remained quite even throughout the match. 

But that’s what happens when you play a top team like LAFC – you can play as well as you like and put together a perfect plan, and sometimes that’s not enough if you’re not ruthless enough in both boxes. Had they been playing any other team in the Western Conference, they reach half time of this game with the score at the very least 0-0, but not against this LAFC team that can hurt you in an instant if you don’t punish them. 

The margins can be unbelievably slim – in this case, we’re talking about one missed Whitecaps chance early, and then the sequence leading up to the penalty and the penalty itself (fittingly, those three moments were the only shots in this game worth more than 0.2 xG), but that’s what can happen in a game like this. 

These Whitecaps know that very well from past meetings against LAFC, but after the performance they had against Portland, it’s unfortunate they were unable to carry that over into this game. –Alex

The Midfield Battle: 

For as invincible as this LAFC side might seem, as they had the third-most points in MLS, third-best xG for, second-best xG against and the best Expected goal difference in MLS, they’ve also got their weaknesses. 

Certainly, they’ve got their strengths – a look at their frontline depth is enough to make one’s eyes water, they’ve got a strong backline, and are loaded at wing back – but they’ve also got areas where they don’t stack up in the same way. 

In particular, their midfield feels like a potential area of concern, especially when compared to past editions of LAFC, who would absolutely clobber teams in midfield. 

When looking at their double-pivot in this game, which consisted of Lewis O’Brien and Timothy Tillman, that felt clear. No doubt, the pair are quite good, with O’Brien a strong all-around piece and Tillman a good box-arriving player, but it feels like they lack the defensive presence to play in a double-pivot, as they both seem well-suited to a midfield trio. 

Because of that, it was felt like the Whitecaps could potentially target LA in that area, having done so to great effect against the Timbers in midweek, which was why it was encouraging to see them run back the midfield three of Andrés Cubas, Stuart Armstrong and Pedro Vite in this game. 

To their credit, the Whitecaps did a good job of targeting LA centrally, too. All match long, they played right on top of LA’s midfield, forcing them to move the ball quicker than usual. To O’Brien’s credit, he handled things well, completing 57/66 passes (86%) including 11 passes into the final third and 6/8 long balls, but Tillman ended up being much more conservative than he would’ve liked, as despite completing 38/43 passes (88%), he completed just 1/2 long balls (although he had seven passes into the final third). 

Plus, the Whitecaps also did well to win second balls, as well, with Ryan Gauld having a strong match in that regard – there were multiple occasions where he beat LA’s midfield to the ball on headed clearances from Long or Chanot. 

Then, in possession, the Whitecaps were doing a good job of circulating the ball, as Vite finished with 35/40 passes (88%) including 5/6 long balls and five passes into the final third, Cubas completed 51/58 passes (88%) including 2/3 long balls and five passes into the final third, while Armstrong had 29/33 passes (88%) including 1/1 long ball and four passes into the final third. 

And that’s something they can build off of heading into the second game of this series. Ultimately, they lost this game because they lacked movement and creativity in the final third, and because they made a couple of defensive errors, not because of anything they did wrong centrally, where it felt like they had their best moments in this game. 

Cristian Olivera with an absolute rocket to give @LAFC a two goal lead. 🚀

📺 Watch for free on Apple TV: https://t.co/wB4NH8bsBE // Audi #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/bBhN5Zx049

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) October 28, 2024

That’s encouraging, as it’s an area of strength for this Whitecaps side – Armstrong and Cubas are two of their DPs (and even their third DP, Gauld, certainly plays like a midfielder), while Vite is a U22 Initiative player who can take over games when at his best. 

Against an LAFC team stacked at every position, if they can take advantage of this matchup again in the second game, perhaps it can give them a bit of a fighting chance of forcing a third game, which is all they can ask for. -Alex

The BC Place Blueprint:

As much as Vancouver played well down at BMO Stadium and there will be plenty of positives to take away for this week at training, there are also some ways that the Whitecaps can look to improve for game two that go beyond simply finishing their chances.

Right off the top, when I think back to the Portland performance, having Sam Adekugbe and Stuart Armstrong on top form was something that really stood out. Certainly, I think both of those guys had some good moments in this match, Armstrong in particular, but it was definitely a step short of what they were able to produce midweek.

This guy never stops. He pushed until the final whistle 👏#VWFC | #MLSCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/ES9bw7wdss

— X – Vancouver Whitecaps FC (@WhitecapsFC) October 28, 2024

Part of that is the top-seed advantage for LAFC. They had a full week to rest up, while Vancouver had to deal with the travel and mental grind that was going to Portland for the wildcard. That won’t be a problem next weekend for Vancouver, as they’ll have the whole week back at home to get ready for that one.

Another thing would be to get Fafa Picault back in the starting XI. For as many qualities as Ahmed has, he doesn’t offer the same direct threat Picault is able to provide, and I think both Brian White and Ryan Gauld suffered as a consequence in this match. 

The Aaron Long vs. Brian White matchup could make or break this series for the Whitecaps, as they’ll need White to be impactful with his hold-up play if they want a chance of advancing, and as a result, I think you need Picault’s pace to help keep LA’s backline off balance and give Long something else to worry about with slower teammates around him.

Finally, as Alex mentioned, the midfield is a source of strength for Vancouver, and the Whitecaps need to continue looking to play through it. This team is good enough that they don’t have to press the issue all the time to control play in the middle of the park – we’ve seen that. 

Given this, they need to be wary of loose passes and unnecessary risks that can invite LAFC to get running out on the break. When in doubt, I’d like to see Vancouver cycle the ball back to their centrebacks and Yohei Takaoka. The more you do that and hold onto the ball, the less often your opponents will have the chance to do what they do best.

Vancouver has every opportunity to get back in this series, so it will be fun to see how the Whitecaps look next weekend in front of a home crowd at BC Place. -Sam

This post was done in collaboration with Canadian Soccer Daily, who cover all things Canadian Soccer at https://canadiansoccerdaily.com