It wasn’t quite as straightforward for the Whitecaps in week two as it was opening weekend, but Vancouver nevertheless walked away with three points, besting the defending MLS champion LA Galaxy with a 2-1 win at BC Place.

Brian White was the hero with a late winner, but it was other players, notably Pedro Vite, who really showed out. Elsewhere on the pitch, some errors at the back will have fans asking questions about the goalkeeping. How does this all shake out in the report card? Read on to find out.

Yohei Takaoka: 5

Made an absolutely baffling decision to slide with his feet and gift Gabriel Pec an open goal. While he didn’t have much to do otherwise, Takaoka’s hiccups are making you wonder what Isaac Boehmer would look like in net. Taka does handle this possession style well (though I worry we’re going to see him caught out soon enough).

Mathias Laborda: 7

Made an excellent through ball to spring Vite on the goal and I like the under-lapping runs with Nelson when Laborda does get forward. Laborda is seemingly starting to get the hang of right back and his defending 1v1 is quite good, with Laborda frustrating Fagundez plenty.

Ranko Veselinovic: 6.5

Didn’t have much to do in the air but was comfortable in possession and with the ball at his feet.

Tristan Blackmon: 6

While he may have been fouled by Miguel Berry in the buildup to Pec’s goal, he ultimately needed to have been stronger or just simply concede a corner kick, rather than play with fire and gift LA a golden chance. He recovered from his error well enough in the second half.

Sam Adekugbe: 7.5

A striker’s instincts and poise to get in the box and grab his goal, the second year in a row he has scored against the Galaxy. His attacking verve and width has been a real welcome addition to the team this season and the team looked noticeably worse after his withdrawal. The early exit due to an apparent lower body injury is a major concern, particularly as his reaction on the sidelines made it seem serious.

Andres Cubas: 6.5

Rock solid in the midfield and had a couple of nice tackles to boot. LA didn’t have much luck in possession playing through the middle and that’s to Cubas’ credit.

Pedro Vite: 8

A superb run to tee up the Caps’ goal and Vite remained influential throughout the match, looking good in the build up in tighter spaces before popping up further up the pitch. He delivered the coup de grace with a perfect cross to get a well deserved assist. The Sørensen era has been a real lift for Vite, allowing him to get into more dangerous areas and have more room to work. It isn’t impossible that this is his last season in Vancouver, assuming he keeps this up.

Sebastian Berhalter: 6.5

Poor set piece delivery from Berhalter has been a nagging theme of the early season but he nonetheless quietly amassed three key passes and generally fared better on the stat sheet than on the eye test.

Jayden Nelson: 7

Phenomenal effort on the press and counter-press and he kept a couple of promising moves alive, though he wasn’t quite able to round Novak Micovic in the first half to nab a goal. While he made the wrong decision sometimes and didn’t have quite as much end product, it still was a positive effort. Nelson really looked much better in the second half, making his sub (presumably to give him rest before the midweek) a bit baffling.

Ryan Gauld: 6.5

Gauld had plenty of bright moments and had real success at finding space in between the Galaxy lines but didn’t have any of the killer balls at the end of it that we would expect.

Brian White: 7.5

Didn’t get many clear cut chances and was largely quiet … until he popped up in the right place at the right time to grab the match winner. His energy in pressing and serving as a general nuisance was much appreciated.

Edier Ocampo: 7

Was lucky to remain on the pitch after delivering studs to the ankle of Lucas Sanabria but beyond that it was a solid day for Ocampo, who found himself thrown into the deep end after Adekugbe came off. His lack of sharpness is easily explained away by few minutes but his danger taking players on (he won several fouls in dangerous areas) and his quality on the dribble will ensure he gets more looks, even if they come out of position at left back.

Ali Ahmed: 6

Ahmed didn’t create much and didn’t find himself on the end of many clear cut chances, but he did make some nice runs that opened up space for Vite or some of the other attackers to work.

J.C. Ngando: 7

I really like what Ngando offers, as he is very comfortable on the ball in tight spaces and is excellent at progressing the ball. Another fine performance and I would expect to see him starting at some point, either in the midweek or the next MLS match.

Daniel Rios: N/A

Not much to speak up for Rios’ cameo in this one, but it was good to see him making an appearance and it wouldn’t surprise me if he started next week.

(Image Credits: Mark Zhuang)