It has been 2 months and 11 games since the Vancouver Whitecaps lost a game in MLS. But all good things must come to an end as a shorthanded Whitecaps team fell to a slightly less shorthanded Columbus Crew 2-1. It was the first time the Whitecaps had lost an MLS game on the road since being eliminated from the playoffs by LAFC last season. So the subtext of everything I am about to say is that this was going to happen eventually.

I watched this game, I promise I did, but recalling specific moments from it is proving elusive. Other than the goals, neither side created a lot of clear cut chances (at least, not ones that were onside). In the end the difference was an uncharacteristic mistake from Tristan Blackmon and the Whitecaps not having the juice for a second goal.

So, why didn’t the Whitecaps have the juice for a second goal? In my view, they were really missing the ball progression of Sebastian Berhalther in this game. The Whitecaps started a double pivot of Ralph Priso and Andres Cubas, two very strong ball-winners but who are fairly middling at getting the ball forward. When you have one of Berhalter or Pedro Vite playing deeper this is no problem because the ball winners can delegate most of the progression to them. But with Priso and Cubas in there, the ball did not get into the final 3rd nearly enough. A knock on effect of the absences was that you had Vite and J.C. Ngando (scored his first senior Whitecaps goal in the one) further forward. These are two players who’s main strength is progressing the ball with neither being an elite goal threat themselves. So there was also a lack of cutting edge in the final 3rd.

Nevertheless, I am sympathetic to Jesper Sørensen’s position. Lining up this way was pretty much the only option with the players available, unless you were going to start a 17-year-old WFC2 player. 8 absences is tough to take for any team but it is particularly hard on the Whitecaps who only have 17 players on their senior roster (these 17 include a 3rd string goalkeeper, a player who has been injured since game three, a player who is now out for the season and resident Unc Damir Kreilach). Fortunately the Whitecaps get a little bit of a break next week to get healthy before a mid-week game against San Diego. We are also about a month out from the secondary transfer window which may be an opportunity to address some of those depth issues.