Good Monday morning Caps fans, hope you all had a good weekend and a good start to your May. Oh, and for today only, May the fourth be with you.
The weekend brought a respite from all of the off-pitch drama and allowed us to focus on actual soccer. What a concept.
The 1-1 draw with the LA Galaxy was a bit of a let-off for the Caps, but was probably a helpful reminder that life on the road won’t be as friendly as the run of matches at BC Place to open the season.
This was probably a win Vancouver gets over the line at home. While the attack wasn’t on the same page, even though things felt plodding and miscues and misplayed passes were a consistent issue, the Caps still had the better of the expected goals.
The Galaxy certainly had some promising moments in the second half, but their most dangerous chance, the one that led to their only goal, came off a bad miscue from Yohei Takaoka. This was the sort of goal Vancouver have been flirting with conceding all season. Indeed, Jesper Sorensen’s system requires that Vancouver flirt with conceding this sort of goal. But sometimes man, you just gotta send the ball into orbit and this was one of those times.
Vancouver earned their draw, with a brilliantly taken set piece delivery from Sebastian Berhalter. But the fear as this team heads out on the road is that teams will continue to throw a low block out and frustrate the Caps. Bruno Caicedo has continued to impress but AZ Jackson, Cheikh Sabaly, and Emmanuel Sabbi have not consistently show they can shine individually and lift the team in those circumstances.
There were positives from Saturday. I thought Tate Johnson was excellent, the backline was steady, and Caicedo continues to be real lift off the bench. And given the events of the past week, one draw certainly isn’t the end of the world. But it will be interesting to see how the team copes with this extended road trip. There will be plenty to clean up in training this week before a date with San Jose in a Supporters Shield six pointer.
Shameless Self Promotion
A more thorough breakdown of Saturday’s draw, if you missed the match or want a deeper dive.
Best of the Rest
A look at what comes next for keeping the Caps in Vancouver. And a nice piece in the Athletic on the fans trying to fight for the Caps and the reasons why pro soccer in Vancouver matters.
A draw doesn’t seem so bad in comparison to Inter Miami, who somehow bungled a 3-0 lead against Orlando City. Elsewhere, it was draws for LAFC and San Jose as well.
A look at the rise of Jacob Shaffelburg to national team relevance.
Vancouver FC triumphed in the local derby Sunday, grabbing a 3-1 win over Pacific.
I think Cabrera and Bruno can unlock defences because they are the best dribblers. White is a hold up, poaching striker. He does’t really dribble through tight spaces. This is why the game looked promising when they did come on with LA going into a crowded defensive formation. I would also rate Larraz. He seemed to also have some lockpicking skills! Good to have him on the team because he is definitely a young, aggressive mid. 1-1 it’s not bad. If we hadn’t conceded first then LA would have had different tactics. I think the Caps need to get something straight off the whistle when the other team has not settled in and this makes the game play more into their style. As was said San Jose and LAFC also got draws.
i thought that Kenji Cabrera put in his best shift as a Whitecap- and he, sabaly and Sabbi are all ahead of AZ in the wide player pecking order- of course, Caicedo tops the list
i was mystified about the loss of Brian White on the field- he was barely noticeable, especially when the opposing team used low blocks– its an achilles heel for him and for the entire team- not sure we have a player that can unlock this defensive ploy, but it is becoming a concern- Cubas, Berhalter, Badwal and Muller all have quality in different ways, but i think none have the ability to unlock defences
secondly, Axel needs to share with us supporters what is happening with Seba Berhalter’s contract which ends December 31, 2026
Salty