The vibes for the Vancouver Whitecaps have sunk even further, as the Caps fell 3-1 to Liga MX bottom feeders Juarez in a match that further cemented Vancouver’s finishing woes.

While the Caps had little to play for, it seemed like they were back on track with an early Jeevan Badwal goal. But three goals on three shots gave Juarez the three points, as the Caps were unable to convert their considerable possession into anything more than that.

Given the dead rubber nature of the match, it was natural to see some rotation. Isaac Boehmer remained in goal behind an Edier Ocampo/Tristan Blackmon/Ralph Priso/Tate Johnson backline. Badwal and Thomas Müller joined J.C. Ngando in midfield. And Johnny Selemani made his full debut with Brian White and Emmanuel Sabbi in the attack.

The Caps thought they had an early goal from White after a coming together between Selemani and a Juarez defender, but the play was whistled back after the ball crossed the line for a foul. It was a poor bit of refereeing after the official let pretty much everything else go in the opening moments of the match, but it was a warning shot for Juarez.

Jeevan Badwal, however, got one that counted. It was a similar sort of play, with the Caps ripping open Juarez on the right side via Ocampo. The cut back found Badwal, who perfectly slotted the ball into the bottom left-hand corner. That sort of finish is the final piece missing from Badwal’s game, but this was a fantastic finish from the youngster and a great assist from Ocampo to boot.

The lack of organization from Juarez meant the Caps were able to keep the pedal to the metal, with little resistance to get into the attacking third and a lack of midfield presence leaving Badwal and Ngando plenty of space to pick out passes. The overlapping runs from wide players like Ocampo helped unlock things further out wide.

It was out of nothing that Juarez got back in the game. The Caps seemingly won back possession before Selemani gave it away a bit sloppily (with a possible foul shout). Ettson Ayon made a darting run and thrashed a perfectly placed shot past Boehmer.

It was a difficult night for White, who seemed a half step behind the match and then was denied by Sebastian Jurado after being played through on goal. In the process, the striker seemed to pull something and had to exit shortly before halftime, forcing Rayan Elloumi to make an emergency entrance.

The Caps should have had enough of a cushion that Ayon’s goal didn’t matter. Elloumi had a chance to put them back on top moments after coming on, with a brilliant cross from Selemani finding him in space but he managed only a limp header that rolled wide of the target.

Halftime brought more changes, with Ryan Gauld and Mathias Laborda entering for Emmanuel Sabbi and Ralph Priso. Little changed on the pitch, however, with Vancouver dominating possession and control but unable to find the shot needed to score. Their best chances seemed to come when Ngando wound up from outside the penalty area, otherwise the Bravos defenders were throwing themselves at pretty much any shot and cross entering the penalty area.

Juarez’s strategy was predicated on bunkering and countering and they did so admirably. A failed 1-2 with Ngando led to Oscar Estupinan finding himself 1v1 and while Boehmer could have come out earlier to deny the danger, there was little he could do to prevent Juarez from taking the lead.

The Caps seemingly had a chance to equalize late after Jurado was unable to punch the ball to a teammate, but the keeper recovered to tip Tate Johnson’s shot on an empty net over the bar.

Juarez got a third late after a misplaced throw left Ricardinho with an empty net to tap into but at that point, the match had run its course anyway.

Stray Thoughts

• Yeah, OK, that was beak. I was cautioning patience because, well, it’s Leagues Cup and who cares. That remains true but this team is remarkably low on confidence, and getting kicked around by Liga MX’s worst team won’t help with that. This is hopefully the nadir for the season, and with reinforcements reportedly on the way, there is some hope that Jesper Sørensen can regroup in the post-Berhalter era. I don’t want to cave into the panic and still don’t think we should really be reading much into Leagues Cup given that we have a large body of work that shows this team can figure work through a rough patch and figure things out. But there is a frustration about this team that I haven’t seen in a long time (like, since the MDS days). That seems to be rubbing off on the players.
• Gazdag won’t help with replacing Berhalter and while his finishing has been spotty, it feels like it will still be an upgrade for the Caps. White seemed to be playing at half speed even before he got hurt and Rayan Elloumi needs a loan spell somewhere. Both guys should have had goals and by the time it got down to brass tacks late, there weren’t a ton of options besides whipping hopeful crosses in and trying shots from distance.
• I haven’t watched much of the Whitecaps 2 squad this year, but I liked what Johnny Selemani offered. I liked his confidence to take players on, including a rather spectacular nutmeg of Jose Rodriguez. And I’m not sure how sustainable his reliance on cutting in with his left foot will be in MLS but man, he can whip in a ball. He seems a bit raw still, but there seems to be the makings of a future MLS-level player there.
• I’d say that I’d be a bit worried about how the Tigres match will go but, let’s be real, Vancouver should send the reserves to Mexico and spend some time on the training pitch back home.

Three Stars

3. Edier Ocampo

When the Caps were effective in the first half and ripping open space, Ocampo’s overlapping runs were a big reason why. His assist was expertly taken too.

2. Johnny Selemani

A key positive from this one was Selemani’s debut, which was exciting and invigorating. He gave the ball away too cheaply at times, but his confidence on the ball and his ability to beat guys off the dribble were fantastic. And if he can work the ball onto his left foot in space, you can see how he could be a difference maker.

1. Jeevan Badwal

His influence waned in the second half, but Badwal was excellent in the first 45 minutes, pulling the strings in midfield and deserving his goal.

(Image: Vancouver Whitecaps FC)