The Vancouver Whitecaps drew 1-1 with the New York Red Bulls. A cross-continental road game against a team in the supporter’s shield race is essentially a scheduled loss in MLS so I very much see this as a point gained rather than two points lost, even though it was Vancouver that took the lead. RBNY’s 4-4-2 with its emphasis on pace and overlapping fullbacks was a tough … Continue reading Post Match: Fair Enough
The Vancouver Whitecaps defeated the Seattle Sounders 2-0 to recapture the top spot in the Western Conference. It was a game that almost defies analysis because of how much Seattle’s two red cards affected the outcome. But I will do my best. Before the First Red Card Before the first Red Card, the game was very boring. This, in my view, is a good thing. … Continue reading Post Match: Skullduggery
The Vancouver Whitecaps fell at home 3-1 to the L.A. Galaxy. Accurate analysis of this match requires threading a difficult needle. On the one hand, in terms of chances created, this game was basically a coin flip. Sometimes the coin flip goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t, but losing a coin flip is no reason to think the sky is falling. On the other hand, … Continue reading Post Match: Sometimes That Happens
This weekend sees a matchup between two teams who, on paper, are off to fantastic starts to the MLS season. But, for both the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Portland Timbers, things get a little more complicated when you look closer. Portland Timbers: The Portland Timbers currently sit 4th in the West with 7 points from 5 games. They began their season with two wins and … Continue reading Match Preview: Whitecaps vs. Timbers in Cascadian Showdown
The Vancouver Whitecaps have acquired Ralph Priso in a trade. Priso (21) was once seen as an extremely bright prospect but his star has faded a bit recently. Here we will investigate the likelihood that Priso can get back on track and fulfill his potential. A first look at the stats is not particularly promising. American Soccer Analysis’ G+ model is not fond of Priso, … Continue reading Reclamation Ralph
Despite a strong start on paper, anybody who has watched all four of the Vancouver Whitecaps’ MLS games can tell that something is not quite right. True, Vancouver has scored 7 goals but this is largely thanks to a ludicrously high conversion rate of the small number of chances they have created. There would seem to be an obvious scapegoat, that Damir Kreilach and Brian … Continue reading One Weird Trick to Score More Goals
The Vancouver Whitecaps defeated FC Dallas 3-1 in fairly convincing fashion. I have to say, I expected Dallas to take some major strides this season but they did not look very good. Vancouver, on the other hand, seems to have worked out whatever growing pains were involved in the switch to the new system. The big headline going into the game was that Fafa Picault … Continue reading Post Match: Undefeated
The Vancouver Whitecaps are back once again to take on Charlotte FC. Vancouver’s first foray into competitive football in 2024 was a bit of a false start as they were up against an in-season Tigres side, one of the best teams on the North American continent. Although it ended in defeat, the Tigres tie was a sort of moral victory, with Vancouver showing plenty of … Continue reading Match Preview: Whitecaps vs. Charlotte FC
For a while, I was worried that this series wasn’t going to be possible this year. It’s hard to start suggesting transfer targets if you only have a vague idea of what a club might be looking for. But Vanni Sartini gave an interview where he shed some light on what sort of player they were targeting. Apparently, he plans to play with a front … Continue reading Sensible Whitecaps Transfers – The Third Musketeer
The Vancouver Whitecaps have signed MLS veteran Fafa Picault. I have to say, I don’t really see the logic of this move. Between 2017 and 2021 Picault was an effective forward with a tremendous work rate who scored at an average to above average rate. Honestly, if we could go back in time and bring that version of Picault into the present day, he would … Continue reading Fafa Picault?