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

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?

The Vancouver Whitecaps have signed Damir Kreilach. At one point he was one of MLS’ best attacking midfielders. But he’s not that anymore and it isn’t reasonable to expect him to be. He’s almost 35 and he’s had some pretty nasty injuries. But what are reasonable expectations for him? Firstly, we should talk about what Kreilach’s role on the team will be. I think it’s … Continue reading Setting Expectations for Damir Kreilach

How should the Whitecaps build on their strong 2023 season? In past years it was pretty easy to spot glaringly obvious weaknesses or holes that needed to be plugged. The current squad doesn’t really have those. Yet, it is clear that improvements have to be made because the squad was still clearly a level below LAFC when they met in the playoffs. We now know … Continue reading What should the Whitecaps do?

The Vancouver Whitecaps have drafted some guys! If the history of second and third-round draft picks is any indicator then the safe money is that Eliot Goldthorp and Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau will never play a second of MLS football. But changes to the rules about who can be drafted and an international heavy draft class have meant a lack of consensus about who the best … Continue reading Deep (ish) Dive: Vancouver Whitecaps 2024 Draft Picks

It’s fair to say that Yohei Takaoka’s form at the end of the 2023 season was not the best. He conceded a number of questionable goals and that, combined with with his somewhat limited ability to handle crosses, created problems for Vancouver. So, should Vancouver be looking to make improvements in goal? First, a PSA Before we begin we need to understand how we use … Continue reading Yohei Takaoka: Good Enough?

Well, the Whitecaps have once again failed to win a playoff game. Of course, there are some ways that this one was different from previous failures. For starters, the Whitecaps were pretty unlucky to be playing LAFC in the first round at all. If the xG table were the actual table, the Whitecaps would have had the home-field advantage against F.C Dallas, a matchup you’d … Continue reading The Whitecaps should go “all in” for 2024