Issue #16 - For Better or For Worse Defending
Celebrating Canada Day with some highs and lows from this past week's Whitecaps FC action!
Hello!
Happy Canada Day to all who are reading this on Tuesday! Over the past week we had a couple different styles of Whitecaps FC action - one where defense was completely optional and another where defense was all they had going for them.
So for better or for worse, I bring you some weekly Whitecaps FC vibes on the backline.
The View
Going into the mid-week match against San Diego FC, you knew I had some worries. The Whitecaps FC form was sagging, players were picking up knocks (domestically and internationally), and the schedule had them play a hot club in the West and the club in LA that has the ‘Caps number.
So at the very least, the vibes were definitely off.
I didn’t think for one second the Whitecaps backline would take the entire night off on Wednesday - even in matches where the offense dries up, the defending remained relatively consistent. I simply wondered if it would be one of those tough nights to score goals…
Boy was I wrong on a few different counts.
Tate Johnson was serving up lunch. Édier Ocampo, while he scored a decent goal, elected to choose “Option C - None of the Above” in defensive decision making. Tristan Blackmon had his second rough match of the season. Ralph Priso… well… you probably get the point.
About the only “good” thing I got from the match was the fight that Matias Laborda had in him when he came on to start the second half, and the first MLS appearance and goal from Antoine Coupland in garbage time.
Having witnessed what we all suffered through on Wednesday night, I didn’t have any good feels watching the ‘Caps take on LAFC on Sunday night.
Denis Bouanga consistently does Bouanga things. Olivier Giroud came to realize the MLS wasn’t his thing and was playing his last match, certain to give it his all and then some. And the Whitecaps remained the same side we saw Wednesday night.
And despite all that, it was a completely different match. On all aspects.
The Whitecaps FC chose to defend. And when presented a choice to continue to defend, they defended some more. Matias Laborda gave Bouanga absolute fits all night long. Blackmon and Ranko Veselinović kept Giroux from doing anything too spectacular. And Ocampo, still not choosing defense first, had his issues sorted by starting on the wing.
So all it took was an absolutely stellar goal from Emmanuel Sabbi, off an equally nice setup from Jeevan Badwal, to give the Whitecaps what they needed to sort themselves out - a win.
Yes I wish the ‘Caps could’ve pulled the win off without Andrés Cubas picking up a knock early in the first half, potentially ruling him out of the match on Saturday against the LA Galaxy, but a win is a win.
And the Whitecaps needed it.
The Good
Antoine Coupland. The kid looked good. Sure he came on late in both matches, but his contribution in just a handful of minutes was noticeable.
That goal from Emmanuel Sabbi. Man oh man was it beautiful. As friend of the newsletter Catriona shared, it belongs in the Louvre.
The Not So Good
Wednesday Night. It was horrible. And dare I say it, worse than the 5-0 beat down in Mexico?!
Around the Pitch
Before I head back out to enjoy a little more holiday sun, I thought I’d drop a few items y’all might be interested in:
In the latest episode of The AFTN Soccer Show, Jesper Sørensen joined them to chat about the season so far & settling into Vancouver (67:30). But he also shared that Ryan Gauld remains a ways away from returning… 😔
Patrick Johnston did a dive into the impact Axel Schuster has had on the success we’re seeing from the Whitecaps FC this season, and honestly it’s hard to argue with him.
Remember Stuart Armstrong? He might be suiting up for Wrexham AFC as they enter the Championship this upcoming season. I’d suggest his play during the friendly a year ago had some impact, but Stuart wasn’t a ‘Cap yet… so… 😉
Did you make it this far? If so, drop an email to say hello (replying to this will do the trick)! I’m genuinely curious how many of you reach this point.
From my seat to your browser!
If you enjoyed this, please consider sharing on social media or forwarding it to someone that you think would love it just as much! ❤️
-Chris (@lyteforce.ca)