DC United tie up Batman and Robin

Posted: October 1, 2023 in Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps returned to BC Place for the first time since August 20 as DC United made a rare trip to the west coast. Vancouver and DC United traded goals and settled for a 2-2 draw in front of a crowd of 19,442 at BC Place. 

The Caps winless streak has hit four games as Vancouver continues to jockey for playoff positioning in a congested MLS western conference. 

Vancouver’s recent 0-2-2 run has Vancouver currently in 6th place in the west with an 11-10-10 record and 43 points with three matches remaining. 

“We created chances,” Vanni Sartini told reporters postgame. “We had a million chances in front of the goal. Unfortunately we’ve been a little soft again, we basically gave away a goal. It was a gift, and the second goal, I would say this. I use the term the same way that I used it in Salt Lake, we’ve been soft, and if you’re soft like this, it’s hard to win playoff games, and today was a playoff game.”

The Caps drop points at home for the second consecutive home match.

Vancouver is 7-3-5 at BC Place this season in MLS with two home matches to play. 

Brian White and Christian Benteke both scored their 14th goals of the season in the first half. White’s tally came two minutes into the match as scored on an unmarked header. 

Ryan Gauld found White for his 11th assist of the season. The batman and robin duo have scored the most combined goals by a set of teammates in MLS with 25 goals this season.

The peanut butter and jelly combination up top has carried the Whitecaps this season and made both players the most dangerous set of teammates in MLS.

If White and Gauld are batman and robin, which player is batman and who is robin?

“I think we’re both good with whatever you guys want to choose,” White said. “Whatever helps the team win.”

Gauld would score his goal, giving Vancouver a momentary lead when he converted a controversial penalty kick in the 56th minute. 

White was tripped up by a DC United defender and tumbled to the pitch. Initially play continued before a second look was needed.

DC United coach Wayne Rooney disagreed with the VAR decision to award the Whitecaps a penalty. Following the match, Rooney called the decision to award the penalty as harsh.  

“I’ve seen them given both ways,” Rooney told Har Journalist postgame. “I’ve seen them at a time where we would have got a free kick as well. I thought he (Brian White) goes into the player. He hasn’t lashed out but the referee decided it was a penalty.”

The Caps had little time to celebrate Gauld’s goal as Mateusz Klich sent a booming shot past Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka in the 63 minute. 

Vancouver was unable to clear the ball out of danger and Klich was left unmarked as he rifled a shot into the Caps net. 

Both DC United and Vancouver traded chances, but neither side was unable to break the deadlock and secure a third goal. As the playoff race heats up, each team earns a valuable late season point.

The Whitecaps welcomed back former head coach Carl Robinson and two former Whitecap players in Cristian Dajome and Erik Hurtado. The club showed a video tribute honouring all three following the end pre-game warmups.

Robinson spent parts of five seasons as the Whitecaps coach and currently remains as the only manager to coach a home playoff match. DC United will remain on the road as they travel to Texas to take on Austin FC on Wednesday.

Vancouver will host expansion side St. Louis City SC on Wednesday at BC Place. 

The Whitecaps shoot down the Galaxy

Posted: July 16, 2023 in LA Galaxy, Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Wisconsin Badgers
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps scored early and often in a 4-2 win over the LA Galaxy. With head coach Vanni Sartini serving a one game suspension, the Whitecaps didn’t miss a beat. A first half brace from Ryan Gauld helped propel Vancouver to their second home victory this week. 

A crowd of 18,354 was on hand at BC Place as Vancouver scored three-first half goals.

Whitecaps assistant head coach Michael D’Agostino stepped in for the suspended Sartini who could be heard yelling instructions from above press row.

“I’ll be honest, it’s a lot harder than I kind of thought,” D’Agostino said postgame. “Being the one that has to make decisions in these types of times, especially as the game changed in terms of momentum. It’s something that’s very, very difficult, but at the end of the day, it’s an experience that I’ve always wanted to try to go through, and now that I’ve done it, I think if I ever get the opportunity again, it’ll be just a little bit easier.”

Vancouver improves to 8-7-7 with 31 points this season.

The Caps earn their seventh MLS home win of the season and climb up to 7th spot in the western conference. 

Greg Vanney and the LA Galaxy fall to 5-10-7 on the campaign with 22 points.

Brian White opened the scoring two minutes into the match after receiving a terrific cross into the LA Galaxy box from Ryan Raposo.

White was able to get position on his defender and sent a header past LA Galaxy goalkeeper, Jonathan Bond. 

Speaking to reporters following the match, Bond was visibly frustrated by the turf playing surface at BC Place.

This is not the first time Bond has been unhappy with the BC Place pitch. 

“I’m not going to lie, the turf absolutely killed me,” Bond said. “The ball doesn’t bounce on the turf and it’s very difficult when you’re training everyday and you’re used to a certain standard of field and then suddenly we’re playing on that. Obviously I can do better, but honestly that can’t be a professional standard of surface.” 

Gauld scored his first of the night in the 11th minute after being set up by Julian Gressel. The U.S. national team midfielder sent a ball into the box that was deflected, but not cleared away by LA.

Gauld sent a booming shot top left corner past Bond to make it 2-0.

What’s been the key to Gauld’s fantastic form?

“I don’t know,” Gauld said postgame. “Getting into the right positions and either the boys finding me in the right areas or them putting away the chances I create. There’s not much more to it. Thankfully, I’ve just been kind of popping up in the right areas and hope it continues.”

The home side wasn’t done scoring and they quickly made it three-nil in the 25th minute. 

Galaxy defender Chris Mavinga brought down White who was off to the race. Mavinga was originally issued a straight red card by referee Joe Dickerson. VAR would determine that a yellow card was a more sufficient ruling. Because Mavinga was already on a yellow card, he was forced to exit the match. Whitecaps fans serenaded him as he departed the pitch. 

With his parents in attendance, Gauld stepped up and calmly converted the penalty for his seventh MLS goal of the season. One behind Whitecaps leading goal-scorer, Brian White. 

The LA Galaxy were able to get on the scoresheet in the second half following a set piece. 

Riqui Puig delivered a corner kick into the Vancouver box. Gaston Brugman sent a shot through a maze of Whitecaps defenders and past Yohei Takaoka. 

Despite having to play the final 68 minutes of the match down to ten men following the dismissal of Mavinga, the Galaxy kept fighting and slowly clawed their way back into the game.

Former Toronto FC man, Mark Delgado got the LA Galaxy within a goal in the 74th minute when he sprinted past several Whitecaps defenders and ripped a shot five-hole past Takaoka. Delgado subsequently fell to the ground and was substituted out of the match. 

Any chances of LA earning a late equalizer were dashed in second half stoppage time when Sergio Cordova pounced on a rebound to put the game out of reach. 

After struggling to get on the scoresheet this season, Cordova has scored in back to back games. 

Vancouver concludes a home stretch of three MLS matches in a span of eight days. 

The Whitecaps picked up six total points and now will prepare for The Campeones Cup, where they will play the LA Galaxy and Liga MX side, Club Leon in the group stage. 

Cordova and the Caps take down Austin FC

Posted: July 13, 2023 in Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Canucks, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps losing streak has come to an end following a 2-1 victory over Austin FC. After going pointless in their last two MLS matches. Vancouver broke out of their slump and earned all three points vs Austin FC. 

The Whitecaps move to 3-0-0 all-time at home when they play Austin FC.

A crowd of 14,995 was on hand at BC Place to watch Whitecaps earn their sixth MLS win at home this season. 

Pedro Vite scored 29 seconds into the match before Rodney Redes tied the game early in the second half.

Sergio Cordova scored the game winning goal two minutes after coming on as a second half substitute. 

The intensity picked up during 9 minutes of second half stoppage time.

Austin FC was awarded a free kick late in stoppage time following a tackle outside the Caps box from Tristan Blackmon. The attempt would fly well over the Whitecaps net. 

But that wasn’t the end of the excitement. 

Whitecaps coach Vanni Sartini prematurely went over to the Austin FC technical area to shake Austin FC coach Josh Wolff’s hand. The match had not yet concluded and Sartini was issued a yellow card from referee Nima Saghafi.

As a result of receiving his third yellow card of the season, Sartini will be suspended and unable to coach when Vancouver hosts the LA Galaxy on Saturday night at BC Place. 

Speaking to Har Journalist following the match, Wolff wasn’t pleased with Sartini. 

“I don’t know,” Wolff said, when asked what happened. “I wasn’t paying attention when he pulls that stunt. That’s him being him. If he wants to make a show of it he can. I got respect for coaches in the game and I certainly wouldn’t carry myself or handle myself in that manner.” 

Does Wolff have respect for Vanni?

“Of course,” Wolff said. “He was my instructor doing my pro licence as a young coach. Of course I have respect for him, but I think antics like that are nonsense.” 

The Whitecaps improve to 7-7-7 on the season with 28 points and remain in 9th position in the western conference.

Austin FC fall to 8-9-5 on the campaign with 29 points.

“We talked with the team that we had to bounce back in terms of result,” Sartini said postgame. “In terms of being better in some moments. The game against Seattle actually was good, so we had to build on that game, and I think we did, playing very well tonight against a very good team, and deserving the win”

Vancouver opened the scoring less than a minute into the match thanks to Vite’s fourth goal of the season. White was able to switch up the Caps play in transition when he found Vite on the left side of the field. Vite raced in and beat Brad Stuver through the wickets. 

Austin FC had a terrific opportunity to tie the match in the 23rd minute when Ethan Finlay received a ball over the top. Finlay broke in on goal and fired a shot on target from a difficult angle. Yohei Takaoka was able to make a tough save to deny the visitors an equalizer. 

Finlay was able to get the rebound and play the ball into the Caps box. Austin FC captain Sebastian Driussi was unmarked as he sailed his header well over the Vancouver bar. 

The Whitecaps went into the interval with a slim one-nil advantage over Austin FC, but that lead would quickly vanish as the green clad Texans would tie the match after the break. 

Wolff elected to make a pair of substitutions before the second half began. Diego Fagundez and Ethan Finlay departed the match for Emiliano Rigoni and Rodney Redes. The switch in tactics immediately paid off for Austin FC. 

The 23-year-old Redes scored his first career MLS goal off a scramble inside the Whitecaps in the 48th minute. With Takaoka down and out, Redes was able to get control of a loose ball and riffle the ball into the net to even the match. 

Whitecaps FC’s Cordova has struggled at times this season as he looks to find his form with Vancouver. Cordova came into the match in the 70th minute and immediately made an impact with his first goal for Vancouver. 

Ryan Gauld played Cordova in and he cut across the Austin FC box, before waiting for Stuver to commit. Cordova calmly converted and the crowd erupted with cheers. 

“I feel good.” Cordova said postgame. “I feel happy to be able to give the team the three points today. From a personal point of view, it’s something that makes me very happy, it’s something I have been working on for many weeks, to get that goal. It’s a weight off my shoulders, and I think it’s a new start for me. I am very, very happy, and I hope it’s the beginning of a good run for me and for the team.”

Whitecaps assistant head coach Michael D’Agostino will slide into the head coaching spot when Vancouver concludes a three game MLS home-stand on Saturday vs LA Galaxy. 

Whitecaps Soundly Defeated

Posted: July 8, 2023 in Seattle Sounders, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps and Sounders put on a show as they renewed acquaintances for the 150th all-time meeting between the two Cascadia rivals. The Whitecaps surrendered a trio of second half goals as the Sounders came away with a 3-2 win over the Caps.

A crowd of 16,399 was on hand as both teams traded goals in a back and forth match that ended with the home team being serenaded with boo’s as the closing seconds ticked away.

Vancouver suffers back to back defeats and falls to 6-7-7 on the season.

The Caps remain in 9th spot in the western conference with 25 points.

Seattle climbs to 10-7-5 on the season with 35 points. The Sounders sit in second spot in the west. 

“It was a beautiful game,” Sartini said postgame. “A beautiful game of soccer, to be honest. Every team had a lot of chances. They scored off a set-piece but we scored on set pieces too. The third one was on the throw-in where Cleveland made a fantastic save, and it could have been us 3-2. We’ve been very naive on the second goal. I think the first goal, when someone jumps in front of you, there’s a lot of traffic and they’ve been kind of lucky. I’m very pissed on the second goal for a lot of things, because we had the ball, complete control, we gave it away, foul, then we didn’t shift. We worked the week, we know that they had Jackson Ragen there, and we had to shift and go there to win the ball and we didn’t. The third one, it was like (Nico) Lodeiro made magic, but also I strongly disagree with the call of the referee (on the second yellow card to Laborda).”

Ryan Gauld continued his positive form with a goal and assist for Vancouver.

Leo Chu one upped the Caps skipper with a second half brace.

Chu was unmarked on both of his Seattle goals.

“When we talk about defending, it’s all of us,” Gauld said postgame. “It’s not just the defenders. Up top we were struggling to figure out the pressure, and they had a lot of the ball. They didn’t really create much from that, but I think it’s pretty clear the three goals come from set pieces and we need to be better.”

The Whitecaps had an opportunity to tie a MLS franchise record of ten matches without a home defeat, but it was not to be. This was the first Whitecaps home MLS loss since February 25 when Vancouver lost 2-1 to Real Salt Lake in the home opener. 

Ranko Veselinovic opened the scoring with his second goal of the season in the 24’ minute following a Vancouver set piece. Gauld sent the ball in and the Serbian centre back was able to smash home a header. 

“We actually conceded from three set pieces,” Veselinovic said postgame. “That’s something that we have to talk a lot for the next game, Wednesday. Austin is also really good, they have high players so they’re going to do the same. I think we have to see what can happen more to not allow so many set pieces, you know, during the game, to see why we drop so much in the second half.”

The Whitecaps were in control for much of the opening forty-five, but they were unable to add to their opening goal.

Brian White looked like he was going to add to his team leading seventh goal of the season, but VAR had other ideas.

White was clearly in an offside position when he received the ball and scored in the 38th minute.        

Seattle’s best scoring opportunity came from midfielder Alex Roldan after he broke down the wing, kept the ball inbounds and played the ball to an unmarked Raul Ruidiaz. 

Yohei Takaoka was in perfect position to deny Ruidiaz a tying goal for the visitors.    

VAR made an appearance just before halftime when the Sounders looked like they were set to earn a penalty from the spot after the ball struck a pair of Whitecaps players. 

The ball hit Sebastian Berhalter and Luis Martins in a manner that could be viewed as a handball infraction and a subsequent penalty. VAR determined that a handball was not deemed.

The Whitecaps went into the interval with a slim 1-0 lead over the Sounders. 

The Emerald City visitors came out to start the second half with a spring in their step. The Sounders were in control early on as they hemmed the Whitecaps inside their own half. 

The persistent hard work paid off for the Sounders in the 60th minute when Chu and Jackson Ragen teamed up to square the match. Ragen sent the ball in and Chu split a pair of defenders to volley the ball past Takaoka.

Gauld was able to break the deadlock and restore the Whitecaps lead in the 72nd minute after White sprung the skipper.

Gauld was one on one with Cleveland and he deposited the ball for his fifth goal of the season. 

The goals kept coming with the Sounders quickly trying the match for the second time in the half. Chu was left unmarked in front of goal in the 76th minute and calmly collected his second tally of the evening off a pass from Ragen. 

“The biggest takeaway is that against a quality, quality team, you cannot allow yourself to be casual,” Sartini said. “Like we’ve been in the second goal. We have like a minute and a half of being casual. Being casual, losing the ball, and being casual in not putting ourselves in the right positions in the set-plays.”

It only went from bad to worse for the Whitecaps after centre back Mathias Laborda was issued a second yellow card in the 89th minute. 

Moments after slowly walking off the pitch and leaving his teammates shorthanded, Seattle capitalized and scored the match-winner. 

Yelmar Gomez Andrade and a pair of Sounders teammates were left unmarked. Takaoka was out of the picture, and the Sounders defender scored on the vacated net. 

The Whitecaps defensive errors cost them and Seattle took full advantage.

Vancouver will look to bounce back when they host Austin FC on Wednesday night at BC Place before the Los Angeles Galaxy visit Vancouver on Saturday, July 15.

The Whitecaps look to smash the Rapids

Posted: June 20, 2023 in Colorado Rapids, Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps are back on the pitch this week with a pair of road matches following a 10 day break in action. Vancouver will take on the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday night at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park before travelling west to battle LAFC on Saturday night at BMO Stadium.

As the Caps prepare for a road heavy schedule in the second half of the season, the team is looking to build some confidence away from BC Place starting with a win on Wednesday.

The Whitecaps will play three consecutive matches on the road as they look to win their first MLS road game since June 18, 2022 at FC Dallas. Coaches, players, and staff are well aware of the Caps 0-8-7 MLS road run of form and they’re looking to change that. 

“I think it’s the opportunity to make our first win away,” Coach Vanni Sartini told Har Journalist following training on Tuesday. “I know it’s going to be hard for a million reasons, especially the first two games. One is an environment that is difficult, they never won at home yet and it’s a really hard place to play with the altitude and everything. The other thing is in LA, the quality of the team is really good.”

The Rapids have yet to win an MLS home game this season, but Whitecaps leading goal-scorer Brian White isn’t taking them lightly. Travelling to Colorado is never easy because of the unique challenges that playing at high altitude brings. 

“Yeah it’s a great opportunity,” White told Har Journalist following training on Tuesday. “The conditions are difficult to adjust to. It’s going to be close to 90F (30C). The altitude is always tough and it’s their home field. Obviously we’re waiting for the away win and they’re waiting for the home win so it’s going to be a tough game for sure.”

How is White preparing for the altitude? 

“There’s beetroot juice, spinach, and stuff to get the nitrates,” White explained. “The science is a little bit beyond me right now. I think it’s something with nitrates and oxygen blood flow or something.”

The Caps have 10 MLS road games remaining and that includes a six game road journey in late August and early September. Vancouver is 0-4-3 away from BC Place this season. 

Winning away from home could go a long way in determining whether or not Vancouver earns a playoff spot.

Currently the Caps are 5-5-7 (21 points) sitting in 8th spot in the west.

“Probably the next three games are the most important of the season,” Sartini said. “We know that if we don’t win away. It’s hard to be in the playoffs at the end. If you don’t win away, it means that you probably have to must win every game at home.”

Ahead of a two game trip Sartini has a simple message for his team. 

“He just told us we have to win two games,” Ranko Veselinovic told Har Journalist following training on Tuesday. “We don’t need some extra motivation, especially because we desperately need points away. We know what’s at stake and we know we have to perform at one hundred percent.”

While this will be the Whitecaps lone trip to Colorado this season, the same can’t be said for Veselinovic. The Serbian centre back made a last minute decision to travel to Denver to watch Game 5 of the NBA Finals on June 12. 

It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for Veselinovic to watch his countryman Nikola Jokic in person as he led the Denver Nuggets to their first NBA Championship.

“It was unbelievable,” Veselinovic said. “It was a different feeling, I would be sorry if I didn’t go, to miss that opportunity to watch it.” 

How did Veselinovic find a ticket to the game?

“I just found them online,” Veselinovic explained. “There was a few tickets, it was hard. I found it at the last minute.”

The Whitecaps will be hoping that Colorado is just the ticket they need to bump their road slump and earn a victory away from home. 

Vancouver will be without a trio of players as they navigate the Rapids. 

Julian Gressel and Javain Brown will be unavailable due to international duty and Russell Teibert won’t travel with the team this week as he recovers from a knee injury.

The Rapids are 0-4-4 at home this season and they are tied for last in MLS with 13 points. 

Gauld rescues a point for the Whitecaps

Posted: June 4, 2023 in Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps impressive run of form at home looked to be in danger as the clock ticked closer to full-time on Saturday night at BC Place. Just as it looked like Sporting Kansas City would leave with a 1-0 victory, Vancouver was given a life line with a late penalty thanks to a VAR decision following a foul Deiber Caicedo. 

Ryan Gauld stepped up to take the penalty and calmly converted for his second goal of the season and second tally in as many matches.

Vancouver escaped with a 1-1 draw in front of a crowd of 13,739 at BC Place. 

“The first half we didn’t do very well,” Whitecaps coach Sartini said post game. “I think we were too slow in moving the ball. We didn’t pack the space in behind and that helped them to defend with no problem, basically. Then they found a very good goal, Pulido scored a very good goal on a set play and it was hard to try and score again.”

“Second half, I think we did very well,” Sartini added. “I think there’s not too much of a difference between the second half that we played against Houston and the second half that we played today. The only thing was we scored every shot, and today we didn’t. I’m very satisfied, I think we deserved the point, I think we deserve even more to be honest, but losing would have been very unfair. We’re a little frustrated because we could have won, but at the same time these are points that are very important at the end to get into the playoffs.” 

Alan Pulido’s first half goal gave Sporting Kansas City a lead that they weren’t able to hold. 

The Whitecaps’ draw leaves them with a record of 5-5-6 (21 points).

Sporting Kansas City moves to 4-8-5 (17 points) on the season. 

It was a feisty game between the two western conference foes.

The Whitecaps picked up four yellow cards, while Sporting Kansas City earned three. Sartini also picked up a yellow card in the second half while awaiting the VAR decision on the Caicedo foul. 

Not known for holding his opinion back, Sartini was asked about his thoughts on referee Lukasz Szpala post game. 

“I think he did do well,” Sartini said. “I don’t know, I have to be honest why didn’t he check when the assistant called the offside for the goal. He didn’t go to the VAR to check. If you look at the shot, probably Tristan is… because the goalkeeper is higher, technically offside, but I think that he doesn’t interfere with anything.”

The Sporting Kansas City goal came off of a corner in the 20th minute. 

Erik Thommy delivered a corner inside the Caps box, and Pulido out muscled Sergio Cordova to connect on a header for the opening goal of the match.

The Whitecaps looked to have a quick reply moments later off a corner of their own.

Gauld fired a shot into the Sporting Kansas City box that deflected off a KC defender and past Sporting Kansas City goalkeeper, Kendall McIntosh. 

As the crowd erupted, VAR was summoned to review the play for a possible offside infraction. 

VAR would determine that Blackmon was in an offside position and McIntosh was ahead of him on the play. 

The Caps goal was not to be and a sea of boo’s rang out inside BC Place.

Both teams went into halftime with a fifty-fifty share of possession, but the visitors had the advantage thanks to Pulido’s second goal of the season. 

The Whitecaps were pressing early in the second half as they looked for an equalizer. 

Gauld found a streaking Brian White who found space behind the Kansas City back line. 

White fired a shot on target that McIntosh was able to get a hand on to deflect the ball off the post in the 58th minute. 

“I think we’re disappointed to not get the win at home,” Brian White said. “It was a frustrating game. At the end of the day we came out with a point. We’ve got to take it in and move on to the championship game we have coming up on Wednesday.”

Vancouver was able to rescue a point following the third VAR decision in the match. 

Robert Voloder tripped Caicedo in the box in the 87th minute.

Gauld sent the penalty kick straight down the middle to square the match at 1-1. 

“A little bit frustrating,” Gauld said when asked for his thoughts on the match. “We gave away a little bit of a soft goal. The second half we had a lot of possession, so I think the boys are frustrated to come away with just a point. But you know being one down and showing the fight and the character to come back and get a point, it’s always a positive.”

After struggling to create offence for large stretches, Vancouver was able to stay switched on and they earned a late foul, which led to the penalty shout and a share of the points.

The Whitecaps will look to rest and recover for Wednesday’s Canadian Championship final when they host CF Montreal at BC Place for a chance to hoist the Voyageur’s Cup in back to back seasons.

“I play to win the game,” Julian Gressel

Posted: June 2, 2023 in Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – Julian Gressel has been a difference maker for the Whitecaps on and off the pitch this season. Whether it’s dishing out dimes, providing leadership, or helping to raise money for BC Children’s Hospital, Gressel has stepped up in waves. 

On Wednesday night at BC Place, Vancouver dialled up the offence and put six goals past flexing Houston goalkeeper Steve Clark and his abysmal Dynamo defence.  

Not only did the Caps set a club record for the most goals scored in an MLS match, but Gressel did something that he hasn’t done since his college days as a Providence Friar. 

Gressel scored a brace. 

“Yeah it was good,” Gressel told Har Journalist following training on Friday.  I’m there to score goals as well. I think I’ve shown that over the last month. To have it happen twice in a game, I think this is obviously nice. I’ve been waiting for that to happen in MLS because I’ve done it before in college. It feels good to help the team. At halftime I thought we had a different gear to us and that we could really win the game in the end. Yeah, good emotions, good feelings, but overall just really happy with the win.”

The 29-year-old Gressel is in a contract year and will become a free agent at the conclusion of the 2023 season, if a contract extension is not reached with Vancouver.

With Whitecaps co-owner Jeff Mallett in attendance on Wednesday evening, you might say that Gressel’s first career MLS double came at the perfect time. 

“I didn’t even know he was there,” Gressel laughed. “I play to win the game, that was it. I try to score every time, assist every time and try to do my thing of what I have been doing this season. Yeah, obviously just happy to have that win.”

In his first full season with the Whitecaps, Gressel is off to a fantastic start. He has been an integral part of the Caps offence as a dynamic distributor, deliverer of crosses, corners, and creator of open space.

Gressel does it all and he isn’t showing signs of slowing down. 

As the calendar turns to June and Vancouver prepares to play Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night at BC Place, Gressel was asked about contract talks with the Whitecaps. 

“What is it, like the 2nd of June,” Gressel said. “No new news. We’ve been so busy with games, it’s just really not been on my radar. It’s hard to follow up with things like that with my agent. I haven’t spoken to him in a little bit.”

In his seventh MLS season, Gressel is set to earn a salary of $939,781.

His guaranteed compensation places him fourth on the team behind Ryan Gauld at $2.5 million, Sergio Cordova at $1 million, and Alessandro Schopf earning a cool $922,500.

As both sides remain quiet on the negotiating process could there be a possible stalemate? 

“Not a stalemate,” Gressel said. “I think there’s still good conversations like it has been in the past. It’s something that’s going to come up probably very soon. We’ll see how the next few weeks continue with that. Right now we have another game tomorrow and then a huge game Wednesday, and then Cincinnati, and we’ll kind of see from there.”

Gressel along with goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka have started all but one of the Whitecaps MLS matches this season. Gressel has contributed three goals and five assists. He is on pace to set a new personal record for the most goals he has scored in an MLS season. 

His three goals scored put him in a tie for third place with Pedro Vite, just behind Brian White’s six goals, and Simon Becher’s four goals.

If Gressel maintains his 83% passing percentage, he would set a new personal MLS career high in that category. His 518 passes rank first among Whitecaps attacking minded players. He leads the team with 349 accurate passes forward. 

Gressel is also first on the team with 26 delivered crosses.

Among outfield players he is second on the team in MLS minutes played with 1,171. 

“I’m just happy that I’m playing the way I am,” Gressel said. “That we’re in the position that we’re in right now. We obviously want to continue that and I want to continue that and continue the way I’m playing. I think it’s something that is new, in terms of a new role for me in a new position. It just shows that I’ve also got that type of game to show for and that quality which I think not a lot of people expected out of me. It’s certainly nice to be as effective as I am as a central midfielder and showcase my qualities in that role. Everything else is out of my hands. All I can control is what I do on the field.”

What has been the key to Gressel’s success? 

“The key is me,” Vanni Sartini joked. “Julian is a very good player. I think last year you saw 30% – 40% of what he could do because his life changed coming from DC to here. He didn’t even know about coming here before being traded and everything.”

“Having the preseason under his belt and having the change in position was critical for me,” Sartini added. “I don’t think he has the mileage anymore to be a wing-back for the entire season. He can play that game maybe a couple of games during the season or part of the game like he did in St. Louis very well. Now he’s a midfielder and his quality on the ball, his leadership makes him one of our most important players at the moment.”

Gressel’s strong showing this season has not gone unnoticed at the international level.

He was named to the U.S. 2023 Gold Cup preliminary roster earlier this week. 

While he was not added to the U.S. Concacaf Nations League training camp roster on Thursday, U.S. Soccer interim coach, B.J. Callaghan is keeping close tabs on the progress of Gressel. 

“Julian has been having a great season and has impressed in his two camps with us,” Callaghan said. “The strength of the U.S. player pool is its depth, and there’s a lot of competition. He is a player we continue to follow closely and will be in consideration for the Gold Cup.”

The Whitecaps are back at home for a stretch of important matches and looking to improve upon their MLS leading 22 wins since returning home to BC Place in August of 2021. 

Sporting Kansas City travels to the west coast with a 1-5-3 road record.

Vancouver is 5-1-2 at BC Place this season, having not suffered a defeat at BC Place since the home opener in February. 

The visitors are 4-8-4 (16 points) this season and the Whitecaps are 5-5-5 (20 points). 

A chaotic record setting Whitecaps win

Posted: June 1, 2023 in Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps
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VANCOUVER, BC – The goals came fast and furious for the Whitecaps as they pummelled the Houston Dynamo to the tune of a 6-2 thrashing. Pedro Vite and Brian White helped set an MLS record for the fastest goals scored by one team in in each half of an MLS match. 

The Whitecaps also set a club record for the most MLS goals scored in a single match.

White scored the match winner, Ryan Gauld and Sebastian Berhalter scored their first goals of the season, and Julian Gressel scored in each half to earn his first career MLS brace.

A crowd of 13,222 fans was on hand at BC Place.

The Caps improve to 5-5-5 (20 points) on the season and Houston continues to have problems away from home. The Dynamo drop 0-5-2 on the road and 5-6-3 (18 points) overall. 

Despite the win and the record setting offence, Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini was none too pleased with how his team played defensively in the first half of the match.  

“I think it was our worst performance of the season to be honest,” Sartini told reporters. “The first half was, I want to say a word that is not a bad word, but it’s really, really, really hard not to say because I think we were terrible. The first half we were like completely terrible. Houston should have been up at least by two goals. The second half actually we played very well. You see the difference when we play well and we do what we’re supposed to do, instead of everyone trying to do everything by themselves.”

“Guys, don’t get misguided by the results,” Sartini continued. “Because I’m the first one who defends the team, who says that we play well even when we lose but today we’ve been very, very, very lucky.”

The Whitecaps could have easily been on the wrong end of a lopsided score line if not for the strong play of goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka. The Dynamo had a 55%-45% possession advantage in the first half and fired five shots on target while creating several quality scoring chances. Vancouver could have trailed, but instead went into the half tied 2-2

“We took 45 minutes of vacation, of collective vacation,” Sartini said. “There was a lot of effort, but there was no brain in what we were doing and that was painful to watch to be honest, like literally painful and luckily they didn’t score. Post, Yohei made a couple of big saves and in the second half actually it was a completely different team, so maybe we were the Blackcaps in the first half and the Whitecaps in the second half.”

Both teams put on an offensive show combining for four goals in the first 18 minutes of play.

All it took was 15 seconds for the Whitecaps to kickoff the goal-fest as Vite became the fastest Vancouver player to open an MLS match with a goal. 

The Houston Dynamo were able to quickly answer back with an equalizer in the 8th minute when defender Javain Brown mistimed a diving clearance in front of his own goal. 

Dynamo striker Corey Baird was unmarked and in perfect position to fire a shot past Takaoka for his first goal of the season. Houston wasn’t finished with their first half barrage. 

The visitors quickly jumped ahead of Vancouver with a goal in the 16th minute when Amine Bassi was able to connect on a ball over the top from Daniel Steres. Bassi was able to race past Mathias Laborda, stay onside, and slide the ball past Takaoka to make it 2-1.

As fast as the Dynamo turned the table on the Whitecaps, the home team was able to bounce back with an equalizer of their own two minutes after Bassi put Houston ahead. 

Gauld delivered a terrific cross to a streaking Gressel who was able to connect with a booming shot from just beyond the Dynamo box. 

Gressel was able to beat Clark for his second MLS goal of the season to tie the match at two apiece. 

As fast as the goals came in the first half they continued to pile up in the second half.

10 seconds into the second half White scored his team leading sixth MLS goal of the season when he pounced on a rebound, following a shot from Gauld that beat Clark and struck the post. 

The New Jersey native was able to give Vancouver a 3-2 lead in the 46th minute off a designed set play.

“Guys, please write it down and underline and highlight it,” Sartini said. “(The second half kickoff goal) was prepared by my assistant coach Michael D’Agostino, so I’m very happy about that.”

Vancouver was able to add to their goal haul in the 59th minute following a long distance strike from Gauld that handcuffed Clark. Gressel was in the perfect spot to capitalize on the rebound to deposit his second goal of the match and third of the campaign. 

Sebastian Berhalter put the nail in the coffin with his first career MLS goal off a fantastic volley scored in the 88th minute. 

“It was good,” Berhalter said post game. “I kind of just got the ball on the top of the box. As soon as I took that touch off my chest I just saw it and I let it fly. Then from there, the goal and to see all my teammates, you know, it’s all to them, so I’m super happy.”

Berhalter wasn’t done creating offence as he connected with Gauld for his first goal of the season. The Whitecaps sixth and record setting goal came in stoppage time as they completely demolished the Houston Dynamo from start to finish. 

BC Place has proven to be a house of horrors for the visiting Houston Dynamo and that continued on this occasion as they succumbed to an onslaught of goals from Vancouver.

The Dynamo fall to 9-0-3 all-time at BC Place. 

Vancouver will look to continue their strong run of form at BC Place when they host Sporting Kansas City on Saturday. 

Pedro Vite: En Fuego

Posted: May 21, 2023 in Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps and Sounders renewed hostilities in the first of three matches this season as the two Cascadia rivals met at BC Place on Saturday night. It was an intense fixture with the Vancouver coming out on top with a 2-0 victory. A crowd of 19,108 was on hand at BC Place as supporters from both teams created a raucous environment.

For the second consecutive home match against Seattle and the second consecutive Whitecaps match, Pedro Vite came up big opening the scoring for Vancouver in the first half.

What is it about the Sounders that bring out the best in Vite?

“Yeah the fans always give us the extra push,” Vite explained. “I love it when we get loads of people here to watch us, to witness the football that we put on a show here. In terms of scoring against Seattle, thanks to God, I was able to score last year and this year. The most important thing overall was that we were able to get the three points and the win.”

Sounders keeper Stefan Frei was credited with an own goal in the second half that made it 2-0. 

Yohei Takaoka wasn’t busy as he finished with one save to earn his fifth clean sheet of the season.

Four of Takaoka’s clean sheets have come at BC Place this season. 

This is the first time the Caps have beat the Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders at BC Place during the MLS regular season. 

Whitecaps improve to 4-4-5 (17 points) and the Sounders drop to 7-5-2 (23 points) 

Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini was full of excitement when he spoke to the reporters postgame. 

“Fantastic performance,” Sartini said. “Fantastic victory. We smashed the best team in the western conference, with LAFC. It reminded us how good we are when we are doing the things we are supposed to do. I think the two goals is even generous for them, because we could have had even more. I’m very happy because we played really, really, really well.”

Vite was able to score his fourth career MLS goal after he out muscled Sounders midfielder Alex Roldan to a loose ball.

The 21-year-old Vite was able to poke the ball past Frei to give the Caps the advantage. 

“Yeah Ali (Ahmed) was very active in the pressure down the wing,” Vite told reporters following the match. “He saw me in the box and I made a diagonal run. I saw the space in the box and he put in a good ball. My first touch wasn’t the best, but I was able to wriggle free and get a good touch on it.”

Vite’s hustle and determination to get to the ball led to the first shot on target of the match for both teams. Prior to that, both teams had played a disjointed opening forty-five with few scoring chances. 

The Caps held a 52% – 48% possession advantage at the half. 

Ryan Gauld looked to have opened his MLS account with his first goal of the season in the 58th minute.

Luis Martins setup Gauld who fired a low shot inside and off the Sounders post. Frei was able to get a hand to the ball but it wasn’t enough to keep the ball out.

Upon further review the goal was awarded as an own goal against the Sounders keeper.

This is the second time this season Gauld has had a goal taken away from him and credited as an own goal.

The Whitecaps have been the recipient of three own goals this season.

After scoring the lone Sounders goal on Wednesday night vs Austin FC, Fredy Montero earned the start and went the distance against his former club.

The Colombian striker and his Sounders teammates were unable to generate much offence against the Caps. Montero shared his thoughts on the match when he spoke to Har Journalist postgame. 

“It wasn’t the result that we wanted,” Montero said. “I’ve been in MLS long enough and I know that sometimes you have this moment in the season where you have bad results, but the season is long. We are in second place and hopefully we go back home and we have one more week to think about what we didn’t do well and hopefully we can get the next result.”

The Sounders will return home for the first of three MLS matches at Lumen Field when they take on the New York Red Bulls on Saturday, May 27.

The Whitecaps will hit the road for a pair of matches starting on Wednesday, May 24 when they battle Pacific FC in the semifinals of the Canadian Championship tournament. Vancouver will also travel to Missouri to play St. Louis City SC on Saturday, May 27.

Can the Whitecaps win in Texas?

Posted: May 16, 2023 in FC Dallas, Major League Soccer, Vancouver, Vancouver Whitecaps, Whitecaps FC
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VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps are back on the road this week with a midweek clash in The Lone Star State against FC Dallas. The Caps are coming off a 3-1 loss to the Portland Timbers, a defeat that snapped the Whitecaps eight match MLS unbeaten streak.

As one streak comes to an end, another streak continues. Vancouver is on a 4-0-3 run of form against FC Dallas.

The Whitecaps and FC Dallas met earlier this season when they played to a 1-1 draw at BC Place on March 11.

The road has not been kind to the Whitecaps, Vancouver has not earned an MLS road victory since June 18, 2022.

Coincidentally, that was at Toyota Stadium against FC Dallas. 

“Obviously it’s a familiar feeling going there and getting a win,” Tristan Blackmon told Har Journalist following training earlier this week. “It’s a good opportunity after that game last weekend. A short turnaround to write some of those wrongs that happened in the last game. Yeah, it’s a good matchup. We saw them at the beginning of the year and we think we can go there and take points.”

Vancouver is approaching eleven months without earning an MLS road win.

As co-leading goal-scorer Brian White pointed out following training at the National Soccer Development Centre, Vancouver didn’t play a road MLS match in all eleven months. 

“Do you count the fact that we didn’t play for three months?” White asked. “It’s a slanted stat when you don’t play.”

The Whitecaps are 0-2-3 away from BC Place this season.

Going back to June 18, the Caps are 0-7-8 when they play an MLS road match outside of Vancouver, BC.

The 27-year-old White will return to the starting lineup after missing the Whitecaps previous two matches due to a quad contusion he picked up vs Minnesota United FC.

How can White and the Caps conquer their road woes?

“We have to be sharp,” White told Har Journalist. “Anytime you go away in this league especially in the summer it’s going to be a test. Especially in Dallas, it’s going to be hot. They have good players, so we have to come out and put our best foot forward. Be sharp from the get go and do everything we can to bring home three points.”

FC Dallas currently sit fourth in the MLS western conference with a 5-3-3 (18 points) record and a 3-1-1 record at home.

The Toros are coming off a one-nil win over in-state rivals Austin FC. Striker Jesus Ferrerira scored the match winner in the 89’ minute. 

The Whitecaps are 3-3-5 (14 points) this season and sit in 8th place in the west.

Coach Vanni Sartini has not yet committed to the lineup he will select against FC Dallas. 

Sartini wants to see how his players perform during training on Tuesday before the team makes the long journey to Texas. This was not the case as Vancouver prepared for Portland last week. Going into the final training session of the week on Friday, Sartini had already made up his mind regarding which players would start at Providence Park. 

The Whitecaps performance against their Cascadia rivals wasn’t up to Sartini’s standards. 

“We need to play much better than we did last Saturday,” Sartini told Har Journalist. “Saturday was probably the worst performance of our season. We’re trying to analyze everything. For sure we weren’t ready at the beginning, Portland was all over us.”

With the Timbers pressing early, Vancouver was unable to weather the storm and settle into the match. Portland was able to jump out to a quick two-nil start.

Sartini wants to see his club stick to the core principles if a similar situation occurs. 

“The most important lesson for me from the last game is that we need to be more mature of staying on course in what we’re trying to do,” Sartini said. “Our first fifteen minutes was a disaster, everyone went haywire. When things are not going well, it’s actually the moment when we have to revert even more in the principle of what we’re trying to do. If you try to overdo it, you’re going to create problems for the other players on the field. We need to stick to our principles on the field.”

The Whitecaps trip to Texas will see them return home to Vancouver in the early hours of Thursday morning. This is the second week in a row Vancouver will travel back to the west coast from the central or eastern time zone. The Caps will host Cascadia rival, Seattle on Saturday at BC Place. The Sounders have a midweek clash, but they will play at home. 

“Obviously the long travel sucks,” Blackmon said. “Especially being in Vancouver, you’re so far away from a lot of places that you have to go. I think being here last year for me, I got used to that type of travel. (We) just do recovery stuff and make sure you’re ready, do some stuff on the plane for recovery too. We should be good to go.”

The Caps will have a third consecutive midweek match next Wednesday when they travel to Vancouver Island to take on Pacific FC in the Ferryside Derby. The winner of the Canadian Championship semifinal will advance to the Canadian Championship Final in June.

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