VANCOUVER 鈥� Four days after their first road loss of the year, the Vancouver Whitecaps will get a chance at redemption.
The Whitecaps (5-3-3) face the Colorado Rapids (5-4-3) on Wednesday in the second of three straight Major League Soccer road games. They followed a road win over Canadian Premier League club Cavalry in the opening leg of a Canadian championship quarterfinal with a 3-0 loss at Los Angeles FC in MLS play on Sunday.
鈥淭hings have been going well,鈥� Whitecaps captain Ryan Gauld said after the loss. 鈥淏ut we still need to work on a lot of stuff to make sure we're going to be up there at the end of the year.鈥�
Coach Vanni Sartini was blunt in his assessment of his team鈥檚 effort against LAFC.
鈥淚t was, to be honest, our first game under our standards of the season,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e didn't play very well.鈥�
After a day off the pitch and a team dinner on Sunday, the Whitecaps put in two days of training at the LAFC Performance Center before flying to Denver on Tuesday.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not a crisis because we lose one game,鈥� said defender Bjorn Inge Utvik. 鈥淲e know we are a good team, and if we just continue on the same road, I think it鈥檚 going to be听
The Whitecaps drew twice against the Rapids last season. After a scoreless tie at B.C. Place in April 2023, Mathias Laborda and Brian White connected in September鈥檚 2-2 outcome at Dick鈥檚 Sporting Goods Park.
Coming into Wednesday鈥檚 game, the Whitecaps and Rapids are level in the Western Conference standings. They鈥檙e both above the playoff cutline with 18 points each, although Vancouver has a game in hand.
The Rapids are 2-2-1 this season on their home pitch and 1-2-0 in their last three games. Their last outing was a 3-2 home loss to the San Jose Earthquakes last Saturday. Omir Fernandez recorded his first goal for the Rapids off a corner kick, while defender Michael Edwards made his MLS debut.
鈥淐olorado is a team with a lot of quality,鈥� Sartini said.
The Rapids鈥� biggest strength lies on the offensive side of the ball. They鈥檙e averaging 1.67 goals per game, led by six goals from Rafael Navarro and four from Cole Bassett.
After being shut out in back-to-back MLS games (Vancouver drew Austin 0-0 on May 4 before heading on the road), the Whitecaps are now averaging 1.64 goals per game, led by five from Brian White.
鈥淭hey (Colorado) play a very dynamic brand of football,鈥� Sartini said. 鈥淲e need to be much better than Saturday in our pressing, so that we can regain more balls, as high as we can, and try to expose them with our counterattack.鈥�
Playing in the Mile High City delivers its own unique challenge for visiting defenders.
鈥淭he ball flies faster, so every set play is going to become a chance, and every long ball is going to become a chance,鈥� Sartini said.
In the midst of an eight-game month of May, the coach sees benefits in having such a busy schedule.
鈥淭he pressure is always up,鈥� Sartini said. 鈥淭he quality of training is always up, even if you don鈥檛 train too much. There鈥檚 the possibility to involve more players.
鈥淲hen we have a lot of games, it鈥檚 always beautiful to be part of the squad.鈥�
The Whitecaps will return to Vancouver after Wednesday鈥檚 game, then wrap up their road swing with their second meeting of the year against the Seattle Sounders on Saturday. After a 2-0 win in front of more than 30,000 fans at Lumen Field last month, the Whitecaps currently lead the Cascadia Cup standings with a 2-0-0 record.
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VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC (5-3-3) AT COLORADO RAPIDS (5-4-3)
Wednesday, 10:30 p.m. ET, Dick鈥檚 Sporting Goods Park听
COACH COLLABORATION 鈥� Monday鈥檚 announcement that Jesse Marsch is taking over as the new coach of Canada鈥檚 men鈥檚 national team included an acknowledgment that the Whitecaps, CF Montreal and Toronto FC made 鈥渕ajor philanthropic contributions鈥� to support the hiring.
COLORADO CELEBRATION 鈥� Wednesday night marks Soccer For All night in Colorado, the Rapids鈥� celebration of diversity and inclusion which will include a post-match drone show.
RETURN MATCH 鈥� The Whitecaps and Rapids will square off again at B.C. Place on June 1 in their second and final meeting of the year.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2024.
Carol Schram, The Canadian Press
