VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC v. SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC

Greetings to my brothers and sisters in Green. Sounders FC travel to the Great White North with an axe to grind as Cascadia hopes hang by a thread. Good times, eh?

What: MLS league and Cascadia Cup fixture, Vancouver Whitecaps FC v. Seattle Sounders FC.

Where: BC Place, Pacific Boulevard, Vancouver, British Columbia.

When: 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Wednesday 2 October 2024 CE.

At Stake: Sounders have a narrow path to victory in Cascadia Cup. All they have to do is beat Vancouver midweek, and Portland in the season finale. If we drop any points from those two matches, it’s over. Otherwise, all that’s at stake is pride and MLS Cup seeding.

Where to Watch: MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.

Where to Listen: KJR 99.3 FM and El Rey 1360 AM.

The two matches we’ve played against our northern rivals this season have had refereeing decisions that were…shall we say…controversial? The lads and coaching staff have got to be sick of losing to these. I’d say a reckoning is in order.

That’s where we come in. If you can get your passport and such together and have the means, it’s time for a destination midweek holiday in dear old Vancouver. For many of us though, that sort of thing is out of reach, even if work permitted. So we gather our mates at the pub, the house, the flat, and sometimes even the boats to shout on the lads. We do what we always do. We will our Boys in Green to victory.

It’s midweek Sounders football across the border, and if anyone, god forbid, be injured, there will be healthcare that is free of charge at point of service. GO ON YOU SOUNDERS!!! GET IN!!!

Before kick-off, please join me in the auld toast: “TO THE SEATTLE SOUNDERS FOOTBALL CLUB…AND VICTORY!!!”

Don’t be late getting on the sign-up sheet for the cryo chamber, lads.

Remember, you’re on two days rest.

The Good News

Sounders are unbeaten in their last four matches (3-1-0).

We just defeated Houston, a MLS top-10 team that has played demonstrably better against a lot of the clubs we struggle with. Perhaps we’re turning a corner.

We got a clean sheet against Dinamo Houston, which befits us, as we are tied for the 2nd best defence in the league.

Whitecaps are struggling of late, winless in their last three league matches. Two 1:1 draws with Houston and Portland, and receiving a sound beating 4:2 at LA Galaxy.

Although Vancouver have a decent record at home, it is far from dominant, at 8-6-6 in all competitions.

It’s quite possible that Vancouver will be missing Gauld (matchday decision) and Armstrong (injured). That’s two good players we might not have to line up against. Gauld in particular is dangerous as he can beat you with either the shot or the pass (9 goals, 15 assists).

Morris still leads the line with 13 goals. Ruidiaz and Rusnak are tied with eight goals each. Rusnak leads the squad in assists with 13, Vargas is next with seven.

The Bad News

Not only are we 0-1-1 against Vancouver this season, we’ve had trouble keeping our players on the pitch. Ragen, Cristian, and Nouhou have been sent off in our matches with the ‘Caps this season.

Striker Brian White leads the line for Vancouver with 15 goals, Scotland man Ryan Gauld and Haitian international Fafa Picault are next with nine each. Gauld leads their squad in assists with 15, next is Sebastian Berhalter and Fafa Picault with five each.

Sounders have an away record that’s about 50/50 at 7-2-7 in all competitions. We haven’t beaten Vancouver in the league since 8 July 2023.

The only active Sounders with more than one goal against Vancouver are Ruidiaz with eight, Morris and Leo Chu with three each.

In six career matches against the ‘Caps, Sounders and Slovakia midfielder, Albert Rusnak has zero goals and one assist. Former Sounders and Uruguay midfielder, Nico Lodeiro in 15 career matches against the ‘Caps had seven goals and nine assists.

It’s a two-day turn-around for us. If we rotate too much player-wise, we may not get the result we need. Then again with a high-altitude match at Colorado on Sat, the question becomes, who will be allowed rest, and who won’t. The only comfort here is Vancouver also has a two-day turn-around as they played in Portland on Sat.

This is a very similar game to Houston, in that the margins are razor-thin between both teams in terms of scoring (Sounders +0.5 goals/match) and conceding goals (Sounders –0.15 less goals conceded/match). Again it’s like looking in the mirror.

Hopefully none of the American players in the Sounders team will defect to Canada.

The Side I Would Select

My strategy is simple. If we’re going to try for Cascadia, we need the best lineup possible for the Vancouver match, and for the Portland match on 19 October. The sticking point is Saturday’s match at Colorado. So best selection for Vancouver, hopefully get a lead early, and sub out players that played the most against Houston. Play a lineup of youngers and squad players on Sat at Colorado, which will be better for a high-altitude match anyway, then play the first choice players for the finale against Portland.

GK     Frei

LB     Nouhou

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Gomez Andrade

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Rothrock

CAM   Rusnak

RF     de la Vega

CF     Morris

The Side I Think The Gaffer Will Select

I think the Gaffer wants Cascadia pretty badly. However, I also don’t think he’d jeopardise seeding for MLS Cup. It’s a two-day turn-around, sure, but it’s also a Cascadia rival. In these situations, Brian tries to have his cake and eat it too. I expect rotation, and then if things aren’t going well, responding too late with substitutes.

GK     Frei

LB     Baker-Whiting

LCH    Ragen

RCH    Bell

RB     Alex

LDM    Vargas

RDM   Cristian

LF     Leo Chu

CAM   Atencio

RF     Minoungou

CF     Ruidiaz (if his knee permits, otherwise Morris)

Intangibles

The Referee for Wednesday night’s match will be Chris Penso.

Sounders FC record with Penso as Ref: 16-3-5

Vancouver record with Penso as Ref: 4-2-7

General notes on personnel

Vancouver transfers IN:

Berhalter re-signed

Kreilach (Real Salt Lake) free

Picault (Nashville SC) free

Utvik (Sarpsborg 08) free

Halbouni (1.FC Magdeburg) undisclosed fee

Bendik (Philadelphia Union) free

Priso (Colorado Rapids) €137,000

Bovalina (Adelaide United) €135,000

Ocampo (Atletico Nacional) €1.6M

Armstrong (Southampton Town) free

Badwal - reserves

Chateau - reserves

Vancouver transfers OUT:
Campagna (Vancouver FC*) free *Canadian Premier League club

Habibulla (Sporting Kansas City Reserves) free

Hasal - released

Becher (AC Horsens) €400,000

Alexandre (Fortaleza) undisclosed fee

Brown - released

Martins - bought out

Comparison against common opponents

SJ 0:2 VAN

VAN 2:0 SJ

SJ 3:2 SEA

SEA 2:2 SJ

(against SJ: VAN 2-0-0 +4, SEA 0-1-1 -1) edge VAN

DAL 1:3 VAN

VAN 0:0 DAL

DAL 0:0 SEA

SEA 3:2 DAL

(against DAL: VAN 1-1-0 +2, SEA 1-1-0 +1) edge VAN

VAN 1:2 RSL

RSL 2:0 SEA

SEA 1:1 RSL

(against RSL: VAN 0-0-1 -1, SEA 0-1-1 -2)  even

VAN 3:2 POR

POR 2:0 VAN

VAN 1:1 POR

POR 1:2 SEA

POR 1:0 SEA

(against POR: VAN 1-1-1 -1, SEA 1-0-1 0) even

VAN 1:3 LAG

LAG 4:2 VAN

LAG 1:0 SEA

SEA 0:0 LAG

SEA 3:1 LAG LC

(against LAG: VAN 0-0-2 -4, SEA 1-1-1 +1) edge SEA

VAN 0:0 ATX

ATX 0:1 VAN

SEA 0:0 ATX

ATX 0:1 SEA

(against ATX: VAN 1-1-0 +1, SEA 1-1-0 +1) even

LAFC 3:0 VAN

LAFC 2:2 VAN LC

LAFC 2:1 SEA

SEA 0:3 LAFC

SEA 0:3 LAFC LC

SEA 0:1 LAFC USOC

(against LAFC: VAN 0-1-1 -3, SEA 0-0-4 -8) edge VAN

COL 1:0 VAN

VAN 2:1 COL

SEA 1:1 COL

(against COL: VAN 1-0-1 0, SEA 0-1-0 0) edge VAN

SKC 1:2 VAN

VAN 2:1 SKC

SKC 2:1 SEA

SEA 2:0 SKC

(against SKC: VAN 2-0-0 +2, SEA 1-0-1 +1) edge VAN

NE 3:2 VAN

SEA 2:0 NE

(against: NE: VAN 0-0-1 -1, SEA 1-0-0 +2) edge SEA

VAN 4:3 STL
STL 1:4 VAN

STL 1:2 SEA

SEA 2:0 STL

(against STL: 2-0-0 +4, SEA 2-0-0 +3) edge VAN

MIN 1:3 VAN

SEA 2:0 MIN

SEA 2:0 MIN LC

MIN 2:3 SEA

(against MIN: 1-0-0 +2, SEA 3-0-0 +5) edge SEA

MTL 1:1 VAN

SEA 5:0 MTL

(against MTL: VAN 0-1-0 0, SEA 1-0-0 +5) edge SEA

VAN 3:4 HOU

HOU 1:1 VAN

HOU 2:2 SEA

SEA 1:0 HOU

(against: HOU: VAN 0-1-1 -1, SEA 1-1-0 +1) edge SEA

VAN 0:2 UNAM CCC

SEA 4:0 UNAM LC

(against UNAM: VAN 0-0-1 -2, SEA 1-0-0 +4) edge SEA

Know Thine Enemy

Vancouver as they lined up against the Treecutters in their 1:1 draw at BC Place on 28 September.

GOALKEEPER

Yohei Takaoka, 28

Japan

Notable Clubs: Yokohama FC (41/0), Sagan Tosu (40/0), Yokohama F. Marinos (71/0), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (63/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by Yokohama FC. Won a J-League title with Yokohama F. Marinos. Named to J-League Best XI 2022. Won two Canadian Championships with Vancouver.

DEFENCE

Ryan Raposo, 25

Canada

Notable Clubs: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (119/5)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1.5M

Notes: Developed by Mount Hamilton SC, Toronto FC, Burlington Youth SC, and Vaughan SC. Played his university football for Syracuse (38/19). Won three Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Was named Best Young Canadian Player of the 2022 Canadian Championship.

Tristan Blackmon, 28

United States

Notable Clubs: Los Angeles FC (64/2), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (80/3)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Played his university football for Pacific (70/16). Won a league championship with LAFC. Won three Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Ranko Veselinovic, 25

Serbia (2/0)

Notable Clubs: Vojvodina (59/1), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (136/6)

Estimated Transfer Value: €2M

Notes: Developed by Vojvodina. Originally on loan to Vancouver, the Whitecaps exercised their option to make the move permanent on 18 October 2020. Won a Serbian Cup with Vojvodina. Won third Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Bjorn Inge Utvik, 28

Norway

Notable Clubs: Sogndal (93/5), Sarpsborg 08 (122/7), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (19/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €700,000

Notes: Developed by Haugesund. Won a Canadian Championship with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

MIDFIELD

Alessandro Schopf, 30

Austria (32/6)

Notable Clubs: 1. FC Nurnberg (51/11), Schalke 04 (112/10), Arminia Bielefeld (33/1), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (61/2)

Estimated Transfer Value: €1M

Notes: Developed by SV Langenfeld, AKA Tirol, and Bayern Munich. Won two Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Andres Cubas, 28

Paraguay (22/0)

Notable Clubs: Boca Juniors (28/0), Defensa y Justicia (21/0), Tallares (38/1), Nimes (48/2), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (67/1)

Estimated Transfer Value: €4.5M

Notes: Developed by Boca Juniors. Won a league title and a Copa Argentina with Boca Juniors. Won three Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Sebastian Berhalter, 23

England

Notable Clubs: Columbus Crew SC (9/0), Austin FC (18/0), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (73/4)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Developed by Hammarby IF and Columbus Crew SC. Played his university football at North Carolina (16/0). Won an MLS Cup with Columbus Crew SC. Won three Canadian championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

FORWARD

Fabrice-Jean “Fafa” Picault, 33

United States (2/0) and Haiti (6/0)

Notable Clubs: Tampa Bay Rowdies (18/0), Fort Lauderdale Strikers (22/12), FC St. Pauli (22/4), Philadelphia Union (89/21), FC Dallas (18/3), Houston Dynamo (61/18), Nashville SC (27/5), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (27/9)

Estimated Transfer Value: €800,000

Notes: Developed by Cagliari. Won an NASL Cup with Tampa Bay Rowdies in 2012. Won a Canadian championship with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Brian White, 28

United States (1/0)

Notable Clubs: New York RB (47/15), Vancouver Whitecaps FC (111/46)

Estimated Transfer Value: €3M

Notes: Developed by PDA. Played his university football for Duke (73/23). Won MLS League Championship in 2018 with New York RB. Won three Canadian Championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Levonte Johnson, 25

Canada

Notable Clubs: Vancouver Whitecaps FC (30/0)

Estimated Transfer Value: €200,000

Notes: Developed by Botelho ST and Brampton YSC. Played his university football at Eastern Florida State (NJCAA) (20/10), Salt Lake Community College (NJCAA) (18/11), Seattle University (22/9), and Syracuse (25/11). Won two Canadian championships with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Familiar Faces

Whitecaps forward, Levonte Johnson, a Canadian footballer from Ontario, played for Seattle University (22/9) in 2021.

Squads

Vancouver from:

Takaoka, Bendik, Boehmer, Adekugbe, Ahmed, Blackmon, Halbouni, Laborda, Ocampo, Utvik, Veselinovic, Badwal, Berhalter, Bovalina, Caicedo, Cubas, Gauld, Herdman, Kreilach, Ngando, Priso, Raposo, Schopf, Vite, Chateau, Johnson, Kachwele, Picault, White.

Sounders FC from:

Frei, Thomas, Baker, Bell, Gomez Andrade, Hawkins, Nathan, Nouhou, Ragen, Alex, Atencio, Baker-Whiting, De la Vega, Kitahara, Leyva, Rusnak, Vargas, Morris, Cristian, Leo Chu, Minoungou, Musovski, Rodrigues, Rothrock, Ruidiaz, Teves.

Injury List

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Vancouver -

OUT: Anchor (finger), Armstrong (calf).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Ahmed (quadriceps), Gauld (knee).

Sounders FC -

OUT: Joao Paulo (calf).

MATCHDAY DECISION: Ruidiaz (knee).

Discipline

(as listed on mlssoccer.com at press time)

Vancouver: No players suspended. 

Sounders FC: No players suspended. Nouhou out next match if booked.

Fun Fact

Sounders FC Reserves defeated Houston Dynamo Reserves 2:0 on 29 September at Starfire. Gio Miglietti scored both goals for the Sounders Reserves. Well done, lad!!! In the team for the Reserves: Helleren, Baker, Hawkins, Katsaros, Bowen, Brunell, Kitahara, Gomez, Aquino, Rodrigues, De Rosario. Substitutes: Lopez, Fahling, Tsukanome, Sousa, Miglietti.

Only one match left to play in the MLS Next Pro league schedule for the Sounders FC Reserves to be played on 6 October at Citypark against St. Louis City SC 2. Scheduled kick-off: 1 p.m. PDT.

Currently Sounders FC Reserves are in sixth place in the MLS Next Pro league table on 46 points, 13 points adrift of leaders FC Dallas Reserves.