[ad_1]
Breadcrumb Trail Links
The Vancouver Whitecaps have the potential to be a top four team in the West — if they don’t regress — and maybe find that elusive DP striker.
Get the latest from J.J. Adams straight to your inbox
Published Feb 27, 2024 • Last updated Feb 28, 2024 • 4 minute read
You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.
The Vancouver Whitecaps celebrate after defender Ranko Veselinovic scored during an MLS match against Los Angeles FC in L.A. on June 24, 2023. Photo by Ashley Landis /AP
Article content
Week 1 in MLS is in the books, and the Vancouver Whitecaps are already below the playoff line — just where most pundits had predicted.
Advertisement 2
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
- Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events.
- Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account.
- The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.
- Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword.
- Support local journalism.
SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
- Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events.
- Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account.
- The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.
- Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword.
- Support local journalism.
REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
- Access articles from across Canada with one account.
- Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.
- Enjoy additional articles per month.
- Get email updates from your favourite authors.
Sign In or Create an Account
or
Article content
Of course, they haven’t even played a game yet this season, but the disrespect stands.
Article content
It’s almost an annual rite of passage for the Caps, being dismissed as playoff qualifiers or added in as a dark horse afterthought.
And really, for those who don’t watch the team and only count on historical references, you can’t blame them. The best conference finishes for the team have been second in 2015 and third in 2017, both of them followed by quick playoff exits.
Since that 2017 season, the best finish in the West has been sixth — and Vancouver doesn’t have a single playoff series victory (save that 2017 knockout round against San Jose).
This year, most U.S. pundits are predicting a low mid-pack finish for the Caps, seemingly forgetting they were in the hunt for second place in the West in the penultimate game against Seattle, and after that scoreless road draw, could have still finished in the top four had some results gone their way. Again, that was a season where few pundits gave them a chance of making the post-season.
Canucks Report
Thanks for signing up!
Article content
Advertisement 3
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
NEXT GAME
Charlotte FC at Vancouver Whitecaps
4:30 p.m., B.C. Place
TV: TSN, Apple TV. Radio: AM730
The players give the stock answers when asked about their Rodney Dangerfield treatment — “we don’t pay attention to those” or “outside voices don’t matter” — but you know they are keeping receipts and using their dismissal from relevance as fuel.
Cue Whitecaps centre-back Tristan Blackmon.
“We know what we’re trying to develop here as a club, and with the players we have here, the coaching staff and trying to build a culture — one that’s focused on winning,” he said after Tuesday’s training session on a semi-frozen practice pitch at the University of B.C.
“And you have to start somewhere. Obviously, in the past, maybe the Whitecaps haven’t been one of the greatest teams in the league, but I think the last three years we’ve definitely taken strides to show that we are competing to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference. We’re focused on what we’re trying to do and not what other people think.”
Advertisement 4
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Are the Whitecaps better than last year? Both the head coach and sporting director have stated as much, even if there wasn’t much activity on the transfer front. Their biggest improvement, they say, is that the young talents they have are poised to take bigger steps in 2024 — the Pedro Vites, Ali Ahmeds, J.C. Ngandos and Levonte Johnsons of the team — and players are and another season deeper and more entrenched in Sartini’s tactical system.
Damir Kreilach and Fafa Picault are being counted on to inject some energy and breadth to the offence, and there’s still an unfilled Designated Player spot that just cries out for a goal-scorer. They whiffed on that last year with Sergio Cordova, but still put up a team-record 55 goals in 2023, selling La Pantera in September and losing playmaker Julian Gressel to a trade request in June.
Advertisement 5
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Even so, a top-four finish isn’t an unrealistic expectation for the Whitecaps this year. The oft-mentioned priority to changing their fortunes this season comes down to winning early instead of late.
“We want to start better,” said Sartini. “In the last two years of when I’ve been in charge of the team, we’ve been always doing the second part of the season with more points than the first part of the season … We need to start better because every point counts, especially the beginning. Set some kind of tone.
“You could see what St. Louis did last year, starting with five wins in a row and then they kept that position until the end of the season,” he said of last year’s fourth-place finishers in the West. “That doesn’t mean that we have to win every game, but, yeah, we need to do a better job in the first part of the season.”
Advertisement 6
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
It took until April, six games into the season, for the Whitecaps to notch their first victory, and only two of those games were at home. This year they start at home against Charlotte FC, head on the road for two games, then play four straight at home.
Their 2023 home-opener against Real Salt Lake showed an offensively dynamic Whitecaps team, but Javain Brown’s 23rd-minute goal was the only goal they scored. Then, in a three-minute span in the second half, Justen Glad and (new Whitecap!) Kreilach scored in the 70th and 73rd to steal a win.
It was emblematic of their first five games, when they could only manage a single goal in each outing.
“Last year … the performances were there,” said Sartini. “The first game against Salt Lake, we remember how we dominated but we didn’t win — we lost.
Advertisement 7
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
“What I would say is this year we have a little advantage compared to the previous year,” said Sartini. “Because of the Champions Cup, we had to start earlier, we had much more games, we had much more meaningful games, so I think in terms of condition, we are in good shape.”
Recommended from Editorial
-
Few moves, but Whitecaps ready to dance into 2024
-
The Whitecaps are a worth a bargainous $420M, but there’s a lot of smoke to that number
Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.
You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber: For just $14 a month, you can get unlimited access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.
Article content
Share this article in your social network
[ad_2]
Source link
Fitnessnacks – #totally #completely #unhomer #prediction #Vancouver #Whitecaps
Courtesy : https://theprovince.com/sports/a-totally-completely-not-homerish-prediction-for-the-vancouver-whitecaps