Whitecaps / Union game summary
For 67 minutes, the Vancouver Whitecaps looked every bit as confident in front of Joe Cannon as they have all season. They surpassed the 2007 New York Red Bulls to set the new standard in clean sheets to start a season.
Sebastien Le Toux had already given the team a 1-0 lead.
Then the roof caved in when Chris Wondolowski slipped past a woefully out of place Jay DeMerit. Two more goals followed quickly afterwards and the unbeaten streak was done.
Coaching
Martin Rennie’s went with a more typical 4-4-2 formation to combat the strong San Jose line-up. Frank Yallop opted to counter with a 4-5-1 look, packing his midfield to offset the attacking Vancouver team.
San Jose’s patience paid off as they absorbed the pressure then countered late on. A few lessons were learned here for Rennie.
Goalkeeping
Joe Cannon made two good stops early on but after he dropped to the ground and misjudged Wondolowski’s turn and shot past DeMerit, he was powerless to stop two more late chances.
Defence
The unit looked terrific for most of the match, but after DeMerit’s error they appeared to fall apart and their marking was very poor on the Alan Gordon header. Wondolowski was also left inexplicably wide open on the back post soon after where he volleyed home.
Whitecaps lose to San Jose on Saturday.
Midfield
John Thorrington had a good match, chipping one strong effort off the crossbar, and Davide Chiumiento played much better this week with five shots, including two on goal. The midfield was not to blame for the loss today.
Forwards
Le Toux and Eric Hassli generated two shots on goal each, and Le Toux’s neat sidedfoot finish from Hassli’s lay-off ended a two game drought for the ‘Caps.
Man of the Match
Eric Hassli’s presence and positioning was always a concern for San Jose.
He had two good efforts on goal and his intelligent assist created the Le Toux strike.
Play of the Game
Le Toux’s neat interplay with Hassli showcased the French duo at their best.
Quote of the Game
From Whitecaps FC — “Vancouver can take some solace in the fact they’ve set a new MLS shutout record to begin a season at 427 minutes, although in some ways, the record leaves a sour feeling given the final result.”
Video courtesy Whitecaps FC
