VANCOUVER — The Vancouver Whitecaps need a win — badly.
Points have been tough to come by for the 'Caps in recent weeks and, with just two games left in their regular-season schedule, Vancouver is in danger of having to play its way into a Major League Soccer post-season series.
The club has a chance to make up ground Sunday when it hosts Los Angeles FC.
“Huge importance," Whitecaps midfielder Stuart Armstrong said of the match. "We want to try and climb the table so every point is very valuable."
The two sides have been on opposite trajectories in recent weeks.
Vancouver (13-11-8) comes into Sunday's matchup winless in its last five MLS appearances (0-3-2) after falling 1-0 to Minnesota United at B.C. Place last Saturday.
LAFC (17-8-7) heads north on a four-game win streak. The squad hasn't lost since Sept. 21 when L.A. dropped a 3-1 road decision to Dallas FC.
“One thing I’ve learned in this league is that any game is a new opportunity to win. And any game, if you come in the right mindset, you can win it," said 'Caps defender Ranko Veselinovic.
“We are a good team, we are good players. And if we come with the right attitude in the game, we can do good.”
LAFC is an opponent the Whitecaps are all too familiar with, having faced the club twice already this year and six times last season. The most-recent rendezvous came during the Leagues Cup competition back in July, when Vancouver edged L.A. on penalties.
This time around is likely to look a little different because both sides will be missing key pieces due to international call-ups.
Vancouver will be without the creative offence of captain Ryan Gauld (Scotland), the scoring prowess of Fafa Picault (Haiti) and the defensive talents of Andres Cubas (Paraguay), as well as three other important players.
LAFC will miss sniper Denis Bouanga (Gabon), who has the second most goals in MLS (19), and leads the league in both shots (148) and shots on target.
The absences will undoubtedly change the game, said 'Caps head coach Vanni Sartini.
"I think we need to be very open to understand how they’re going to come and play. Because maybe they’re not going to play like they usually play, in terms of system, in terms of positioning of the players. But they still have a lot of quality players," he said.
With so many of his regular starters away, Sartini will be looking for other players to step up while maintaining Vancouver's identity.
"The last couple of games, especially the (3-0 loss) against Seattle, we didn’t give what we can do," the coach said. "I think we need to reset and be really focused on us.
"Because when we focus on us, we can beat any team.”
While a victory Sunday could help Vancouver avoid a play-in game, the club knows L.A. is still trying to lock up first spot in the West.
“They’re obviously at the top end of the table so we know they’re going to be a good team. They’re fighting it out with the (L.A.) Galaxy. We’re in a slightly different battle at the moment," Armstrong said.
"It’s going to be a tough challenge. But these are the type of games you want to play in. And you always enjoy the big matches.”
LOS ANGELES FC (17-8-7) AT VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-11-8)
Sunday, B.C. Place
INS AND OUTS: Both sides will be missing some major players due to international call-ups. Vancouver's Ali Ahmed (Canada), Sam Adekugbe (Canada), Cubas (Paraguay), Gauld (Scotland), Picault (Haiti) and Pedro Vite (Ecuador) are all with their national teams, while L.A. will be without Bouanga (Gabon), Cristian Olivera (Uruguay) and Maxime Chanot (Luxembourg). LAFC's Lorenzo Dellavalle and Jesus Murillo are also out with knee injuries.
HISTORY BOOKS: Sunday's game will mark the 20th all-time meeting between the two clubs. LAFC has fared better and holds a 9-5-4 edge in the matchups, but the clubs have split their two previous games in 2024.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS: Vancouver won its third-straight Canadian Championship title in September, while L.A. is the reigning U.S. Open Cup champion.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2024.
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
