The Vancouver Whitecaps opened their 2024 MLS season with a 1-1 draw on Saturday afternoon at BC Place. Iuri Tavares opened the scoring for Charlotte FC before Ryan Raposo scored the tying goal deep into first-half stoppage time.

29,624 fans filed in, making it the Whitecaps’ largest-ever crowd for a home opener.

The offence

Vancouver’s offence was disjointed in the first half as the Caps struggled to maintain possession and advance forward while Charlotte FC carried the play and quickly hemmed Vancouver in their own half. The front three of Ryan Gauld, Brian White, and Damir Kreilach were too closely bunched together and unable to connect with the Caps’ midfielders. When Vancouver did get the ball, the midfield was unable to quickly advance forward to start the attack.

“Overall we did start a little bit sleepy,” assistant coach Michael D’Agostino told reporters postgame. “A lot of the things that we did plan on doing, we just didn’t execute. Whether it was for a lack of understanding, I’m not sure. We gave them some tactical adjustments, but at the beginning we just looked a little bit sleepy.”

The Caps’ bright spot came when wing-back Raposo was able to poke the ball past Charlotte goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina in first-half stoppage time. Pedro Vite laid the ball over the top, and Raposo was able to sneak in behind the back-line and score.

With the Whitecaps offence sputtering in the early going, Raposo’s third career MLS goal was an encouraging sign. Vancouver was able to settle into the match in the second half.

Fafà Picault made his Whitecaps MLS debut and provided a spark when he came in off the bench for Kreilach. Picault and Javain Brown both had terrific chances to break the deadlock.

Replacement referees

The ongoing referee labour dispute continued this weekend. Replacement referees often have mixed results and that would include this match. In the 24th minute, Charlotte FC striker Enzo Copetti went head over tea kettle in the Caps box. Ranko Veselinović appeared to get the ball before Copetti went down. Nevertheless, referee Scott Bowman quickly pointed to the spot for a Charlotte FC penalty. As Whitecaps players pleaded with Bowman to reconsider, a chorus of boos reigned down from the fans. The decision would go to VAR for another look at the play and was ultimately overturned.

When a controversial decision is made in a match that could award a penalty to a team, what kind of communication do players have with a referee in that type of scenario?

“I think a lot of guys say different things,” Tristan Blackmon told reporters postgame. “Obviously I went up, and I was like ‘first off there’s no way in hell that’s a foul’. Just sticking by my team of course and just making sure he knew, let’s check it and make sure. Obviously, they went to VAR and got the right decision.”

It was a physical match with both teams hitting the pitch following questionable fouls that could have gone either way. Instead of slowing the match down with free kicks and cards, Bowman let both teams play. Vancouver and Charlotte FC each ended with two yellow cards.

“Referees, they’re never going to win,” Charlotte’s Scott Arfield told Canadian Soccer Daily postgame in Vancouver. “If they’re for one team, then the other team is going to shout at them. If they do it for another team, then the other team is going to shout at them. They’re always in a lose-lose situation. It’s one of these things for referees, I don’t know why people put themselves in a situation to be a referee, if it’s a lose-lose situation at times.”

Set piece defending

This was a problem for the Whitecaps last season. In 2023 they were challenged to defend opposition crosses into the box. Flash forward to 2024 and Vancouver has got off to a terrific start as they successful navigated Charlotte FC’s five corner kicks.

The Whitecaps zonal marking has drawn the ire of fans, but when it works as it did against the visitors from North Carolina, it’s an asset. The key for Vancouver is having three central defenders in the box marking the designated space they’re supposed to mark.

Staying in that locked position and defending the space is what the Caps want to see.

Having a player on the edge of the box — in this case, Gauld — helps cut down a short corner. When the ball is crossed into the box the goal is to clear it away, but if an opposition player gets a forward flick on the ball that can unleash another challenge. As Vanni Sartini detailed in his chalk talk with the media on Friday, the closest centre-back would then take three steps towards the ball to clear it off the ensuing flick-on.

Vancouver’s set piece defending was on point. The tactics, at least for one game, worked.

Vancouver will now hit the road for a pair of matches when they visit San Jose on Saturday, March 9 and Frisco, Texas to battle FC Dallas on Saturday, March 16.

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