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October 28, 2015 |
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VANCOUVER, B.C - The Vancouver Whitecaps are currently in a waiting game at the moment and that suits them just fine. Carl Robinson and his second seeded MLS western conference Whitecaps returned to training this week to focus, prepare, and recover from any nagging injuries as they wait to see who they will play in MLS playoff second round competition.
Vancouver will play Portland, Seattle, or Los Angeles in the MLS playoff second round on November 1 and November 8. The two leg series is an away goal rules series with the Whitecaps hosting the second leg at BC Place.
The Caps have played terrific against Bruce Arena and the LA Galaxy picking up two wins earlier in the season. It should be noted that Steven Gerrard and Giovani dos Santos weren't playing for L.A. in those matches. The matchup that many Whitecaps fans probably would prefer not to see, is a date with the Seattle Sounders. In MLS play and CONCACAF Champions League play this season, Vancouver has a 1-3-1 record against Seattle.
The best matchup on paper is against Caleb Porter and his tissue like Portland Timbers. The Whitecaps went 1-0-2 against the Timbers this season with a 2-1 victory coming at BC Place on March 28. If you can remember back to that day, substitute Robert Earnshaw scored the winner in stoppage time.
Vancouver and Portland have not renewed pleasantries since a 1-1 draw on July 18 in the 'Rose City.' All three Cascadian teams know each other quite well and Carl Robinson is looking forward to whoever Vancouver meets.
"Well we know each other inside out, we know what they're good at, and what their weaknesses are. They know what we're good at, and what our weaknesses are. It'll strictly come down to who plays better and who performs better on the day. Either game, whether it's Seattle, Portland, or L.A should be a very exciting matchup and one we're really looking forward to."
The Whitecaps could have very easily found themselves participating in a first round play-in-game mid-week on the road or at home. At halftime vs Houston on Sunday, the Whitecaps were locked into the 5th spot in the western conference. Thanks to an outburst of goals and 3-0 win over the Dynamo. Vancouver vaulted and finished in second spot in the west and third overall in Major League Soccer. It's not out of the question that Vancouver could indeed host the MLS Cup at BC Place on December 6 as long as the New York Red Bulls don't survive the eastern conference playoff wars.
Carl Robinson was not about to let the MLS Cup horse out of the stable as he prefers to take everything as it comes in a one day at a time approach. Sure it would be fantastic to host the crown jewel event of Major League Soccer, but one thing at a time. Vancouver has to take care of business on November 1 and November 8 against a strong opponent. Robinson is immensely proud of all the accomplishments his players, coaches, and the organization have achieved thus far this campaign.
"We're delighted to be there. I said to the guys today, the focus is now, it starts now. Nothing will change. We'll get a few more healthy bodies back which will help us. We'll go into this series with whoever we'll play. On Wednesday or Thursday we'll find out and we'll embrace it. We'll go look forward to it and meet the challenge head on and who knows. We've done some fantastic things at this football club this year, we really have. The players should be proud of themselves. I said to the coaches, they should be proud of themselves, and the club should be proud of themselves. When you see the money spent around the league, we haven't done that, but we still managed to be in the mix. It's a lot of credit to us and the club."
A player who could be in the mix and would be a welcome addition back in the Whitecaps lineup, is skipper Pedro Morales. The Chilean attacking midfielder has been sidelined with a combination of hamstring, back, and calf injuries. Morales has not seen the pitch since October 3 away to San Jose. In that contest he was substituted off after 19' minutes of action following his second half entrance.
Morales can stretch the field and pick out his teammates with pin point accurate passes. It is hoped that if and when Morales returns he can boost and assist the Whitecaps scoring woes. It won't be easy as Morales hasn't played more than 45' minutes in a match since August 22 vs FC Dallas. Morales has been doing light jogging at the Whitecaps UBC training grounds this week as he works his way back.
Carl Robinson talked about whether or not Pedro Morales has a shot at returning and factoring in the Whitecaps second round playoff encounter in November.
"Yeah he does, he'll step up his training week this week. It gives us a little bit of extra time not just with Pedro, but a number of guys. Yeah, he'll be involved."
While many MLS pundits and supporters are going to be glued to the television on Wednesday and Thursday night watching the first round MLS playoff matches. Russell Teibert is confident in his own way when it comes to playing any of three different teams Vancouver could face.
While Teibert believes they all look different from the outside, they might just be a little more alike.
"You know what, I think they're very different and very similar if that makes sense. It doesn't matter which team we play. We know what we have, we know what our qualities are and we know what are capabilities are. We know what we can achieve this year and I think everybody believes in it."
The Whitecaps are clearly in the driver’s seat and will face a tired team on Sunday. Yes, Vancouver will have to travel south, but they gain an advantage in being able to rest hobbled players. The luxury of having a playoff bye couldn't be more important after a long gruelling season right before the intensity turns up a few more notches.
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