Vancouver Whitecaps smack Sporting KC 3-0

The Vancouver Whitecaps have a habit of showing ambitious teams just who’s boss in the West.

The Caps dismantled Sporting Kansas City 3-0 at Sporting Park on Saturday night in a performance that was every bit as authoritative as the scoreline suggested.

Vancouver controlled the match for most of the night, pressed SKC into mistake after mistake and repeatedly exposed a Kansas City defence that struggled to contain the movement of Thomas Müller, Ryan Gauld and Brian White.

Müller opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 38th minute after Justin Reynolds brought down Bruno Caicedo inside the box. The German World Cup winner showed the calm that has become one of his trademarks, waiting for SKC keeper Stefan Cleveland to commit before rolling the penalty straight down the middle as Cleveland dove to his right.

The Whitecaps doubled their advantage just three minutes after halftime.

Caicedo’s work helped create the opening, with the winger cutting the ball back into a dangerous area before Oliver Larraz picked out Brian White in the heart of the six-yard box.

White needed no invitation, calmly steering the ball beyond Cleveland from close range to give Vancouver a two-goal cushion.

It was another example of the American striker’s predatory instincts and his ability to appear in exactly the right place when Vancouver’s midfielders and wingers create chaos around the penalty area that were so dearly missed for much of the season.

White was a constant threat in Vancouver’s attack throughout his 87 minutes, troubling KC’s centre-backs and helping create space for the players operating behind him. His movement complemented Müller and Gauld’s creativity, giving Sporting a three-man attacking puzzle it had no answer for.

Gauld was back in his familiar playmaking role and helped Vancouver dictate the rhythm in Kansas City. The Scotsman repeatedly found pockets between Sporting’s midfield and defence, while also coming close to producing the goal of the night late in the second half. With the match already under control, Gauld attempted an audacious bicycle kick from just outside the six-yard box that narrowly went over the crossbar.

Sporting’s best efforts to mount a comeback produced little. Vancouver’s defensive structure, anchored by Tristan Blackmon and Mathias Laborda, remained compact, while Yohei Takaoka was barely tested as Sporting managed zero shots on target from seven attempts on the night.

The Caps eventually added a third goal in the 90th minute. Rayan Elloumi, who had replaced White moments earlier, found space inside the box and fired toward goal. Cleveland kept the first attempt out with his feet, with the ball also striking the post, but Elloumi was sharp and jumped all over the rebound, beating the SKC keeper at the near post to put the finishing touch on a complete Vancouver victory.

The win gives Vancouver another emphatic road victory and reinforces what the Whitecaps showed before the World Cup break, that they are one of MLS’s most complete sides. For ambitious and new big spenders Sporting KC, it was a sobering reminder of the gulf between a team battling near the bottom of the West and a Whitecaps side continuing to set the pace at the top.

Sporting KC have embarked on an aggressive roster overhaul, backed by new majority owner Peter Mallouk. The club recently spent a reported club-record $18 million-plus on Brazilian winger André Luiz, while also acquiring 21-year-old midfielder Owen Wolff from Austin FC for up to $7.6 million.

The spending spree comes amid a remarkable reshaping of the attack. Sporting dealt designated-player striker Dejan Joveljić to Seattle for $6 million and parted ways with midfielder Manu García, opening another DP slot as the club attempts to build for the future.

It’s a busy week for the Whitecaps who return home to host Alexis Sanchez’s CF Montreal in the first leg of the Canadian Championship semifinal on Tuesday before hosting St. Louis City on Saturday.

Tags: