By:Aaron Campbell (Twitter:@AaCamp81)
The Great Dane
Match Report Courtesy of Whitecaps FC
Vancouver Whitecaps FC (3W-4L-1D) made a resounding statement on Saturday evening, defeating league-leading FC Dallas (5W-2L-2D) 3-0 in front of a sellout crowd at BC Place behind goals from Jordan Harvey and Kekuta Manneh, and brilliant goalkeeping from David Ousted.
Harvey and Manneh added to the ‘Caps lead in the second half after an own goal from FC Dallas defender Maynor Figueroa in the 35th-minute. Ousted, who was wearing the captain’s armband in the absence of the injured Pedro Morales, made four saves to record his third clean sheet of the season.
Blas Pérez, playing against his old former side for the first time, notched an assist after coming on as a second-half substitute.
There was plenty of action to start the match with Tesho Akindele and Nicolas Mezquida trading shots on goal within the opening two minutes but both goalkeepers were alert early. The back-and-forth affair continued in the 10th minute when Walker Zimmerman found a wide open Fabian Castillo in the centre of the box, but Ousted made himself big to force the chip shot to float over the crossbar.
In the 19th minute, Ousted provided the acrobatics, getting up high to punch away a right-footed half-volley blast by Maximilano Urruti from outside the box.
The ‘Caps would open the scoring in the 35th minute, albeit in an unexpected manner. Initiating the attack on the left side, Manneh located Cristian Techera across the face of net but the cross bounced against Figueroa and straight into the net for the own goal.
The visitors tried to respond three minutes after when Michael Barrios played a neat through ball to Castillo, but the ensuing attempt from outside the box missed the target by inches, as FC Dallas failed to equalize before halftime.
Dallas nearly drew level just five minutes into the second half when Urruti played the ball forward to Barrios inside the box, but Ousted slid forward to meet the threat, making the highlight save with his left palm.
In the 61st minute, the Great Dane came up huge yet again, this time flying left to thwart Tesho Akindele’s blast from long distance.
The missed opportunity proved costly for FC Dallas as the ‘Caps would double their lead just two minutes after when Harvey slotted in his second goal of the season, this time off a corner kick from Techera.
Pérez, who spent the past four seasons with FC Dallas, came on in the 77th minute and made his presence felt instantly. After Techera jump started a breakaway in midfield, Pérez nudged the ball forward to a sprinting Manneh, who avoided the oncoming goalkeeper to make the score 3-0 for the home side.
With the win, the ‘Caps snap a two-match losing skid. FC Dallas remain atop the MLS standings with 17 points despite the loss.
Whitecaps FC will try to carry the momentum to Wednesday evening when they host Sporting Kansas City at BC Place. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. PT (TSN1 and TSN 1410).
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
Whitecaps FC head coach Carl Robinson fielded the same starting lineup from the previous match for the first time this season… Morales missed his third straight match with a left hip flexor injury but has returned to training this week.
MATCH DETAILS
Budweiser Man of the Match: David Ousted
Referee: Silviu Petrescu
Attendance: 22,120
Scoring Summary
35’ – VAN – Maynor Figueroa (own goal)
63’ – VAN – Jordan Harvey
77’ – VAN – Kekuta Manneh (Blas Pérez, Cristian Techera)
Stats
Shots: Vancouver 12 – Dallas 18
Shots on Goal: Vancouver 6 – Dallas 4
Saves: Vancouver 4 – Dallas 4
Fouls: Vancouver 11 – Dallas 9
Offsides: Vancouver 3 – Dallas 1
Corners: Vancouver 2 – Dallas 7
Cautions
20’ – DAL – Maximiliano Urruti
37’ – DAL – Walker Zimmerman
72’ – VAN – Octavio Rivero
80’ – VAN – Blas Pérez
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
1.David Ousted ©; 8.Fraser Aird, 4.Kendall Waston, 26.Tim Parker, 2.Jordan Harvey; 17.Andrew Jacobson, 15.Matías Laba; 13.Cristian Techera (7.Christian Bolaños 80′), 11.Nicolás Mezquida (31.Russell Teibert 88′), 23.Kekuta Manneh; 29.Octavio Rivero (27.Blas Pérez 77′)
Substitutes not used
70.Paolo Tornaghi, 3.Sam Adekugbe, 9.Masato Kudo, 44.Pa-Modou Kah
FC Dallas
18.Chris Seitz; 14.Atiba Harris, 17.Zach Loyd, 25.Walker Zimmerman, 31.Maynor Figueroa; 21.Michael Barrios (23.Kellyn Acosta 74′), 8.Victor Ulloa © (10.Mauro Díaz 71′), 7.Carlos Gruezo, 11.Fabian Castillo; 37.Maximiliano Urruti, 13.Tesho Akindele
Substitutes not used
1.Jesse Gonzalez, 12.Ryan Hollingshead, 20.Juan Esteban Ortiz, 22.Carlos Lizarazo, 77.Mauro Rosales
