Photo by Anne-Marie Sorvin / USA Today Sports Images
By ADAM TROXTELL
It was a night when everything went right for the Vancouver Whitecaps and everything went wrong for their opponents.
Real Salt Lake had head coach Jeff Cassar sent to the stands in the first half and Kenny Mansally was shown a red card in the second as the Whitecaps surged to a 4-0 win at BC Place on Saturday. Cristian Techera scored twice for the home side, including a thunderous strike in the 68th minute from outside the box.
There was hardly a way forward for a RSL squad that was missing several key contributors, including Javier Morales and Kyle Beckerman. The visitors recorded two shots on target the whole night, hardly testing Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted.
Jeff Attinella, on the other hand, was busy from the start. Octavio Rivero’s converted penalty kick in the seventh minute opened the flood gates, and Pa Modou Kah’s effort made it 2-0 before halftime.
The penalty set the tone for the evening. Elias Vazquez was judged to have fouled Rivero in the box, and the striker stepped up to convert the penalty for his ninth goal of the season in just the seventh minute.
The Whitecaps cruised from there, and Kah’s goal maintained the momentum into halftime. Kekuta Manneh set it up, playing a ball across goal where Kah benefitted from a slow-acting RSL defense.
With Cassar off of the sidelines after arguing too much for the referee’s liking in the first half, RSL seemed to sink even faster. Techera popped up at the back post in the 50th minute to make it 3-0 from Jordan Harvey’s assist.
He then set BC Place on fire, getting enough space on the left side of the box to unleash a rocket into the far corner and complete the Whitecaps’ big night.
RSL, who has now conceded 10 goals in the last two MLS games, perhaps also had one eye on Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup semifinal against Sporting KC. Sitting eighth in the West, RSL returns to MLS action on Saturday at home against the Portland Timbers.
Now unbeaten in their last five games, the West-leading Whitecaps also return to action on Saturday on the road against Sporting KC.
They beat Seatle 3-0
They beat RSL 4-0
…..Any team that sleeps on Whitecaps right now will get rocked
You know that team is serious when they have a CB contributing on goals
Perhaps had one eye on Wednesday nights game? Missing several key contributors? That is some insight. Perhaps you should mention they didn’t play their starting goalkeeper, none of their first string defenders, none of their first line midfielders played, and only one of their starting forwards, and their worst one at that.
I turned off that game the moment I saw the lineup. That was a butt-kicking from the moment they flew into Vancouver without Beltran, Beckerman, Morales, Plata, etc.