Late-game miracles are starting to become a thing for the Vancouver Whitecaps.
As they did against LA Galaxy, the Whitecaps found a late goal against CF Monterrey, courtesy of Belal Halbouni, to tie the match at 1-1 and set it back to Mexico.
Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sørensen said he was “happy with most of what I saw from the players.”
“The flow of the game, the pace we had with the ball, and the positions we held, the structure we played with, even though we had changed a little bit in the lineup, I think it was quite impressive and looking good for the future.”
With the heavy schedule to begin the 2025 campaign, Sorensen opted for significant changes to his starting XI.
Mathías Laborda switched to left-back to cover for the injured Sam Adekugbe leaving space for Édier Ocampo to start on the right.
Belal Halbouni, Issac Boehmer, and Daniel Rios were all given their first starts of the season.
The first 25 minutes were a cagey affair with both teams testing their opponent’s respective back lines.
Monterrey came out early with their customary high possession, dominating the Whitecaps in all areas of the pitch for the first 10 minutes. However, the home side gradually found their way into the match.
An early substitution in the 5th minute forced a change in position as Ali Ahmed came on for Jayden Nelson. Ahmed and J.C. Ngando switched often on the left as the speed of both players enabled quick movement down the left.
But it was the visitors that scored first. Roberto De La Rosa cut in behind the Whitecaps’ defensive line as a cutting through ball found him streaking all alone. His 40-yard box was uninterrupted and put Monterrey up by one in the 25th minute.
“We made a mistake in the first half, and they profited from it,” Sørensen said.
The second half saw Whitecaps 2024 MLS SuperDraft Tate Johnson come in for Laborda.
Throughout the second 45 minutes, the Whitecaps pushed Monterrey inside their half. The home side was able to play their game in their building.
However, Monterrey would not break, confident in their defence and the backstopping of goalkeeper Esteban Andrada.
In their form, the Whitecaps high press, high possession play saw them with 71 per cent possession in the second half and 14 shots to Monterrey’s one.
It paid off late in the match. In the 86th minute, Ryan Gauld’s free kick connected with Balal Halbouni in the six-yard box. The centre-back’s header got past Andrada’s wall.
It was Halbouni’s first goal as a Whitecap player.
“This has to give us more than a little bit of hope going down [to Mexico] next week,” Sørensen said.
Sørensen’s gamble in the lineup pays off
Sørensen made several changes to his starting XI, pressured by the pace of matches coming through.
Boehmer, Ngando, Halbouni, Johnson, Rios, and Ocampo all were given significant minutes in this match. All performed well.
“Of course, if a player hasn’t played in a while, it’s natural [that] he needs to get in and find the rhythm with the other guys in the team,” Sørensen said. “I think Belal did excellent, but he hasn’t been playing for a while. I think he did a very good job. Édier started for the first time, did well after a little tricky start. Also Issac.”
The significant rotation is sure to give Sørensen the confidence in his squad to do so in the future.
Up next
There is no rest for the weary as the Whitecaps are back at it on Saturday, March 8 when they play CF Montréal at BC Place.
Kickoff is at 6:30 p.m.
