When the Vancouver Whitecaps play LAFC, there are bound to be a few heart-stopping moments. But not many could have expected the emotional rollercoaster that was the 2-2 (4-3 on penalties) win the Whitecaps had tonight.
The Whitecaps went up by two in the first half courtesy of Emmanuel Sabbi and Mathías Laborda, but they were not able to hold on as Son Heung-Min responded for LAFC with a brace.
Vancouver also faced further adversity with Tristan Blackmon being sent off late in regulation time, and Belal Halbouni forced off with an injury.
Yet, the team that had previously been unable to get past LAFC finally dug deep and found a way.
Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sørensen summed it up succinctly when he said, “Football is a funny game.”
“We played, for me, a very, very good first half. Second half, they changed things and got momentum going, and they played through the middle. We gave the ball away too easily. And then in the extra time, we were, of course, lucky,” he said.
Lucky.
At times, Sørensen is a man of few words. But the ones he uses are honest.
The first half played out as many expected: tons of Whitecaps possession punctuated by LAFC counters. However, the ‘Caps did well to stifle the majority of LAFC’s forward movement in the midfield, taking the sting out of the opposition’s dangerous attack.
The Whitecaps were positive in their approach, building up through their backline and finding players in pockets. The midfield trio of Andrés Cubas, Thomas Müller and Sebastian Berhalter were constantly moving the ball and distributing to the wings.
The breakthrough came in the 39th minute. Yohei Takaoka, who had been enjoying a quiet night between the sticks, hit a beautiful overhead pass through the midfield to find Sabbi.
Sabbi turned off the shoulder of the last defender, making space as he entered the 18-yard box, and hit a low shot past Hugo Lloris.
The Whitecaps doubled their lead before the end of the half. Laborda got his fifth of the season in the 44th minute.
Berhalter’s corner was headed at goal by Müller, but Lloris was only able to parry it away. Laborda jumped on the loose ball and slotted it over the supine goalkeeper.
LAFC came out of the gate for the second half looking like a team with something to prove. No longer content to sit back, the visitors were the ones to hold possession and push forward. A couple of changes also brought stability to LAFC’s backline.
LAFC got on the board in the 60th minute. Mark Delgado played a smart ball into Vancouver’s 6-yard box for Son.
The South Korean star had three attempts on the ball before finally getting it over the line.
The final 30 minutes of regulation time were a battle of teams playing for their lives: the Whitecaps playing to hold on, and LAFC pushing everything at Vancouver.
It was a battle that LAFC won. In nine minutes of stoppage time, the visitors were awarded a free kick after Blackmon was given a second yellow card and sent off. Son’s ensuing free kick was one that will show on highlight reels.
The MLS transfer record player hit a pinpoint shot past Takaoka, breathing life into LAFC and sucking the air out of BC Place.
Neither side was able to break the deadlock in extra time. But the bulk of chances fell to LAFC.
Halbouni was also forced off in the 112th minute with an injury, which left the Whitecaps down to nine men.
In the 30 minutes of extra time, LAFC dominated the ball with 84 per cent possession and racked up 2.05 xG alone.
But none of it mattered. This match needed penalties.
Son and Delgado missed their penalties for LAFC, and Edier Ocampo missed his for the Whitecaps. Laborda was left as the last man standing.
And with a cool finish, the defender launched the Whitecaps into the MLS Western Conference final for the first time in club history.
LAFC? Dragon slayed.
Whitecaps do it the hard way
Nothing is easy against LAFC, and tonight’s conference semi-final highlighted that emphatically.
But Sørensen, in addition to skill and teamwork, said sometimes it comes down to belief.
“You have to believe you can do it,” he said. “You have to believe you can put something up. And you trust that we have a structure that helps you when things are difficult, not just when it’s easy.”
The most difficult part of this was being down to nine players late in extra time.
“If you’re two men down, normally it’s not possible to get through 25 minutes. But the players did it. They’re extremely disciplined, extremely unselfish. Everybody put everything out on the pitch.”
Up next
The Whitecaps will face the winner of San Diego FC and Minnesota United FC, who face off on Monday, Nov. 24, in their conference semi-final.
The Western Conference final will be played on Saturday, Nov. 29, at 6 p.m., regardless of who wins between San Diego and Minnesota.
If San Diego wins, the game will take place at Snapdragon Stadium. If Minnesota wins, the Whitecaps will get home-field advantage once again and have the game at BC Place.
