With the Vancouver Whitecaps out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the main focus shifted to MLS.
Following the defeat to the Seattle Sounders in Spokane, the Whitecaps faced a quick turnaround with the San Jose Earthquakes visiting. This year, San Jose is stronger than in recent seasons; while last year their defence struggled, heading into Saturday’s game, the Quakes had only conceded one goal.
Similarly, Vancouver had conceded just one goal heading into Saturday, but had scored a league-leading 14. The blue and white aimed to sustain their early-season momentum.
The big storyline heading into this game was the matchup between the Whitecaps Thomas Müller and the Earthquakes Timo Werner. The two of them were teammates at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and 2020 UEFA Euros for the German national team. The two of them also competed against each other in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig.
But that was not the main focus of the game. The Whitecaps dominated possession, but the Earthquakes defensive game and low block proved to be the difference. Vancouver has lost their first game of the season. This match felt like the part in Batman: Arkham Asylum where you have to fight a juiced-up Bane and Joker’s henchman. (It took the author dozens of times to beat this part of the game and is a big noob when it comes to most non-sports games.)
First half: Daniel comes up big and San Jose strikes before halftime
The Whitecaps stuck to their possession-based soccer to start. The Earthquakes tried to get the better of them with the counterattack.
Ralph Priso and Edier Ocampo made some great track backs and defensive plays to prevent the Quakes from getting a shot on Yohei Takaoka. San Jose was also well structured to start the game, as Vancouver had trouble getting in behind.
That was until Brian White perfectly timed his header from Ocampo’s cross in the 21st minute, but Earthquakes goalkeeper Daniel was ready to make the save.
Ocampo and Mikhail Ghreasimencov were doing a good job helping with the build-up on the flanks. Ocampo, in particular, was doing well with his crosses. However, Daniel was up for the challenge with another great save on White and on AZ.
San Jose nearly went up 1-0. Preston Judd was putting the Earthquakes’ attack on his back and crossed it to Jamar Ricketts. It looked like a tap-in, but somehow Ricketts missed it. Whitecaps dodged a bullet.
After chances to open the scoring on Daniel, it was the Earthquakes who struck first. Deep into stoppage time, the Whitecaps failed to clear the corner properly after Takaoka spilled the ball. After stealing the ball from Sabaly, Beau Leroux blasted one from just outside the box past everybody. What a hit this was.
It was a shame because the Whitecaps looked like they were on the front foot, but they had nothing to show for it. Now they were heading into the half behind.
Second half: Whitecaps can’t break down Earthquakes’ low block
Sabaly was taken off for Müller to start the half, in the hope of sparking a goal or more.
The Earthquakes once again tried sitting back. It did help that San Jose wasn’t used to the turf. Early in the second half, one of their players slipped, and Vancouver went the other way quickly. Unfortunately, JC Ngando’s shot was blocked just in time.
It looked like there might have been a penalty when Dejuan Jones took down Emmanuel Sabbi in the box. But referee Chris Penso was having none of it. He was making….interesting calls.
The Whitecaps were still having difficulty getting in behind the Earthquakes backline. San Jose was doing a good job marking the Vancouver attackers. They were playing very rigidly and compact. It also didn’t help that the likes of AZ and Sabbi had trouble winning duels in the attacking third.
They kept pushing and pushing. The Earthquakes played about eight or nine players in the box. Kenji Cabrera nearly scored a screamer to tie the game, but it just missed the right post.
In the end, the Quakes hung on for the win. Call it anti-football, terrorism or Haram Ball all you want, but their low-block and defensive play was well executed.
For the Whitecaps, the final third is still an issue, especially against low blocks. There wasn’t enough fluidity and creativity. This was a game that needed someone like Ali Ahmed, Jayden Nelson or even a healthy Ryan Gauld. Low blocks are frustrating to play against, and when teams are just passing and not offering creativity, it hurts them. The Whitecaps were prime examples of that on Saturday night.
Stat of the match
Daniel made six saves to give San Jose the clean sheet, despite all the time wasting he did. That drew the ire of the BC Place crowd.
Tweet of the match
Sabbi seems to be one of those players who start poorly and pick it up in the middle and/or later parts of the season. Against San Jose, he kept holding the ball for too long and losing possession. The Sabbi from the second half of 2025 and the playoffs need to show up sooner rather than later.
What was said
“I think we had good control for most parts, then they scored on the last shot of the half, and we made a big mistake,” said Whitecaps head coach Jesper Sørensen. “Yohei should’ve had the ball…we got in the situations we wanted…we had our chances but did not take them.”
He was asked about breaking down low blocks.
“We need to have the right timing in how to do the right decision making and to break them down,” said Sørensen. “It’s something that we faced a couple of times, and we’re going to face it a lot more., because we are going to be playing higher up the pitch in many games against opponents. It’s going to be something that we’ll have to go back to the training ground and get better.”
Priso also shared his disappointment with the loss.
“It’s really disappointing, it’s important to pick up points, and I think it’s a game where it says more about us than the opponent,” he said. “Credit to them, they take the three points, but I think we did it more to ourselves.”
He was also asked about how his team can break down deeply defensive teams.
“I think it’s something we’re going to come up against a lot this year,” said Priso. “So far this year, I don’t think we’ve done a good job with it. So it’s definitely something we’re going to need to improve. I think when teams come here, they know they are not really outpossessing us. It’s up to us to play the game on our terms and be better.”
Wrap-up
Perhaps fatigue got the better of the Whitecaps. After all, they played four games in 10 days. But that obviously cannot be an excuse.
It was a frustrating night, but they now have two weeks off due to the international break. Vancouver is back in action on April 4 as they host the Portland Timbers. Kickoff for that game is at 7:30 pm. Perhaps this break came at a good time. This way, they can work on being better in the final third and breaking down low blocks.
