VANCOUVER — It wasn’t pretty at times, and there were many unconvincing moments at the back for the Vancouver Whitecaps in their 4-3 win over the New England Revolution Saturday night at BC Place on Saturday.
But keeping things in context, it’s a fantastic victory.
The drop off from starting centre back Andy O’Brien (who missed out on this game due to a hamstring problem) to Carlyle Mitchell (his replacement) is tremendous. Add in the fact that Mitchell played only five times previously in his Whitecaps career, and simply getting any sort of result with him back there has to be considered a bonus.
Mitchell, a Trinidad and Tobago international, was a bit of a liability at the back, and his central defensive partner, Honduran international Johnny Leveron, wasn’t much better. The pair clearly had communication problems, and Brad Knighton was left yelling at Leveron in particular for interfering with his ability to come for crosses more than once.
However, on the other side of the pitch, the Whitecaps took full advantage of having an extra man following Andrew Farrell’s 23rd minute dismissal.
Playing against 10 men can often be challenging, especially when teams bunker down. But the Whitecaps pressed and spread the field well, and made the most of their advantage by scoring four consecutive goals.
Once again, Miller starred as he often has this season, scoring his fourth and fifth goals from his six Major League Soccer matches played. And what goals they were.
His first was a splendid individual effort as he hustled himself past Stephen McCarthy and finished well with his left foot. As for his second effort, it was a stunning strike into the roof of Bobby Shuttleworth’s goal.
Finally, the Whitecaps have a designated player who plays like one – fans will be keeping their fingers crossed he keeps fit and that hamstring issue doesn’t spring up again.
On the wing, Russell Teibert once again played a key role, setting Jordan Harvey up for a goal – that marks the young Canadian’s third consecutive game with an assist, a club record.
Camilo put in a steady shift, and took his penalty confidently to maintain his tear – he’s now scored eight goals in his last 11 matches in all competitions.
In midfield Matt Watson was ordinary at best and did nothing of note. When the Whitecaps went up a man he lacked the guile to contribute much going forward, and so it was no surprise to see coach Martin Rennie bring on Kekuta Manneh in his stead.
Centrally, it was a pleasant surprise to see Daigo Kobayashi lined up in a playmaking role rather than out on the wing. Unfortunately, apart from his usual flicks and tricks, the once-capped Japanese international didn’t take advantage of the extra space in midfield provided by Farrell’s sending off. Once again, he looked tentative off the ball, and didn’t show often enough. For those championing the midfield player as a central option, he did little for his case on Saturday.
But further positives can be taken from the performances of Manneh and Erik Hurtado. Both youngsters pushed forward without leaving the team exposed, and did their job adequately without being spectacular.
However, as good as it must have felt in the Whitecaps dressing room following the game, this win was far from convincing. Yes, the defence was depleted, but as a whole the structure was non-existent in the opening 20 minutes when the Whitecaps were playing against a full-strength New England.
Before Farrell’s expulsion, the Revs were coasting and the Whitecaps looked hapless. Even following the dismissal, the Whitecaps were strong going forward but still looked shaky at times in their own end.
Now the Whitecaps must turn their focus for a match against Chivas USA at BC Place on Wednesday. But as poor as Chivas have been at times, any half-decent MLS striker will have his fair share of opportunities with the way Mitchell and Leveron played on Saturday.
If that pair lines up once again in the heart of defence, it could be a very long night indeed for the Whitecaps faithful – because surely this team can’t continue to bail itself out with offensive production night after night.
But regardless of how unhappy the coaching staff will privately be with the way this game played out, the team is at least finally showing an ability to find the back of the net – and once this centre back injury bug concludes, if the team can put everything together they could be quite a formidable unit indeed.
Martin MacMahon is a Vancouver-based writer who covers the Vancouver Whitecaps for MLSsoccer.com. Follow Martin on Twitter.