VANCOUVER — As the boos rang out at BC Place Saturday night after the Vancouver Whitecaps’ scoreless draw with D.C. United, it was difficult not to think that Carl Robinson’s men won’t be going to the playoffs.
The result means the ‘Caps have now been shut out in their last four outings, and five from their last six, at the most important time of the year.
Yes, the club is still tied on points with the Western Conference’s fifth place Portland Timbers, with both teams having 34.
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But any momentum Vancouver had early in the season continues to evaporate. The team is winless in four matches, with only two victories in their last 14 outings, and can’t seem to score.
To Robinson’s credit, he switched up his formation after last week’s humiliating 3-0 defeat to the Timbers, playing a diamond 4-4-2 and dropping the 4-2-3-1 which has brought little joy in recent times.
It seemed to open things up offensively a bit more against a very resolute D.C. United. But once again it was wastefulness in front of goal which proved Vancouver’s undoing, with the biggest culprit Darren Mattocks.
The Jamaican missed several guilt edged opportunities, including one just moments into the match, before getting two looks at goal in the 12th minute, first failing to convert a cross, before a defender cleared right in his direction, only for the forward to sky the ball from six yards.
Mattocks would go on to fire a ball directly at goalkeeper Bill Hamid from a tight angle breakaway when he had quite a lot of net to shoot at, and also managed a weak header on target.
Perhaps centre back Kendall Waston had the best chance and worst miss of the match, however, missing a free header from close range just past the half hour mark from a Pedro Morales set piece.
These sorts of missed opportunities have been endemic for the Whitecaps in recent times, which after this result now continue a scoreless run which spans four games and 411 minutes.
While few will deny there are some young forwards with potential on this roster, the inconsistency of those players is inarguable.
Kekuta Manneh looks a parody of the player that scored a hat-trick against the Seattle Sounders late last year at CenturyLink Field. Erik Hurtado’s five goals in five games in all competitions streak earlier this year is beginning to look more like a fluke than an omen of things to come.
And Mattocks continues to consistently get in excellent positions only to blow it.
This squad needs a clinical finisher with a record of consistently delivering, and with the international transfer window now closed, the possibility of that happening before it reopens in January during the offseason appears dim.
The Whitecaps can still beef up their offence by trading within Major League Soccer, but given the reluctance of the club to part with youth, the chances of that happening appear low.
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Looking from the outside, it appears the club’s leadership doesn’t believe this is the year to sacrifice the future for a run at a championship—not an unreasonable stance, especially given recent performances.
D.C. United is a strong team, sitting atop the Eastern Conference, so this match wasn’t a disaster in and of itself. But as the season runs down and the Whitecaps fail time and time again to pick up full points at home, these individual hiccups are becoming collectively catastrophic.
The Whitecaps don’t have to wait long to get back at it, which could be a good thing for a struggling team, as they host the San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday at BC Place.
The side will likely be without Mattocks, who has been called up to play for Jamaica against Canada in Toronto on Tuesday. There’s a chance the forward will be back by Wednesday, especially if he doesn’t play much or at all against Canada, but most likely Robinson will have to tinker with his front line.
Whether that means Hurtado gets another look, or Manneh comes into the side, is unclear. The coaching staff could also elect to give Omar Salgado a further look. With Mauro Rosales now firing crosses into the box from the right, Salgado’s height may have more value than it has had before the Argentine’s arrival.
Regardless of what changes are made up top, the performance of the forward group surely can’t be worse on Wednesday than it has been over the last four matches.
Or can it?
Martin MacMahon is a Vancouver-based writer. Follow him on Twitter.