It’s almost always special whenever the Vancouver Whitecaps play the Seattle Sounders.
It’s one of the best rivalries in Major League Soccer, and thanks to the good folks at CONCACAF the rivalry has carried over into this year’s CONCACAF Champions League.
These two Cascadia opponents will meet Wednesday night at CenturyLink Field in the group stage of the Champions League, their second meeting against one another in five days.
Here’s what you need to know about the game…
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WINNER TAKES ALL
These teams are tied for first place in Group F with four points apiece—ahead of Honduran club Olimpia (three points)—but the Whitecaps have a game in hand on the Sounders. Only the group winner qualifies for the next round.
Vancouver can clinch the group and advance to the quarterfinals with a victory on Wednesday. Vancouver can also get through this group by picking up a draw against Seattle and another draw in Honduras against Olimpia next month in the final match of the group.
If the Sounders win on Wednesday they will win the group and advance—Seattle previously battled Vancouver to a 1-1 road draw in the group stage, so a victory would give them the tiebreaker.
WHITECAPS OUT FOR REVENGE
Seattle is riding high after earning a 3-0 win over the Whitecaps at BC Place Stadium in MLS play on Saturday.
This game is a chance for the Whitecaps to earn some revenge by eliminating their long-time rivals from the CONCACAF competition.
“We didn’t play particularly bad, but we didn’t take advantage of our opportunities and they took advantage of theirs,” Vancouver defender Tim Parker told reporters earlier this week.
“That happens from time to time, but we’re definitely ready for revenge.”
Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson admitted he plans to make lineup changes, especially with the club in MLS action again this coming weekend.
“You won’t see the same team that you saw on Saturday, so there will be a number of changes” Robinson said.
TORNAGHI’S CHANCE TO SHINE
With the Whitecaps fighting for first place in MLS, Robinson has prioritized that competition for his regular starting XI, while fielding somewhat experimental sides in the Champions League.
One of the players who has benefited from this approach is backup goalkeeper Paolo Tornaghi, who earned his first clean sheet with the Whitecaps in last week’s Champions League win over Olimpia at home.
The Italian has yet to play a single MLS minute for Vancouver, serving as the No. 2 behind David Ousted, so this competition has been a welcome place for him to get some game time.
“It’s a pretty tough moment when I have to train weeks and weeks without a good chance to play in a real game,” Tornaghi told Sportsnet. “So with this competition and the [Amway Canadian Championship], I have the chance, so I’m happy for it. I’ve been waiting a long time for it.”
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HEAD TO HEAD
This will be the fifth meeting in all competitions this season between these two clubs.
Seattle has the edge this season with two wins and a draw, but the home team has yet to win a game.
“It’s bizarre,” Robinson told the Whitecaps’ official website. “The only good thing is that maybe we’ve got two games away against them next year.”
FIFA WORLD CLUB CUP BERTH AT STAKE
The eventual winner of this tournament will go on to represent CONCACAF and the 2016 FIFA World Club Cup in Japan, a tournament featuring all the top continental club champions in world soccer, including the winner of this season’s UEFA Champions League.
WHAT’S NEXT
Vancouver resumes its MLS campaign on Saturday when it hosts New York City FC. The following weekend they travel to San Jose to take on the Earthquakes, and then face FC Dallas in a home-and-home series. Vancouver closes out the group stage of the Champions League against Olimpia in Honduras on Oct. 22. The Whitecap’s final game of the MLS season is three days later, at home against the Houston Dynamo.
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