The Vancouver Whitecaps had Better Not Be Done with their Backline Yet

The Vancouver Whitecaps have made moves this off-season, but few with the fanfare that came with last season, when they made ripples in the city with additions like Pedro Morales and Steven Beitashour, bringing at least some hope to a team that was still licking it's wounds from a disappointing 2013 season, as well as the fleeing of it's star striker.

This year, the Whitecaps have tried to add some scoring punch with the addition of Octavio Rivero, but the club have yet to make a significant move on the backline, or at least a move that will quell some of the worry arisen from the loss of both Johnny Leveron and Andy O'Brien.

When healthy, The Whitecaps backline has been a strength in recent memory, and it's been a while since they went into a training camp with so many question marks. They lost an immeasurable amount of leadership with the retirement of Jay Demerit and O'Brien moving on, and have yet to replace it. Steven Beitashour is a rock and Jordan Harvey has been better than expected, so the left and right back shouldn't be too much of a concern, but the same cannot be said about the Whitecaps center back depth.

I love Kendall Waston, as does much of the city of Vancouver, but he cannot be counted on for a consistent 90 minutes of play with his rough and tumble style. Simply put, he's going to rack up a lot of cards next season, and the same can be said for the Whitecaps newest signing Pa Modou Kah, formerly of the Portland Timbers.

He's a good depth option and is said to be a great influence in the locker room, but he's just as unstable on the pitch. A pairing of Waston and Kah may instil some intimidation in opposing teams, but that won't help much when the 'Caps are playing a man down.

The Whitecaps are obviously hoping the youth movement will provide the answers they're looking for, with the highly regarded Christian Dean vying for a starting spot, as well as Uruguayan Diego Rodriguez. It's not a bad idea, and it fits with the philosophy of development the team has been trumpeting, especially in the case of Dean.

However, the Whitecaps tried to do the whole youth movement thing last season with their striker core. How did that work out, again? Really, unless the Whitecaps can add a more reliable veteran depth option for their backline, the club is just playing with fire for the second season in a row.

There's still plenty of time for Carl Robinson and company to make some more additions before the regular season starts, and Robinson's short history of player additions has been almost totally positive, so I'm not entirely worried. Still, I would say the backline is much weaker going into this training camp than last season.

What do you think?

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