Report Card: Whitecaps at FC Dallas

With the Gold Cup looming closer with each passing day, the Whitecaps needed to make sure that they made the most out of their players leaving. After a shaky start, the Whitecaps were able to do something they hadn’t done before: Lead (and at that score) in the first half. The positive end to the first half didn’t amount to much in the second, as the Whitecaps were completely outclassed in the second. Either way, it’s good to reflect on what the players did well (Or not so well):

Maxime Crepeau: 6.5

Thomas Hasal will have his work cut out for him once Crepeau joins up with the rest of the CMNT as the de-facto starter this Gold Cup in Milan Borjan’s absence. The Whitecaps shot-stopper had a game similar to most of his performances this season, which basically sums up as ‘despite conceding, Maxime Crepeau pulled off some stellar saves that nullified goals that would have come were any other keeper in net.’

Cristián Gutiérrez: 6.5

Gutierrez was defensively the Whitecaps’ strongest performer. Having now sealed his spot as starting left back due to the unfortunate contract termination of DP Ali Adnan, Gutierrez now has free reign to express his unique and offensive style of play. He poked the ball away from attackers, made great runs up the field, and found himself in dangerous positions. There won’t be too much lack of continuity in the post-Ali Adnan age, it looks like.

Andy Rose: 6.0

Caught lax at the back on the opening goal, Rose made up for it at the end of the first half with giving the Whitecaps their first opening half lead this season. The backup option at centreback continues to find himself on the lineup and has rewarded Marc Dos Santos’ faith in him with that goal. Unluckily for him, the second half presented more problems, eventually culminating in miscommunication that ended with an own goal.

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Erik Godoy: 5.5

That opening goal was bad, like, real bad. Ball watching and not covering the incoming defender. Godoy and Rose both share the blame for this, and again, it probably goes down to communication. The back line wasn’t terrible per se, but there were way too many attacks invited in the second half to be able to certainly say that the Whitecaps had a solid defensive setup.

Javain Brown: 5.5

Not playing to the level shown before, Brown’s defensive abilities were shown to be suspect today. I wouldn’t personally read too much into the young Jamaican’s performance tonight, as it looks to (Hopefully) just be a blip. The pressure may be tough to deal with, considering the depth at right back the Whitecaps have, especially right after Bikel provided a great performance in that position again. Only more game time will show Brown’s ability to deal with pressure, but for now, his rating won’t be anything more than average.

Russell Teibert: 5.5

A positive Teibert performance, Rusty didn’t detract from the game, and while mostly invisible, did contribute to multiple Whitecap counter attacks. Unfortunately, as the quality of the players around him dropped, so too did his own performance. Were the game to end right after the first half, he probably would have had a higher rating, but the second half collapse and lack of positive play restricted Teibert’s utility.

Janio Bikel: 7.0

Bikel is looking to be a mainstay in the Whitecaps midfield. He is consistently a good performer for the team and helps break down attacks almost as much as he creates them. His versatility is not something usually talked about, but is a crucial aspect of his game, as this allows him to roam anywhere as a defensive option to stifle out attacks. With some better supporting cast members, Bikel could take his game to the next level.

Caio Alexandre: 6.0

A understated but solid performance by the Brazilian, there weren’t any straight up moments of magic from him, rather Alexandre helped move attacks forwards and connect the back line to the attacking players.

Cristian Dajome: 6.0

Unfortunately unable to replicate his previous game’s form, Dajome looked relatively off pace tonight, with many attacking runs being cut early and not enough creativity to be able to influence the ‘Caps to something more inspiring than a 2-2 draw.

Deiber Caicedo: 6.5

Caicedo looked lively, and provided more apparent options than his counterpart of the opposite flank did. He was confident with take ons and dribbles and didn’t get caught out too often. He was definitely the second best offensive player right after Lucas Cavallini.

Lucas Cavallini: 7.0

This may be the best performance that the Whitecaps’ now sole DP has had this season. It seems that the drought was a bottleneck for the Canadian, as goals and attacking instinct look to be returning parallel to his confidence. This is both good and bad news for the Whitecaps, as Cavallini is also leaving for the Gold Cup, leaving the Whitecaps to rely on Brian White, Tosaint Ricketts and Theo Bair. The suspension for yellow card accumulation stings as well, considering he is not allowed to count the games missed while on national duty as one of those. Other than that, a very good performance from Cavallini.

Ryan Raposo: 4.5

Raposo was the first sub to come on in the night, and did nothing spectacular with the time he had.

Brian White: 4.5

Brian White looked every piece the overpriced substitute striker that many feared him to be. His touch and aggression seemed off the pace following Cavallini’s efforts

Patrick Metcalfe: 5.0

Metcalfe didn’t do anything terribly on his time on the field, but he certainly didn’t make his presence known.

Ranko Veslinovic: 3.5

An own goal right after coming in set the tone for the performance. All one can say is “yikes”. Miscommunication at its finest.

Jake Nerwinski: 4.5

Came in, got a yellow card, generally lost his head. Changing the backline so much crippled the flow the backline had beforehand, and while Brown wasn’t having the best game, it would have been smart to let him see it out to not disorganize what was working.

Marc Dos Santos: 3.0

I think it would be fair to say that the lineup changes caused the Whitecaps to give up the late equalizer. Winless in seven is not a good look, and over the past two games, inspired performances from individual players have shown that the Whitecaps woes may not be due to the roster makeup. I think the Whitecaps faithful all have a consensus about what they think of Marc Dos Santos’ coaching, as now after a little over two years the tactics and game plans have been clear to see. If there’s one thing to take solace in, is that the Whitecaps weren’t the worst Canadian team this weekend, as the Reds took a 7-1 pounding that spelled the end of Chris Armas’ short reign as TFC coach.

Disagree with any of the ratings above? Sound off in the comments with your opinion.