The Vancouver Whitecaps got the homecoming
they wanted Saturday night.
And, Ryan Gauld got the home debut he sought.
In their first real home game since March
2020, the Whitecaps posted a 2-1 comeback win over Los Angeles FC in Major
League Soccer action at B.C. Place Stadium.
“The win was important to get (the fans)
back,” said coach Marc Dos Santos, whose team played its first real home game in
539 days.
Gauld, a recently acquired 25-year-old Scottish
midfielder who came on , delighted a small but raucous crowd as he headed in the winning goal
in the 89th minute off a a Ryan Raposo cross.
Gauld enjoys "pretty good" debut
"As debuts go, it was pretty good," understated Gauld, who is
Vancouver’s designated player.
Gauld also thought he scored his team’s first
goal in the 60th minute as he pounded in a rebound after the ball bounced off
the crossbar. But officials determined that Brian White’s attempt in a scramble
seconds earlier actually crossed the goal line.
The Caps (5-7-8) were forced to play their previous
home games in Sandy, Utah due to Canada’s border closure due to COVID-19, and
they drew a tough opponent in LAFC (6-9-6). The hosts trailed 1-0 on Diego
Rossi’s penalty-kick in first-half stoppage time after a video review showed that
Vancouver defender LAFC striker Brian Rodriguez just inside the Whitecaps area.
The deficit came despite the fact that
Vancouver earned seven corner kicks in the first half but still allowed LAFC
more shots on target and a decisive edge in ball-possession time.
“The first half wasn’t good,” said Dos Santos.
“We’re aware of that. But in the second half, we responded quick.”
The Caps got a bit lucky when LAFC’s Diego
Rossi hit the post after Vancouver goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau stopped Brian
Rodriguez about five minutes before Gauld emerged as the homecoming hero. Had LAFC
scored, it might have spoiled what Dos Santos called a “fairy tale moment” for
Gauld.
But the Caps’ return to B.C. Place was a major
story in itself – with plenty of atmosphere, starting from singer Marie Hui’s
booming renditions of both the American and Canadian national anthems.
Raposo had "goosebumps"
"Coming out for warmups, I
had goosebumps right away,” said Raposo, who played his first game before fans
in Vancouver after joining the team last season shortly before COVID hit. “We
had kind of gotten used to playing away.”
After the win, the 1960s song Stand By Me was played over the stadium speakers, and fans sang heartily along after the Caps who tied a club-record eight-game unbeaten streak with the win. The unbeaten streak comes after they suffered five straight losses early in the season.
By airing the song, the club was trying to send an obvious message to
the faithful as it attempts to improve on the field and recover from the pandemic’s financial
impact.
“It (was) definitely nice to sing
along with them after the game – for sure,” said Raposo. “Good vibes.”
And, the Whitecaps hope those good vibes continue as more home games and a potential playoff spot loom.
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