Davies delights upon return to Whitecaps' lineup

Minnesota United coach Adrian Heath was visibly frustrated Saturday night – and Alphonso Davies was to blame.

Davies scored two goals and added a pair of assists as the Vancouver Whitecaps doubled Minnesota United 4-2 in Major League Soccer action.

“If you look at this game today, there’s really nothing in it – apart from a couple of bitter moments when Alphonso Davies has just changed the course of the game,” said Heath.

Davies, the 17-year-old Canadian international who is becoming a global name in soccer, thrived as he returned to Vancouver’s starting lineup after missing two games while his transfer to German powerhouse Bayern Munich was being finalized.

The transfer, worth up to US$22 million, an MLS record fee, will take effect in January.

“Now, the kid, Davies, had a great night, and he’s what he is,” said Heath. “He’s a special talent, the kid. … But in between the goals – and I know this actually sounds stupid – I thought we were actually the better team.”

That claim was highly debatable, but there was no doubting Davies’ impact – or his desire to play after he found the negotiations with Bayern Munich “kind of boring” due to inactivity.

"I love playing (soccer),” said Davies. “It's my passion. Being away for two weeks, sitting on the side, when I got my opportunity, I took it."

The Loons (9-12-1) went without a win for the first time in four games as their road record fell to 1-9-0. Minnesota defender Michael Boxall, a former Whitecap said the Loons were able to stop Davies in the first half, when Vancouver’s Yordy Reyna, on a spectacular individual effort, was the lone scorer. But, Boxall added, the visitors, as has been their custom this season lacked concentration and died in the second half.

“Obviously, tonight, if you died again, then (Davies) was going to make you pay,” said Boxall.

In the first half, Boxall and other Loons knocked Davies around, usually without fouls being called. However, Boxall did receive a yellow card for pushing him down in the Minnesota box after the ball went out of play for a goal kick.

But Davies took the contact in stride, contending that he was not concerned about being targeted.

“It's a man's sport,” he said. “As a kid coming into a man's sport, I'm expecting that. So, yeah, I'm ready for it. I'm going to take it on – just do what I do."

The youngster said he feels like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders now that the transfer deal with Bayern Munich has been finalized. Heath called Davies a “special talent,” noting that he looks bigger and stronger than he did a year ago.

With his two goals Saturday, Davies has five goals, exceeding the three that he scored in 17 games last season. His two assists gave him 10 on the season – two more than he managed in all of 2017.

"I think this time is different because I have a little more confidence on and off the ball,” said Davies.
“Every time I step on the field, I try to do my best for the team. Every time I get the ball, I want to be positive."

Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson said Davies off his game in the first 20 minutes, possibly because of his whirlwind of off-field activities and layoff. But the coach wanted Davies to play through his difficulties – and he did.

Davies put the Whitecaps ahead 2-0 in the 55th minute as he intercepted a pass outside of the Minnesota box – right after a Vancouver turnover – and deked his way straight through five defenders and put between goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth’s legs.

Kei Kamara put the Whitecaps up 3-0 in the 65th minute – only two minutes after subbing in – as he converted a pass from Davies on a two-on-one. Ibson and Abu Danladi threw a scare into the Whitecaps by scoring five minutes apart, in the 87th and 89th. But only two minutes after Danladi's goal, Davies deked his way through defenders again and lifted a shot into the top right corner of the net.

"We know he's a wonderful talent,” said Robinson. “We know he's got ability. He's got potential. But when he plays like that, that's not potential – that's reality."

Whitecaps hope different lineup spells same resolve

The Vancouver Whitecaps will not look the same when they take on Orlando City in Florida today.

“We’ll have different players playing in different positions on the weekend,” said Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson.

Robinson only made one lineup change for the Whitecaps’ last game – an adversity-filled 1-1 comeback draw with Seattle – as he looked at a busy schedule and the season's "big picture." But this time he has no choice but to make a number of moves. The Caps lost midfielder Tony Tchani to a suspension after he took two yellow cards and an automatic red against the Sounders.

Robinson will also try to manage fatigue as his team plays its third game in eight days after making a cross-continent flight.

The lengthy trip means that players, like midfielder Brek Shea, who watched from the bench Wednesday will see action. Shea will likely replace Tchani, while Jake Nerwinski appears likely to return to his right back post after Sheanon Williams committed the foul that led to Seattle’s goal on a penalty-kick.

It will be interesting to see how Robinson adjusts his attackers. It would not be a surprise to see midfielder Yordy Reyna get a rest for at least part of the game. Robinson will likely want to keep going with striker Fredy Montero, who might be in need of a break but has five goals in five games after scoring Vancouver’s lone goal against his former Sounders side on Wednesday.

“It’s about concentration levels,” said Robinson. “When balls come into the box, he becomes alive.”

Alphonso Davies, 16, who suffered an injury while with the Canadian squad at the Gold Cup, could see more action after he came on as a substitute and made a brilliant move to assist on Montero’s goal Wednesday. But Robinson, who has limited Davies’ playing time, given his youth, recent injury and inconsistency, was coy about the youngster’s status.

“I still don’t think that he’s 100 per cent,” said Robinson. “Maybe we’ll get to see on Saturday whether he is. He needed a break – a mental break, a physical break – and you’ve gotta remember how old the boy is. There’s lots of things going on, but we support him. You’ll respect my decisions and listen, because I know what’s going on with the boy.”

While Robinson uses a different lineup, the Whitecaps will try to play with similar resolve that they displayed after Tchani was sent off against Seattle.

“Forget the point, forget the game,” said Robinson. “The mentality and character shown in this group (were) phenomenal (against Seattle), and they deserve a lot of credit.”

“It is like a win,” added Montero. “We were playing one of the best teams in the MLS with one man down. It was very tough for us. But at the end of the day that (ejection) sparked us. We got that goal. We got one point.”

Montero said the Whitecaps, who held the sixth and final Western Conference playoff berth heading into the weekend, will try to make up for losing two points against Seattle. However, it will be difficult to earn points against an Orlando squad that has lost only one game at home while going 6-1-0.

The Whitecaps will need to hold off Canadian international Cyle Larin and some other offensively gifted players, including Brazilian legend Kaka.

“They’re very good at home, especially their front four,” said Vancouver  goalkeeper David Ousted. “It’s (a) fantastic (group of) players, and we know the offensive threat they pose. They’re gonna put us under a lot of pressure, but that if we approach that game correctly, we can go in there and get points.”

But, naturally, Ousted, who was outstanding against Seattle, is confident that the Whitecaps, who sport a 4-6-2 road record, can prevail far from their B.C. Place Stadium den.

“We’re going in there to win. I’ll say it straight out,” said Ousted. “We’ve been good at going away from home and taking those games head-on.”

Young Canadians put on show as Caps tie Orlando

Two Canadians made their marks in different ways when the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Orlando S.C. Lions played to a draw Saturday night.

Cyle Larin, a 21-year-old Brampton, Ont., native who has become a fixture with Canada’s senior men’s team, stole the show as he headed home the 50th-minute goal that gave struggling Orlando a tie.

"It's so important for Cyle to come back here, he's so proud of being Canadian," said Orlando interim coach Bobby Murphy, whose struggling team improved to 4-5-10. "He stepped off the plane last night and said, 'the air is so much better here.' I'm happy for him."

Meanwhile, Whitecaps midfielder Alphonso Davies, 15, drew the biggest cheers when he subbed into the game in the 77th minute. The Edmonton product, who was born in Liberia, became the youngest player to suit up in Major League Soccer this season and third-youngest player in league history.

 “I wasn’t that nervous,” he said. “Yeah, they’re a good MLS team but there’s just a ball and you go out and play, have fun. I wasn’t really nervous coming on the field.”

Davies almost scored on a shot from distance three minutes after subbing on. The ball went just wide of the left post after Orlando goalkeeper Joe Bendik dived in vain. He also had some sound defensive moments as the Whitecaps (8-8-5) avoided a loss after a poor start.

Davies showed that he is still adjusting to the physical play in MLS, but should be able to handle himself against men with considerable professional experience, especially after he puts on some more muscle.

“Definitely, I felt like I (was) being overpowered, because they’re much stronger and bigger than me,” said Davies, who made his professional debut by playing for the Whitecaps in the Canadian championships. “Coming in the game at that time, the coach expects me to make a difference. I tried that but, unfortunately, (the ball) didn’t go in the net.”

The coach, Carl Robinson, continued to downplay Davies’ play, because he is still of high school age.

“Obviously he was brought on to try and affect the attacking end of the pitch and he did that,” said Robinson. “But let’s not get carried away.”

However, it is clear that the Caps are grooming Davies for bigger things after signing him Friday to a contract that is guaranteed through 2018 and contains options for 2019 and 2020. Simply put, Davies was too good to stay with Vancouver’s USL team.

Now, the question is: Can the youngster handle the rapid changes going on in his life?

“It has changed big time, because now I want to go out and have fun with my friends, and then take in, also, that I’m playing at the MLS level and represent the club,” he said. “I can’t really go out and fool around and cause trouble anymore.”

But he and Larin gave Canadian soccer fans reason to hope that, in the future, they might cause trouble while playing together for the national senior men’s squad.