Whitecaps see the franchise-record 10-game unbeaten streak end with a loss to Timbers
With the loss against the Timbers, the Whitecaps’ 10-game unbeaten streak comes to an end.
The Vancouver Whitecaps were defeated 1-0 by the Portland Timbers on Friday night, ending their 10-game unbeaten streak and preventing them from advancing into a playoff berth in Major League Soccer.
Sebastian Blanco, a forward for the Timbers, opened the action by sending the ball to the side of the goal. Felipe Mora took control of the ball and fired a shot that deflected in off the foot of Vancouver defender Ranko Veselinovic.
The crowd of 8,570 at BC Place Stadium groaned as striker Deiber Caicedo blasted a rocket of a shot that was pushed off the line by Portland defender Claudio Bravo in the 78th minute.
The win was crucial for the Whitecaps (7-8-8) to jump into a playoff berth. Instead, Vancouver is still in eighth place in the Western Conference with 29 points, one point behind Real Salt Lake for the final playoff spot.
The Whitecaps’ 10-game unbeaten streak came to an end, as they also failed to win a fifth consecutive game, which would have tied an MLS franchise record.
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Portland wins 1-0 thanks to an own goal by Ranko Veselinovic in the 66th minute, ending Vancouver’s club-record unbeaten streak at ten games. 1:17
It was also interim coach Vanni Santini’s first loss in three games since Marc Dos Santos was fired on Aug. 27.
Portland (10-10-3) won their third game in a row to climb to the fifth position in the Western Conference with 33 points.
The game was part of the Cascadia Cup series, which pitted Vancouver, Portland, and Seattle against each other. Since May 10, 2019, this was the first Cascadia game at BC Place.
Portland had its first goal opportunity barely five minutes into the contest. Mora had an open net, but he chose to shoot high. When forward Dairon Asprilla directed a header that caused goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau to make a diving save in the 25th minute, the Timbers threatened once more.
The Whitecaps had an opportunity in the 38th minute when Russell Teibert fired a shot into the area that was deflected by midfielder Ryan Gauld, but Portland goalkeeper Steve Clark scooped the ball up. After a few minutes, forward Brian White put Clark to the test with a headshot.
The Whitecaps’ most recent MLS loss came on July 7th, when they were defeated 4-0 by Real Salt Lake. After playing for their national teams in 2022 World Cup qualifying matches, Crepeau and forward Lucas Cavallini, as well as Jamaican defender Javain Brown, were all reunited with the Whitecaps.
Between March 14 and April 4, 2015, the Whitecaps last won four consecutive MLS games. The Timbers were on their fifth consecutive road trip.
