KICKOFF J.J. ADAMS’
FIVE KEYS to the game
1 Watching the Fonz
The Union knows very well who they need to watch — young Alphonso Davies, whose goal and three assists in the Caps’ last game was made more impressive by the spinning tops he left in his wake. “The key is denying him the ball … (and) not letting him turn and getting a head of steam and start running, because you’ve seen, whether it’s him going 70, 80 yards in a row with the ball at his feet and scores goals, he’s a handful,” said Philly coach Jim Curtin. “Carl (Robinson’s) done a good job in his development of not just giving him the keys right away (but) managing that. You’re seeing him play at a very high level right now, and when he does beat the first man and gets to the end line, he does have Kei Kamara he can play a ball to. It’s a lot to deal with. He’s dangerous.”
2 Hot, cold, but mostly cold
Of Philly’s seven losses this season, six have been shutouts, and their eight blank sheets is tied for the league-high with Seattle. In their wins, all have come with two or more goals. Forward C.J. Sapong, who scored 16 goals last season, has been part of the problem. He has just two this year — even missing the net on a penalty kick against the New York Red Bulls — making his expected goals differential of 4.47 the third-lowest in MLS. The Union lost 2-0 to Toronto at home two weeks ago, snapping a three-game win streak in which they’d scored at least three goals each game.
3 Rowe, Rowe, Rowe the boat
Brian Rowe will get the call between the sticks for the Caps, with Stefan Marinovic still not fully recovered from a knee injury that’s kept him out the past six games. With only four other teams giving up more goals than Vancouver (12) in that span, fingers are getting pointed at the backup. But their numbers this season are pretty close, and many of those goals on Rowe have come after the defence has left him out to dry. Rowe’s expected goals against per game is 1.2, his actual GAA sitting at 2.00. Marinovic’s xGA is 1.3, and he’s averaging 1.8 GAA. As a team, the Caps have given up 28 goals, far higher than their xGA of 23.2, which just serves to highlight their frequent defensive lapses.
4 This bug has wings
El Bicho is on pace for a career season with the Whitecaps. Midfielder Cristian Techera had seven goals in 22 games in his inaugural 2015 in Vancouver, but has six in 11 games this season. His goal production is a big part of the Caps six-game unbeaten streak, two short of their club record set in 2014, and has helped Vancouver average 2.8 goals per game over that span. His 22 goals is now tied with Kekuta Manneh for third all-time on the Caps’ MLS scoring list.
5 Reyna is flying, too
Yordy Reyna has three goals and three assists in his last five games, with six of his nine career goals with Vancouver resulting in game-winners. He’s combined with Reyna to score eight of the team’s 14 goals in the past five.