Whitecaps wary of ‘wounded dogs’ in Mile High City
We’ve heard this all before.
“We’re doing well in parts of the game, but mistakes are costing us. We’re gifting games at home at the moment. Teams aren’t coming here and earning it. We have to be more ruthless in front of goal, as well.
“We’re creating chances, but we don’t look that positive when we get around the box. We need to be a bit sharper. We have spells in the game, but we’re not consistent over the 90 minutes.”
Defensive lapses and missed opportunities — it’s the same old story.
It’s also the Colorado Rapids’ story.
The comment came from Rapids midfielder Jack Price after his Major League Soccer squad lost 3-2 to the Portland Timbers last week, their sixth straight defeat. After a start that saw them lose just once in their first five games, the Rapids (2-7-2) are now solidly in last place overall.
Their 44.3 possession percentage is a league-low — just behind the Caps’ 44.6 — and their 13 total
goals is the second-lowest in the league.
Two of those tallies came off penalties, including one meaningless goal at the final whistle last Saturday.
The numbers say they should provide the perfect tonic for a Whitecaps (4-5-5) team looking for its first win in nine games, but Brett Levis is looking at Friday’s game like being trapped in a cage with a wounded feral dog.
“They are ... like wounded dogs,” said the young left-back, who could slot in for the injured Marcel de Jong.
“Regardless of who we’re playing, we have to go in with the same mentality, and that’s to work hard, work collectively, and maintain focus for the 90 minutes, and get it done.
“Just because everyone says they’re bad, just because they’ve been playing bad, you don’t even put that in your mind. Because if you go into the game with that in your mind … mentally you might come down to their level.
“You can’t say a team is good or bad. You can look at statistics and say that, but at the end of the day, you’re not the one on the field. We’re going to Colorado where the elevation is insane, it’s supposed to be 35 degrees (Celsius), there are so many factors that come into play.”
The grousing by Caps fans has reached thundering levels this season, but it could be worse: they could be Rapids fans. Colorado has been either last or second-last in the West in three of the past four years, despite having the 10th-highest MLS payroll.
Their current six-game skid is the longest since a seven-game slide in 2014.
The only thing keeping things from boiling over in Denver is the MLS Cup title they won in 2010, an accomplishment the Caps, so far, haven’t come close to experiencing.
Colorado brought in Anthony Hudson from the New Zealand national team to coach after last season, but apart from his team’s bright start, there hasn’t been much change to the Mile High status quo. The defensive-minded 3-5-2 formation he deploys hasn’t had the desired effect.