Heads still high despite drop in standings
Whitecaps take solace in a strong effort, but slip to sixth place in the Western Conference
The importance of the points at stake was hammered home at halftime.
Whitecaps coach Martin Rennie, who rarely makes substitutions before the hour mark, brought on Kekuta Manneh, his electric rookie winger.
The more defensive Matt Watson was off. And trailing 1-0, the race for a point — or three — was on.
But the goal never came Saturday against the L.A. Galaxy, who led through Landon Donovan’s screaming third-minute strike.
It didn’t come despite ample possession, enough quality chances, and a handful of penalty appeals.
Nigel Reo-Coker might never score an MLS goal. Kenny Miller can make English internationals Gary Cahill and Joe Hart look ordinary, but he couldn’t deliver Saturday. And, every now and then, an opposing player deserves some credit.
Galaxy goalkeeper Jaime Penedo pulled off the save of the year with 10 minutes to go in front of a sold-out crowd of 21,000 at B.C. Place.
The recently-signed Panamanian recovered from his belly at one post to rob Jordan Harvey at full stretch on the rebound.
It was a stunning, superb save — even better on the slo-mo replay — and it highlighted a rare night of futility for the Caps in front of goal at the Dome.
“Incredible,” Caps goalkeeper David Ousted said of Penedo’s effort.
“That was amazing, that he got back on that one.”
With leading scorer Camilo nursing a groin pull on the bench, the league’s highest-scoring home team couldn’t find the net.
Now they find themselves four points back of L.A. (12-9-4), the two time defending MLS Cup champions who, as usual, are starting to heat up at the business end of the season.
L.A.’s up to second in the West, while the Caps dropped to sixth, one point back of Dallas and just two points up on San Jose and Seattle in this crazy playoff race.
The loss puts plenty of pressure on next weekend’s home game against Chivas — one that Reo-Coker will miss after a dying-minutes challenge on Penedo resulted in his eighth yellow card of the year and an automatic one-game ban.
After Chivas, the Caps play five of their final eight away from home, where they lost Saturday for just the second time this season.
Rennie and his players were quick to point to the positives on a night they enjoyed 56 per cent of the ball, albeit against an L.A. team happy to sit back after the goal and play on the counter-attack.
“The fact we didn’t get a result is disappointing, but I don’t think anyone’s head goes down from that performance,” said Rennie, who called L.A. the best team in MLS.
“There were a number of instances in the box that could have gone our way but didn’t.”
L.A.’s Brazilian midfielder, Juninho, was involved in handball decisions at the end of the first half and in second-half injury time, but referee Armando Villarreal waved play on both times.
The Caps also felt they’d earned a penalty when the Galaxy’s towering centre back, Omar Gonzalez, knocked over Gershon Koffie from behind as Russell Teibert’s cross came into the box.
Koffie and Teibert were excellent on the night, constantly on the ball and looking to create. Defensively, Koffie was a menace, disrupting the rhythm of Juninho and his Brazilian teammate Marcelo Sarvas.
And Caps right-back Y.P. Lee, with a tough assignment against speedster Gyasi Zardes, played perhaps his best game of the season.
Thirty minutes in, Lee stole the ball from Zardes with a perfect slide tackle in the box, then pivoted away from Todd Dunivant to get out of trouble and turn the play up field.
It was a wonderful bit of skill from the 36-year-old South Korean. But several strong performances didn’t add up to a result.
For long stretches, the Caps controlled play but couldn’t find the crucial pass, the necessary creative spark, against a disciplined, experienced Galaxy side. And when the Caps did break through, the finish wasn’t there.
Harvey, on his knees, head in hands, summed up the night.
“We’re one of the highest scoring teams in the league, and I’m sure we’ll get back to it,” said Rennie.
The Caps also shot themselves in the foot with Watson’s early turnover. And while Rennie said “Matt was playing fine,” and that Manneh’s halftime entry was “just tactical,” there’s no question Watson’s ambitious early play proved costly.
So did the fact Johnny Leveron and Andy O’Brien, in his first game since June 8, got sucked into double teaming Robbie Keane, which left Donovan acres of space to punish them.
“I think we deserved more than we got,” said Ousted. “That said, we can’t give the ball away in the middle. You can’t give away chances to a guy like Donovan.”
Donovan said: “That’s the kind of game that champions win. We know when the playoffs come, that’s what the games might look like.”
For the Caps, getting to the playoffs is still the big challenge.