LATE GALAXY GOAL TORPEDOES LEADEN-LEGGED WHITECAPS
The Vancouver Whitecaps kept dodging bullets until they didn't.
A 92nd-minute goal from Kai Koreniuk earned the L.A. Galaxy a dramatic 1-0 victory over the Caps at Dignity Heath Sports Park in Carson, Calif., on Sunday, snapping a seven-game winless streak and six-game losing skid.
Cristian Pavón, who had volleyed a cross off the bar just seconds before, put the perfect cross across the top of the six-yard box, where Koreniuk steered home his first career MLS goal.
The Whitecaps nearly equalized in the next minute, but a Theo Bair shot was cleared off the Galaxy line to preserve the win, and turn down the heat on L.A. coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto.
Vancouver (7-12-0) remains in the eighth and final playoff spot in the West, though Real Salt Lake, tied on 21 points, have a game in hand.
The Galaxy (5-9-3, 12th West) remain in last place, but are only three points behind Vancouver with two games in hand. The two teams close out the regular season on Nov. 8.
Both teams had their goalkeepers come up huge with saves that were later made moot by offside calls, and Vancouver's Evan Bush was called into action early with a lunging stop on Pavon, who was in on a breakaway in the sixth minute.
Here's what we learned …
BY THE NUMBERS
55: The Whitecaps had 55 per cent possession, their second-best mark of the season, but were outshot 18-7 by the Galaxy.
180: The number of MLS appearances for Russell Teibert, who passes Jordan Harvey for the most all-time in a Whitecaps jersey.
6: The number of games in a row the Whitecaps have started in a 4-4-2, the longest stretch in the Dos Santos era the team has utilized the same formation. Sunday's game saw the same starting XI — save the suspended Janio Bikel — for the third straight game.
12: The current last-place berth in the standings for the L.A. Galaxy, who finished 11th in 2017, at the bottom of the standings. L.A. has finished first in the West eight times, second four times, and third twice.
ICE COLD FROZEN PEA
The man whose name translates as “Little Pea” is shaping up to be the biggest bust in MLS history.
Javier (Chicharito) Hernandez, the famed Mexican international who came to the Galaxy after a long and storied career in Europe, didn't even make the starting XI in Sunday night's game. He came on for the injured Yony González in the 50th minute, and had a three shots — the best chance of which was a putting a Pavon cross over the bar from seven yards out.
His lone goal on the season came in the opener of the MLS is Back tournament, and his time in Orlando was cut short by a right calf injury suffered in training in July. Initially thought to be done for the season, the 32-year-old Chicharito returned to action on Sept. 14, but still has just four shots on goal in his nine games this year.
The Galaxy were winless this season when Chicharito had played (0-7-2), but every previous win (4-2-1) had come with him out. With Hernandez, L.A. scores .44 goals per game. Without, it's 2.43.
The cost for this production? A reported $9.4M transfer fee, and a three-year contract at an AAV of $6M that could balloon to highest in the league with incentives.
L.A. has been in free fall since beating LAFC on Sept. 13, their seven-game winless streak including four shutouts, 19 goals against and just five goals scored.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
The Houston Dynamo picked up a point by tying Minnesota United 2-2 on Sunday, but have circled the bowl down the West's drain with just one win (1-5-4) since Sept. 9, and sit on 20 points with four games remaining on their schedule.
Standings-wise, the one to watch is the race with Real Salt Lake, who entered the night tied on 21 points with the Caps. They were scheduled to play the Colorado Rapids, but the matched was post-pointed because of the Rapids' earlier COVID-19 outbreak. The Dynamo are also scheduled to play the Rapids.
The league office has yet to decided how to handle the missed games, with the most recent reports saying points-per-game could come into play. The 11thplace Rapids (5-4-4) current ppg of 1.46 would slot them into fourth in the West, and bump the Caps out of playoff position.
Vancouver has four games remaining — all in Portland — against San Jose, Seattle, the Timbers and Galaxy.
CENTRE OF ATTENTION
The Ranko Veselinović “soap opera” has been renewed until 2023.
The Whitecaps made the loan move of the 21-year-old centreback from Serbian Superliga club FK Vojvodina a permanent transfer on Sunday, announcing the deal before Sunday's game.
It was Veselinović's 12th start of the season, a tally people had been keenly aware of in recent weeks, as it automatically triggering his purchase from Vojvodina for reported US$650,000.
“What's the soap opera about the trigger? If he deserves to play, he's gonna play. We're more aware of the trigger than you guys,” Dos Santos said earlier this month when asked about Veselinović's starts.
“If we feel that he's a player we want to keep, he's gonna play.”
And they've shown no hesitation in slotting Veselinović in the starting 11, he's started more games this season than any other Whitecaps CB, and is one of just four MLS centrebacks who are 21 or under with 10-plus starts this year.