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Vancouver Whitecaps off to best start in seven years

Rob Williams
Rob Williams
|
Mar 3 2025, 5:07 pm
Vancouver Whitecaps off to best start in seven years
Anne-Marie Sorvin/Imagn Images

This is a big year for the Vancouver Whitecaps.

The team is for sale, and whether the club will stay or leave is on everyone’s minds. That was clear Sunday at BC Place when supporters held up a large banner (called tifos in soccer) before the Whitecaps’ home opener that read: “Here we are and here we’ll stay. Our club. Our city. Our home.”

The Whitecaps need a billionaire to step up, but in the meantime, they need the players to do their part. Winning could cure a lot, and the Whitecaps are perfect so far under new head coach Jesper Sørensen.

Vancouver improved its record to 2-0-0 on Sunday, after securing a 2-1 win over the defending MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy. Brian White scored the winner late in the match.

It’s the first time the Whitecaps have started the season with two straight wins in seven years.

Outside of MLS action, the Whitecaps also defeated Costa Rican side Deportivo Saprissa to advance in the Concacaf Champions Cup. They’ll play Sergio Ramos’ FC Monterrey at BC Place Wednesday in the Round of 16.

“I think, first and foremost, I came in and inherited a team that was well structured and in good shape,” Sørensen told reporters after Sunday’s victory.

“Of course, I think that we had a little bit of luck. We played 11 against 10 [in the first game against Portland], and then we scored the late winner [on Sunday]. But I would say that the team has looked great. They’ve done well in preseason, everybody has chipped in and been ready to the new ideas I brought in.

“So I think that I can only be happy with what I’ve seen so far, and I hope it’s only the beginning.”

It appears the Whitecaps have found a special player in Jayden Nelson, the 22-year-old Canadian who was electrifying in a 4-1 win over Portland in the season opener. Sam Adekugbe has also had a strong start to the season with two goals, though the Canadian defender left Sunday’s game with a quad injury.

Following Wednesday’s Concacaf Champions Cup match, the Whitecaps will face CF Montreal on Saturday at BC Place with a chance to make club history.

Win against Montreal and the Whitecaps will do something they’ve never done: win three in a row to start an MLS season.

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