The Vancouver Whitecaps’ first season in MLS ended as so many other “expansion” teams’ season have ended in U.S. leagues throughout the years: basement and struggling to build for the future.*  After the near immediate success of recent MLS additions like Seattle and Philly, as well as the late playoff run by Cascadia rivals Portland, this season had to have been somewhat of a disappointment.  Now, on their third coach in less than two years, the team is looking to build on a solid nucleus to begin their climb up the tough Western Conference standings and contend for an MLS playoff spot.

The Whitecaps kick off our “3 Questions” series for this offseason, where I will take a look at every MLS team (in draft order) and see what three questions will dominate their offseason.  These questions and how they are answered over the next three months will go a long way to determining how or if they can contend for MLS Cup 2012, or whatever relevant goals they may have.

1. Third time’s a charm: how will the team fare under new coach and CEO?

To say there have been some changes in the team’s management is an understatement.  As mentioned, Martin Rennie is the team’s third coach is a little over a calendar year, and his style has won acclaim in the lower levels of U.S. soccer.  How he is able to implement his more cerebral coaching style on a team that has been at times a little mental (see Eric Hassli’s early run of red cards) will be a key to determining the improvement this club can make.  In addition, the recent resignation of CEO Paul Barber casts some shadows over the club.  While he will be replaced by in-house personnel, the absence of the man who helped move the team to MLS and into BC Place (as well as ultimately hired Rennie) adds a little uncertainty in the front office.  How all of these new faces deal with this team remain to be seen.  What we do know is that Rennie has been given the authority for personnel moves, so authority rests with him for the roster.

2. Can they stop allowing so many goals?

The ‘Caps offense was fine last season and at times even quite impressive, but their defense undid all of that good.  Not surprisingly that is one area where Rennie and the front office have been focusing their player purge.  While starting keeper Joe Cannon was re-signed after taking a pay cut, back-up Jay Nolly was shipped off to Chicago and North Carolina RailHawks keeper Brad Knighton was brought on as competition for the starting gig.  Their biggest defensive acquisition, however, is probably Young-Pyo Lee from South Korea.  The fullback is a World Cup veteran and played for clubs PSV Eindhoven and Tottenham Hotspur.  The team hopes his veteran presence will stabilize the backline, and with his pedigree there’s no doubt it won’t help.  The question is, will the players around him be good enough as well?  And will John Thorrington be healthy enough to be a defensive force in the midfield?

3. Will Omar Salgado continue his rapid rise to stardom?  

Reports from the Generation Adidas tour suggest that Omar Salgado is playing well and making a name for himself for the national team.  The GA tour plus his training in England and time in the U.S. youth camp have given the young forward valuable playing experience against some top-flight competition.  Now the question is can he take this experience back with him to Vancouver and translate it onto the MLS pitch?  The ‘Caps have scoring options around him, so he is not going to be relied upon to make all of the plays.  But a dynamic young scoring threat can make a difference for a team; look at how much better Kansas City was when Teal Bunbury was playing well or even Juan Agudelo for New York.  Salgado taking the next step could be a huge factor for this team’s improvement in the new year.

*Note: I know Vancouver is technically not an expansion team in the traditional sense, but the principles apply.

Yesterday, Vancouver extended Real Salt Lake’s losing streak to four games with a 3-0 win at BC Place.  However, the talk of the match were two penalties called on RSL, one of which led to a red card for Collen Warner, both for handball.  The first led to Real Salt Lake going down to ten men and falling behind 1-0, the second added a second goal for the ‘Caps.

The videos of both calls are below.  So what do you think?  Red card on the first goal? Penalty for either? Your be the judge (h/t to Steven Goff for posting videos)

First penalty

Second penalty

As promised, here is the second half of this weekend’s preview, where we review the late games Saturday night and the one Sunday game.

Colorado Rapids v. San Jose Earthquakes (Saturday, 9 PM ET)

This game may be the hardest to predict this weekend.  It is no longer unthinkable that Colorado could fall out of the playoffs: not likely but not impossible.  After their poor CCL performance mid-week, the Rapids are reeling.  Their MLS losing streak has reached four and their goal in last week’s loss to Toronto was their first MLS goal in 270 minutes.  San Jose meanwhile remains mathematically alive after their midweek draw at Portland.  A key for both teams is how they can contain the other team’s offensive weapon.  Obviously, Wondolowski has to be contained by the Rapids defense to stifle the Quakes but the Quakes have to be able to contain the speed of the Rapids forwards, one of which likely will be Omar Cummings.

Prediction: Colorado 1, San Jose 1.

Vancouver Whitecaps v. Seattle Sounders (Saturday, 10:30 PM)

Seattle is flying high right now, minus CCL action.  The Sounders have a chance to clinch a playoff berth and keep their Supporters Shield hopes alive.  But also on the line is the Cascadia Cup: a Seattle victory means they win the annual three-way rivalry between the Pacific Northwest clubs.  The key for Seattle short term is to do what they did against DC – pressure the midfield and convert their chances.  The long term goal is to keep healthy.  The Whitecaps are certainly the underdogs but playing at home against a rival should inspire them.  Using the crowd’s energy could propel them to an important three points and deny Seattle the Cascadia Cup for now.

Prediction: Seattle 2, Vancouver 1.  

Chivas USA v. Toronto FC (Saturday, 10:30 PM)

The Goats kept their faint playoff hopes alive with their midweek draw at DC, and but to continue a playoff run they absolutely need three points today.  They have been successful when their midfield can hold possession and get the ball to Juan Pablo Angel, as he gives their offense a new dimension.  However, the key to this game is Danny Koevermans.  Three goals in the past two games means he is the man to watch in this one.  When he scores, Toronto gets results.

Prediction: Chivas 2, Toronto 2.  There will be goals in this one but I don’t see Chivas coming out of this match with three points.

Chicago v. New England (Sunday, 4:00 PM)

These two teams are the type that benefit most from a ten team playoff: loser sees their playoff hopes dashed while winner lives to play another day.  The Fire lose Corey Gibbs to a red card suspension, so that is a concern for the Fire defense.  Offensively, Dominic Oduru has quietly snuck into the Golden Boot race as he has 10 goals.  The key for Chicago is to not hurt themselves: when they miss open goals or commit dumb fouls they lose games, as they don’t have the talent to overcome those mistakes.  New England is coming off a beat down by Portland and are without Rajko Lekic.  A win would only be their second on the road, so they need to find a way to get ahead early and put the pressure on Chicago.

Prediction: Chicago 3, New England 1.

Empire Field during a better evening. Photo by Mufae

Forfeits are usually a term for CYO soccer when a team doesn’t have the requisite ten players or there aren’t enough oranges for halftime.  Rarely does the terminology enter a debate in professional sports, where the money and resources are available to shift matches around based on inclement weather.  But after the postponement of the Vancouver Whitecaps match against Real Salt Lake, Jason Kreis raised the “f” word and raised even more interesting questions about whether such an option should exist in MLS.

Saturday’s regular season match between the two clubs was postponed after torrential rainfall essentially flooded Empire Field’s temporary grass pitch.  The temporary pitch had been installed in anticipation of the ‘Caps match against Manchester City today as part of their North American tour, but that temporary pitch could not drain the massive amounts of rain received in Vancouver by Saturday.  The pitch, however, will be ready for tonight’s game.

Setting aside the fact for now that an MLS club jeopardized a league match for a friendly, the decision to not play was the right one and no one disagrees with that.  But RSL coach Jason Kreis had an interesting quote following the postponement in the Salt Lake Tribune. When asked about the situation, he said “there is a leg to stand on for saying that it could be a forfeit because [Vancouver] is responsible for providing a playing surface that we can play on. With decisions to play international friendlies could come some accountability for what that is going to mean for your league games.”

The sentiment behind the quote is that RSL’s Saturdays are filled until October, right before the MLS playoffs.  The free date, October 8, is also a FIFA reserved date so RSL players could be missing for a make-up.  The other option is a midweek match, which will likely be the result and add to RSL’s schedule congestion.  Remember, they still have five games in hand over Seattle since they are still making up for the CONCACAF Champions League run.

Does Kreis has a valid complaint?  Yes.  Vancouver essentially gambled that redoing its for a meaningless friendly would hold up for the MLS game as well, and they lost the gamble.  As a result, they are culpable for the fact that the game could not be played and should be punished for it.  However, I don’t think the punishment should be a forfeit.  To allow a game to be forfeited due to field conditions would set a bad precedent for the league.  At what point are the Whitecaps responsible for the weather?  It is almost like saying FC Dallas is responsible for the 100 degree heat at kickoff for their match against DC this weekend.  Teams can only do so much to make games playable, but it is ultimately out of their hands on the weather behaving.  As such, the league should punish Vancouver but not with a forfeiture.

But what do you think?

MLS fans were treated to four games last night instead of the usual one or two, as the schedule makers begin to crowd in a few more league games in anticipation of international friendlies and late-season CONCACAF Champions League matches.  In a cool twist, all four had some playoff implications as the results had a definite impact on positioning for the playoffs and may prove critical down the stretch (although with ten teams making the playoffs that is an easy statement to make).

For those watching So You Think You Can Dance or enjoying an evening free of television, here is a recap of the action from last night.

Vancouver Whitecaps 0, Columbus Crew 1: The ‘Caps continued their miserable inaugural season with a case of what could have been, while Columbus continues to solidify a top three spot based on Jeff Cunningham’s milestone goal.  The striker scored his 133rd MLS goal in the 90th minute to not only give his team the victory, but to tie him with Jamie Moreno for the all-time lead in MLS goals.  The home team had plenty of chances in the first half, dominating possession but failing to convert, and had a great chance in the second half when Alain Rochat was dragged down in the box in the 72nd minute.  However, Terry Dunfield’s penalty was easily saved and, when Shea Salinas was sent off with a red five minutes later, it was a matter of time before the Crew would score the game winner.

New York Red Bulls 5, Toronto FC 0: On their most recent road trip, New York had a record of 0 wins, 1 loss, and 3 draws.  They took out their frustration at home against a hapless Toronto side.  Thierry Henry scored his ninth goal of the season in the 33rd minute and it was all New York from that point forward.  More coming soon from Daniel on this one.

Chivas USA 2, San Jose Earthquakes 0: This match could come back to haunt San Jose as the two teams will be battling for a wild card slot at the end of the season.  It was Robin Fraser’s decision to insert Ben Zemanski in the 58th minute that turned the tide and gave the Rojiblancos an energy boost in midfield.  His goal (seen above) in the 64th minute broke a scoreless tie and Nick LaBrocca’s strike in the 84th minute put this one out of reach for San Jose.  Speaking of the ‘Quakes, they will have to face Philadelphia this weekend without Steven Lenhart, who will miss the game due to yellow card accumulation.

Sporting Kansas City 1, Colorado Rapids 1: Colorado is quickly approaching the Chicago Fire’s tie record and Kansas City extended their unbeaten streak to 9 as these two teams battled to a draw at Livestrong Park.  Conor Casey did what he does best in scoring his goal in the 32nd minute: he used his strength to corral a long free kick and placed a shot just out of Jimmy Nielsen’s reach.  Again, it was a good substitution by a manager that made the difference, as Peter Vermes brought on C.J. Sapong in the second half for Teal Bunbury and it was the rookie Sapong who scored the equalizer.

About three weeks ago MLS had unquestionably its goal of the year, as Vancouver’s enigmatic DP Eric Hassli scored an amazing goal to even his team’s score with Seattle at 2.  At the time, pundits and media alike proclaimed it the favorite for goal of the year (or possibly even the best goal ever), unless of course a keeper scored or something equally ridiculous occurred.

Fast forward to Sunday, and the ridiculous may have occurred.

Rookie Darlington Nagbe helped his Portland Timbers get on the board against visiting Kansas City with an incredible goal.  A shot is punched wide by SKC keeper Jimmy Nielsen but right to Nagbe, who collects it, bounces it twice, and unleashes a bullet past his teammate’s head as well as past Nielsen for the goal.  It was an incredible shot, considering the ball never touched the ground.  So it begs the question: who had a better goal this season, Nagbe or Hassli?  Vote and leave comments below.

And, to help with the voting, here is Hassli’s goal:

Photo by LA Galaxy

For American soccer fans, we are entering a frantic month of soccer.  In addition to our normal MLS action, we will have the chance to see the Gold Cup and an impressive friendly against Spain.  With the action spread out across the U.S., this may be the most soccer saturated this country has been since the 1994 World Cup – cities across the country even without MLS teams will get to see the beautiful game at a high level.

This has been a busy week in U.S. soccer, and below are some of the stories and topics we have yet to touch on this week.

• Of course the big news is the firing of two coaches, Carlos de los Cobos of the Fire and Teitur Thordarson of the Whitecaps.  Chicago Fire Confidential does a great job summarizing the takeover by Frank Klopas in Chicago, as well as details on how it went down, while Vancouver Whitecaps FC blog give a fans perspective on the Thordarson era.  Soccer America has a profile of new Whitecaps head coach Tom Soehn.
• Some good news for Colorado fans potentially – Omar Cummings has requested and received a dismissal from the Jamaican national team to continue healing from his injuries, while Tyrone Marshall has also asked for a dismissal during the group stage to help Colorado’s depth.  Great news for the Rapids, as both players are now under the watchful eyes of the team.
• Hans Backe was named head coach of the MLS All Stars, who will take on Manchester United on July 27 at Red Bulls Arena.
• A U.S. national has been released by his British club and is looking for work.  Will we see Marcus Hahnemann in an MLS shirt this summer, or will he wait for his beloved Seattle to have a spot for him?
• Is Pachuca America’s team?  After trading away Herculez Gomes, the team is allegedly in talks with DaMarcus Beasely.
• If you know me you know my love of Freddy Adu, and this is a great interview about his career to this point.
• And finally, who says the U.S. doesn’t love soccer?  These TV numbers prove otherwise.

Photo by Greg Hickman

On March 19, the Columbus Crew dejectedly walked out of RFK Stadium in Washington on the wrong side of a 3-1 game.  The team allowed two Charlie Davies goals (one a penalty kick) and looked outclassed, out played, and in for a long season.  The result came after they were shown the door from the CONCACAF Champions League by losing 4-1 to Real Salt Lake.  After an offseason where the team jettisoned many of its bigger named players to make room in the salary cap and committed to a rebuilding effort, the team looked destined for a long, long season.

A month later, Columbus sits in a playoff spot.  The team has not allowed a goal since the second Davies’ goal and this weekend held the highest-scoring team in MLS to no goals.  While not an offensive juggernaut, the team is scoring enough to get results.  So are the Crew back to their normal spot near the top of the Eastern Conference for good, or is this an illusion that will wilt away in the summer months?  The answer is, of course, not that simple.

At first glance the schedule up to this point for the Crew has been daunting, but upon closer examination looks to have been quite easy.  After the trip to DC, the Crew hosted the Red Bulls and Dallas, two 2010 playoff teams and teams expected to compete for an MLS Cup this season.  But the Crew played New York during an international break and essentially forced a draw with a “B” team, while Dallas has struggled mightily this season and is still sorting out personnel issues.  The trip to Chivas led to a scoreless draw, not surprising how bad Chivas is, and while Sporting Kansas City is promising, they have a horrendous defense to go with a great offense.  So the schedule has not been a good guidepost to the season so far, except to say the Crew don’t lose to bad teams.

One constant this season has been the defense, which should not be a surprise considering that was one area the team didn’t unload their star power.  MLS star Chad Marshall was retained and paired with a number of new players who have excelled to this point.  Julius James was picked up off the smoldering heap that was DC United’s 2010 backline and has seen a career resurgence.  Rookie Rich Balchan has started all five games and played extremely well.  In net, Will Hesmer has played very well after some uncertainty this offseason as to who would be the starter due to injuries.  The team has not allowed a goal in four matches, a team record and an incredibly accomplishment.  In their last match, Dilly Duka had as many shots on goal (2) as all of the Kansas City players combined.

Another reason for their positive play has been Robbie Rogers, their one consistent offensive threat.  The rift that existed between Rogers and head coach Robert Warzycha has seemingly been resolved; the Crew team on the pitch in DC looked lost and without a real offensive threat until Rogers stepped on the pitch.  So far this year Rogers has scored as many goals (2) as he has the past two seasons.

The upcoming schedule also should be a reason for optimism among Columbus fans.  This weekend, they visit a Toronto team in flux then host the expansion Whitecaps and struggling Sounders (although the Sounders may be finally turning their season around).  Things get tough with back-to-back trips to San Jose and Portland, but they end May by hosting Chivas.  Conceivably, the Crew should pick up at least 12 points through the end of May.

But the reason why Rogers has been so good for the Columbus offense is that the play of the Crew forwards and midfield have been terrible.  Consider that Portland scored as many goals in its home opener as the Crew have scored this season, and that two of those goals came from penalties.  Eddie Gaven has been ok but not really good up front, and while it is still early Andres Mendoza has been a disappointment.  Jeff Cunningham looks his age and fails to convert quality chances.

So can the Crew continue this run and qualify for the playoffs?  In an Eastern Conference with few clear favorites, it is not out of the realm of possibility for them to grab a top three spot if their defense continues to play well.  But for this team to challenge New York for first or even challenge a resurgent Philadelphia or DC, they need to find more consistent offense.  Without a goal scorer either emerging or being acquired this summer, Columbus could be on the outside looking in this September.

Photo by Lil'El

Our week of action has already kicked off with the, ahem, controversial draw between New England and Vancouver.  But there is a full slate of intriguing games this weekend, so please vote in the poll at the end of this post.  Before doing that, however, let’s take a look at the news from the past week.

• Shirtgate continues, as Eric Hassli looks to receive a fine and will certainly miss this Sunday’s match against Houston.  While apologetic for the action, he did say through a team spokesman that removing one jersey to reveal another would not have drawn a card in the Swiss league.  Well there you go.
• But in good news for the Whitecaps two players may be returning to the roster this weekend.  Omar Salgado (United States) and Russel Tiebert (Canada) both return from the U-20 tournament and Selgado could receive his first MLS playing time on Sunday.
• I personally love the Portland-Seattle-Vancouver rivalry, not just because it drives site hits but because all three teams strive to tweak the others.  Now there’s this: there is a new phone app for Portland fans called Timbers Axe where Timber Joey protects his garden from intruders using his ax.  The game is not recommended for children under 13, and can be downloaded here.  Some of the objects attacking the garden may be familiar.
• Not an MLS story, but in case you missed it America’s Canada’s “greatest” export Justin Bieber played a little soccer with Barcelona. Here’s video to prove it.
• And finally the American U-20 team suffered a somewhat shocking loss to Guatemala.  The calls have already begun for Thomas Rongen’s head; feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

MLS has a major problem with Toledo.  No, not the city in Ohio but the referee Baldomero Toledo.  The MLS midweek game last night was excellent – it had drama, a touch of irony, and a late goal leading to a 1-1 draw between the Whitecaps and Revolution.  What the match didn’t have was 11 on 11; once again the referee intervened to alter the outcome of the game, almost from the outset.

Before we list Baldomero Toledo’s sins, let’s give credit to the two teams on the pitch tonight.  Days after scoring two stoppage time goals to draw even with Sporting Kansas City, Vancouver were victims of a little late magic themselves.  Ilija Stolica continued the Revolution’s knack for goal-scoring with a clinical goal (top shelf, to borrow the hockey phrase) two minutes into stoppage time to grab a late point.  The home team got their goal a man down in the 55th minute when Eric Hassli converted a penalty.  Hats off to New England, who despite missing three regulars including their starting keeper still got a road point and continue their near-miraculous start to the season.

But this match will forever be tainted by the suspect officiating of Toledo. Let’s review the major calls in this match to see just how bad he was last night:

• Gershon Koffie received a red card in the first half for an elbow to the head of Pat Phelan.  Looking at the replay, it is inconclusive whether the elbow was intentional.  In fact, in a situation like that one (high ball where both players have to extend to head it) a flying elbow or two is almost unavoidable.  Toledo immediately reaches for the red however and sends Koffie off.  This is a terrible call; Vancouver in now a man down for an entire half for something that did not look to be intentional in any way.  Give him a yellow or a stern warning, but not a straight red.
• Two minutes into the second half, Eric Hassli received a yellow card for another elbow to Kevin Alston.  This one is a little more understandable, as the referee has clearly shown any hint of an elbow will receive a card.  But again, looking at the play, it is not an intentional elbow.  Far from it, it looks more like a result of the play than Koffie’s, and does not deserve a card.  Poor decision again by the referee.
• Now it is New England’s turn to be aggrieved.  An Attiba Harris pass at the edge of the box missed Camilo who was bumped by Zach Boggs.  Camilo fell and Toldeo signaled penalty immediately.  This was a travesty for two reasons.  First, Camilo had no play on the ball, it was to his left out of his reach and the contact in no way altered his ability to reach it.  Second, the contact was minimal and even if Camilo did not dive (which I am in no way accusing him of doing), the contact did not warrant a penalty.  As it was, the ‘Caps converted and were up 1-0.
• The next controversial call came immediately after.  Hassli converts the penalty and immediately runs to the crowd to throw his jersey into the fan section.  But underneath his jersey was…another identical jersey.  In fact, he swapped his long sleeved shirt for a short sleeve.  No matter, taking off a jersey is an automatic yellow and, with it being his second, Hassli was sent off.  It was dumb by Hassli, but after an undeserved first yellow this really put Vancouver in bad spot: playing essentially 35 minutes with nine men.
• But it would not be 11 on 9 the entire match.  In the 75th minute, A.J. Soares is red-carded on a tackle on Attiba Harris.  His studs weren’t up, he got a piece of the ball and the tackle could have been a foul and possibly a yellow card.  But Toledo, sensing it had been 20 minutes since he had gotten attention, brought out the trusty red card and sent the rookie to the showers.  The rest of the match was played 10 on 9.

Now all officials have bad games, we are human and it happens that in an event with highly-toned athletes at peak physical condition the pace of play is too fast to catch every foul correctly in real time.  We at home have the benefit of replay, which makes it easier to criticize, so we should give officials leeway.  But this is part of a disturbing trend for Mr. Toledo this season in MLS.

• In Saturday’s Toronto-Chivas match, Maicon had a close goal ruled offsides, a goal that could have been the difference in the match.  Just like in last night’s match when a New England goal in the second half was incorrectly ruled offsides.
• Two weeks ago it was DC United who was the victim of Toledo’s poor refereeing.  DCU was down two goals in the first twenty minutes when the Revolution were not penalized for a Schilawski handball which allowed him to gain possession and score; followed by a penalty given on Dax McCarty when he tried to clear a ball from the box and Pat Phelan ran into his leg.

Those offenses were minor compared to the ones last night.  While a referee should never be blamed for a team winning, losing, or drawing a match (save obvious and proven cheating), MLS needs to address his terrible officiating.  Everyone complains about the referees in the league, and this is a great chance to do something about it.  The league should suspend Toledo for a match to send a message that improving the referees is a priority and an issue they take seriously.