HONOLULU, HAWAII – Vancouver Whitecaps FC fell 1-0 to Japanese club Iwaki FC on Sunday afternoon in Pacific Rim Cup action at Aloha Stadium.
Iwaki FC’s Byron Vasquez scored the lone goal of the match on an 87th-minute penalty.
Whitecaps FC head coach Marc Dos Santos made three changes to his starting lineup after Friday’s preseason opener, inserting goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau, right back Scott Sutter, and attacking midfielder/forward Yordy Reyna in place of Zac MacMath, Jake Nerwinski, and Theo Bair. Nerwinski (sick) did not dress, while Reyna served as the centre forward in Vancouver’s 4-3-3 formation.
Reyna had Vancouver’s best chance of the opening frame in the 26th minute, missing the target with his left foot after a beautiful build-up with Felipe and Andy Rose. Canadian centre backs Doneil Henry and Derek Cornelius also came close on a pair of first-half set pieces.
At the other end of the pitch, Crépeau came up big in the 36th minute with a diving stop on a long-range Iwaki FC free kick.
Dos Santos would use all 11 of his substitutions throughout the second half, with eight Whitecaps FC Academy products and six teenagers concluding the match on the pitch.
The ‘Caps will now return to Vancouver for a week of training before heading to Los Angeles for the final leg of their preseason, where they will face LA Galaxy (Feb. 16), Club Tijuana (Feb. 20), and LAFC (Feb. 23). Whitecaps FC open the 2019 MLS regular season against Minnesota United FC on March 2 at BC Place – visit whitecapsfc.com/tickets for ticket information.
NEWS AND NOTES
Right back Jake Nerwinski (sick) and midfielders Michael Baldisimo (left ankle contusion) and Russell Teibert (left ankle strain) did not feature on Sunday … the ‘Caps were also without Erik Godoy, who is being eased into the group, and fellow newcomers Joaquín Ardaiz, Hwang In-beom, Jasser Khmiri, Lucas Venuto, who are expected to join the team in the coming weeks.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
16.Maxime Crépeau (18.Zac MacMath 45’); 23.Scott Sutter (56.Georges Mukumbilwa^ 55’), 2.Doneil Henry (26.Brendan McDonough* 60’), 13.Derek Cornelius (24.David Norman 65’), 94.Victor “PC” Giro (58.Brandon Cambridge^ 85’); 15.Andy Rose (59.Kamron Habibullah^ 81’), 6.Jon Erice (53.Patrick Metcalfe^ 65’), 8.Felipe Martins © (54.Simon Colyn 60’); 19.Lass Bangoura (57.Matheus Queiroz# 65’), 29.Yordy Reyna (50.Theo Bair 45’), 46.Brett Levis (52.Gabriel Escobar^ 60’)
^ Whitecaps FC Academy/Development player
# Training camp invitee
* Unsigned SuperDraft selection
