LOS ANGELES, CA – Vancouver Whitecaps FC suffered their first defeat away from home this season as they fell to Los Angeles FC at BMO Stadium on Saturday.
Yohei Takaoka came up big early on for the 'Caps. The Japanese shot-stopper made a pair of good saves on Cristian Olivera to keep the match scoreless.
At the other end of the pitch, Fafà Picault nearly provided the opener for Whitecaps FC just under 15 minutes in, after getting on the end of a fizzed cross into the box from Tristan Blackmon. Picault managed to redirect the cross with a diving shot on goal, but was denied by Hugo Lloris.
LAFC would, in the end, break through the ‘Caps defence to get the opener in the 19th minute through Olivera. Denis Bouanga whipped a dangerous cross into the box from the left flank for Olivera to tap in for the lead. That duo combined once again to score LAFC’s second goal of the night. Bouanga, once again the creator, drilled another low cross towards the back post for Olivera to cushion in for his brace.
Despite being two behind, Whitecaps FC kept pushing to try to halve the deficit. Ryan Gauld had a good opportunity from a free kick just outside the box, but his effort hit the wall and went out for a corner.
The second half began with real intensity as the ‘Caps looked to get back into the match. But for all the 'Caps pressure, LAFC would be the next team to score in the 57th minute. Bouanga, on the counter, burst down the left side and crossed another excellent ball into the box for Bogusz to bundle it home.
Pedro Vite and Levonte Johnson, fresh off the bench, were both able to test Lloris, but once again the Frenchman was able to keep them out. With the ‘Caps still chasing for a goal, Gauld came close to pulling one back in the 81st minute. A clever one-two with Vite gave Gauld the avenue to fire on goal but his curled effort went wide of the mark.
After five matches away from home, finally the 'Caps were beaten. They'll stay on the road this week as they train in Los Angeles, before looking to return to winning ways on Wednesday, May 15 at Colorado Rapids. Kickoff will be at 6: 30 p.m. PT live on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, and on AM730 radio.
The next home match for the 'Caps on Tuesday, May 21 as they host Cavalry FC at 7:30 p.m. PT in the second leg of the Canadian Championship. Tickets are included for season members.
Then, on May 25, Whitecaps FC will host Inter Miami CF in front of a crowd of more than 50,000 at BC Place. For ticket information on all home matches, visit whitecapsfc.com/tickets.
MATCH DETAILS
VWFC GE Appliances Player of Quality: Andrés Cubas
Attendance: 22,099
Referee: Ted Unkel
Scoring Summary
18’ – LAFC – Cristian Olivera (Denis Bouanga)
36’ – LAFC – Cristian Olivera (Denis Bouanga)
57’ – LAFC – Mateusz Bogusz (Denis Bouanga)
Statistics
Possession: LAFC 57.4% - VAN 42.6%
Shots: LAFC 14 - VAN 15
Shots on Goal: LAFC 8 - VAN 4
Saves: LAFC 4 - VAN 5
Fouls: LAFC 17 - VAN 7
Offsides: LAFC 0 - VAN 1
Corners: LAFC 4 - VAN 5
Cautions
21’ – VAN – Brian White
45’+2 – LAFC – Mateusz Bogusz
Los Angeles FC
1.Hugo Lloris; 14.Sergi Palencia (4.Eddie Segura 79’), 25.Maxime Chanot, 33.Aaron Long, 2.Omar Campos; 11.Timothy Tillman (18.Érik Dueñas 68’), 6.Ilie Sánchez (23.Kei Kamara 79’), 20.Eduard Atuesta; 13.Cristian Olivera (91.Luis Muller 87’), 19.Mateusz Bogusz (3.Jesús Murillo 87’), 99.Denis Bouanga
Substitutes not used
22.Abraham Romero, 21.Tomás Ángel, 27.Nathan Ordaz
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
1.Yohei Takaoka; 2.Mathías Laborda, 4.Ranko Veselinović, 6.Tristan Blackmon; 7.Ryan Raposo (14.Luís Martins 68’), 8.Alessandro Schöpf (45.Pedro Vite 62’), 20.Andrés Cubas, 22.Ali Ahmed (23.Javain Brown 69’); 25.Ryan Gauld ©, 24.Brian White (16.Sebastian Berhalter 80’), 11.Fafà Picault (28.Levonte Johnson 62’)
Substitutes not used
32.Isaac Boehmer, 13.Ralph Priso, 15.Bjørn Inge Utvik, 27.Giuseppe Bovalina
