Preview: 'Caps host '90s Match at BC Place against San Jose Earthquakes | Watch for FREE on MLS Season Pass, TSN

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VANCOUVER, BC – With everyone back from international duty, Vancouver Whitecaps FC (12W-8L-6D) are set to welcome Western Conference foes San Jose Earthquakes (5W-20L-2D) to BC Place on Saturday, September 14. The 'Caps, who will be hosting their '90s Match, presented by MNP, have posted a record of 5W-1L-2D in their last eight MLS matches. Kickoff on Saturday is set for 7:30 p.m. PT.

Saturday will mark the 56th all-time meeting between VWFC and San Jose, and the 35th meeting in MLS regular season play.

WEEKLY STORYLINES

BACK FROM DUTY: Vancouver Whitecaps FC will have a full complement of players back this weekend as all six away on international duty have returned home throughout the week. Ryan Gauld made his debut for Scotland's senior side, coming off the bench in both of their UEFA Nations League matches against Poland and Portugal, while Fafa Picault started Haiti's Concacaf FIFA World Cup Qualifying matches against Puerto Rico and Sint Maarten. The forward tallied two assists as Haiti won both of their matches during their window. In addition, Ali Ahmed started Canada's friendlies against the United States and Mexico, while Sam Adekugbe was an unused substitute against Mexico. Lastly, Andrés Cubas started one of Paraguay's matches during the window and Pedro Vite made his second appearance for Ecuador's senior team in their match against Peru.

SEVEN IN 22: The 'Caps host San Jose this Saturday in the club's '90s Match presented by MNP, which will be the first of seven games in 22 days. Following the weekend, Vancouver will embark on a two-game road trip with stops at Houston Dynamo FC and at LA Galaxy before returning for five consecutive games at BC Place, starting with the TELUS Canadian Championship Final against Toronto FC on September 25. Saturday's match will mark the second meeting of the season between the two teams, with the previous match coming in March as the 'Caps claimed a 2-0 away win at PayPal Park thanks to goals from Ali Ahmed and Alessandro Schöpf.

D-FENCE: Last Saturday night, Whitecaps FC posted their third consecutive clean sheet, and eighth of the year, across all competitions. The current shutout streak stands at 303 minutes shared between keepers Isaac Boehmer and Yohei Takaoka. Collectively, the team has held opponents to an expected goals total under one in each of those matches - 0.47 xG against Pacific FC on August 27, 0.7 at Austin FC on August 31, and 0.5 xG against FC Dallas on September 7. The backline has also shown it's depth in the past three matches, with Mathias Laborda, Ranko Veselinovic, Tristan Blackmon, Belal Halbouni, and Bjorn Inge Utvik all seeing minutes during the shutout streak. In fact, Blackmon was named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for his performance in Matchday 31 against FC Dallas.

During the week, the 'Caps welcomed a special guest to the National Soccer Development Centre. Canadian men's national team head coach Jesse Marsch payed a visit and spoke with media alongside sporting director Axel Schuster and head coach Vanni Sartini on Thursday.

CLUB NEWS

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