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CONCACAF Champions League: Whitecaps vs. Tigres Leg 2 Recap

By Gareth Wolff

Apr 5, 2017; Vancouver, BC, Canada; Vancouver Whitecaps defender Kendall Watson (4) goes up for a header against the Tigres UANL during the second half at BC Place. The Tigres UANL won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2017; Vancouver, BC, Canada; Vancouver Whitecaps defender Kendall Watson (4) goes up for a header against the Tigres UANL during the second half at BC Place. The Tigres UANL won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /
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Vancouver Whitecaps FC saw their CONCACAF Champions League dreams ended on Wednesday night. A 2-1 win for Mexican champions Tigres UANL at BC Place sets up an all-Mexican final.

The dream is over for the Vancouver Whitecaps and all of MLS in the 2017 CONCACAF Champions League. It’ll be yet another all-Mexican final as the Whitecaps joined FC Dallas, eliminated by Pachuca on Tuesday, in falling at the second-to-last hurdle.

The perfect start

The Whitecaps faced a huge challenge, needing to overturn a 2-0 first leg defeat,  but they got the perfect start. In just the third minute, Brek Shea gave the ‘Caps the lead, pouncing on a loose ball in the Tigres box after Christian Bolaños and Cristian Techera combined on a free kick.

Suddenly, the Whitecaps were back in it, as long as they didn’t concede.

Shea only lasted until the 10th minute, having to be replaced by Alphonso Davies after suffering a knee injury. Tigres dominated most of the first half, but Vancouver made it to halftime unscathed, still needing only one more goal to tie the series.

Second half

The breakthrough wouldn’t come, however, despite Bolaños coming close at the very beginning of the second half.

On the hour mark, Tony Tchani replaced for Andrew Jacobson. On Saturday against LA Galaxy, that was the substitution that triggered a comeback for the Whitecaps. It had the opposite effect this time. Two minutes after coming on, Tchani was guilty of giving André-Pierre Gignac too much space at the edge of the Whitecaps box. That was all the French international striker needed to curl the ball into David Ousted’s top corner.

The equalizer took the wind out of the Whitecaps’ sails. With half an hour to score three goals, Carl Robinson threw on Kyle Greig for Sheanon Williams, going to three defenders at the back. But the Whitecaps couldn’t find another goal, and they were punished as Damián Alvarez hit them on the break. The scoreline could have got a lot worse if not for a couple of spectacular blocks from Ousted.

The match ended with a 2-1 win on the night for Tigres, and a 4-1 aggregate win. Tigres advance to face Pachuca in the final. The Whitecaps must now forget about the CCL and turn their attention to the league. There’s still almost a whole MLS season left to play.

Apr 5, 2017; Vancouver, BC, Canada; Vancouver Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted (1) escorts a fan off the field after he runs out during play during the second half against the Tigres UANL at BC Place. The Tigres UANL won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2017; Vancouver, BC, Canada; Vancouver Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted (1) escorts a fan off the field after he runs out during play during the second half against the Tigres UANL at BC Place. The Tigres UANL won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /

Three Takeaways

  • MLS has a long way to go. If the goal is for an MLS team to win the CCL, and MLS sides to be able to compete with Liga MX teams, there’s a lot of work still to do. Although the Whitecaps gave it their best shot, there is little doubt the better team won. Tigres barely needed to get out of first gear for much of either leg.
  • Tim Parker…future USMNT international? Tim Parker has been outstanding so far this season and, along with Ousted, was one of Vancouver’s best players over 180 minutes against Tigres. In only his third season in the league, he’s already looking like an experienced center back. If he continues this progression, a USMNT call-up should be in his future.

    • Empty seats.

    There were a lot of empty spots in the stands at BC Place.

    Officially, the attendance was 16,258

    . It was certainly a disappointing turnout for a regional semifinal against one of the top teams in the Americas. Was it lack of advertising by the Whitecaps, the Wednesday night timing of the match, the 2-0 deficit from the first half, ticket prices, or a combination of factors?

    Next: MLS TV Schedule: Week 6

    Next up, the Whitecaps travel to Utah for Mike Petke’s first match as coach of still-winless Real Salt Lake.

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