WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: VANCOUVER WHITECAPS
Welcome back to What You Need To Know, a preview for Austin FC fans to check in on their next opponent.
Opponent: Vancouver Whitecaps
Kick Off time: 7:38 PM
Location: Q2 Stadium, Austin, TX
History vs. Austin FC:
Austin FC is a numerically pleasing 1-1-1 against Vancouver at Q2 all-time. The win was in 2022 thanks to a brace by Maxi Urruti.
Recent Matches:
The Whitecaps beat Pacific FC 1-0 on Tuesday night to advance to the Final of the Canadian Championship. That is their only game since being eliminated from the Leagues Cup by Pumas on August 7.
Players to Watch:
Ryan Gauld
The Scottish attacking midfielder leads the team in Goals + assists on the season (17 in 24 starts) and has been their Captain in every MLS match in 2024. Much like against Nashville, Dani Perreira, and Alex Ring need to work in the center of the park to neutralize him like they did with Hany Muhktar.
Damir Kreilach
The MLS may be the starter on Saturday, but their regular starter and leading goal scorer, Brian White, is out for the match due to concussion protocols. He subbed on when White went out injured in their match on Tuesday. He has only scored 2 goals in 13 appearances in what has been an injury-riddled season for him.
Keys to the Match:
Numbers
Austin FC has been utilizing a False 9 formation where Sebastian Driussi is listed as the striker but regularly drops deeper to help in the build-up play. An advantage of this is it frees up the wingers (Osman Bukari, Jon Gallagher, Jadier Obrian) to run behind and utilize space. Vancouver likes to play a 3-4-3 formation, which has vulnerabilities, on the wings, against pacy wingers. If Austin can get the ball through what could be a crowded midfield, they can find space to attack.
Road Warriors
Vancouver leads the Western Conference in road wins (6 in 13 games) and has 7 points in their last three away matches dating back to July 3 against Minnesota United. Austin has a 6-4-3 record at home this season but hasn’t won in MLS play since July 6 on a rainy night against NYCFC.
Home vs. Road Game plans
When Austin FC held on to a 0-0 draw in Vancouver earlier this season we saw Austin sit deep and allow pressure in a “bend but don’t break” defensive style. They allowed 24 shots (6 on goal), gave up 10 corners, and lost the xG battle 1.2 to 0.3, where all of Austin’s xG came on one early chance that fell to Diego Rubio in the box.
Recently we’ve seen Austin employ this style but with more success as they’ve added more competent defenders (Mikkel Desler) and attacking speed up top in Osman Bukari, which allows Austin a release valve and forces other teams to stay back out of fear of getting beat on the counter like Nashville was. With Austin FC at Q2, will we see a continuation of that, or will we see a reversion to a more possession-based system against a Vancouver team that is in the bottom third of possession in MLS?
Playoff Update
After last weekend’s 2-0 win over Nashville SC Austin has climbed into 9th and if the season ended today would travel to Houston for the play-in game. However, Austin’s remaining scheduled is filled with teams above the playoff line, including Vancouver who sit in 6th and 4 points ahead of Austin. Thanks to their match against LAFC postponed for our friends in LA to once again lose a final the Whitecaps have two games in hand on Austin and most of the rest of the conference. For a team that has aspirations of hosting a playoff series, Vancouver needs a win this week.
See you at Q2!
WRITTEN BY: SCOTT SPECHT
