Do we need to talk about Marc?

It would be great if Marc Dos Santos turns out to be a successful coach for the Vancouver Whitecaps.

He seems to be a genuinely nice guy who loves his football, can talk about it with passion and intelligence and who knows how he wants his teams to play.

Yet here we are again.

Seven games into another season and the Whitecaps are back to what they have always been under Dos Santos. A loose affiliation of players who can play well when things are going their way, but lose faith and belief (and the ability to move off the ball) the moment fate throws them a curveball.

Yes there are reasons as to why it’s been tough for the Whitecaps in 2021. But there were reasons as to why they were tough for them in 2020 and there were reasons as to why they were tough for them in 2019 too.

It starting to feel like an all too familiar tune.

Nobody is expecting Vancouver to produce a footballing clinic every week while running away with the Western Conference. But it doesn’t feel like too much to expect at least some basic competence.

For the team to play the first forty-five minutes as if they have met each other before. For there to be at least some plan to break down a defence. For their Designated Player striker to be playing as a striker and not a deep lying number whatever the hell it is Cavallini is supposed to be doing. For there to be more to hope for than set-pieces and defensive turnovers. Did I mention that there needs to be more movement off the ball. Oh right, yes I did. In every single blog post for the last however many years this accursed thing has been going!

Anyway, the late consolation goal in the 2-1 defeat to Houston on Saturday will allow enough rope for there to be the usual post-game platitudes about not being good enough in the first half, learning from this and knowing they need to be better.

None of that will mean anything of course, because none of the players seem to be buying in to what the coach is selling.

I’ve no idea why that is, but it’s painfully obvious to see whenever the tide turns against this team.

Can that be fixed in the four week period they now have before the next game?

(That’s a rhetorical question by the way).

Time for the Soccer Shorts player ratings!

Crepeau-4.5, Gaspar-4.5, Brown-4.5, Rose-4, Godoy-4, Bikel-2, Alexandre-5, Dajome-2, Caicedo-5*, Teibert-3, Cavallini-4 (Baldisimo-5)