While it’s subjectively frustrating to watch the Whitecaps lose to a Cascadian rival, there’s nothing objectively terrible about losing to the Sounders in Seattle.
After all, they are a good team run by a competent organization.
But it is immensely frustrating to see the Whitecaps lose in the manner they did on Tuesday evening.
Mentally switching off within the first few minutes to concede an early penalty, the inability to play even the simplest of passes, allowing acres of space in the midfield, one player pressing while the rest of the team look on with disinterest, the inability of the forward line to keep possession, no creativity or movement, a lack of intensity, no discernible game plan and no real urgency to get forward at any stage.
The list could go on.
It felt like the whole team believed that winning a couple of games thanks to a couple of penalty kicks meant they no longer had anything to prove and that just turning up in Seattle would be enough.
But, in the end, they barely even turned up.
This game should be a reminder that they need to work hard every day at everything for the rest of the season. But recent history suggests they will just work hard for a few games and then revert to type once a good result or two is achieved.
Time for the Soccer Shorts player ratings!
Cropper-3, Godinho-5*, Martins-3, Veselinovic-4, Godoy-4, Nerwinski-3.5, Owusu-1, Jungwirth-1, Gauld-2, Caicedo-2, White-2 (Alexandre-2, Cubas-2, Dajome-2)
Soccer Shorts (The Director's Cut) 