Vanni Sartini isn含羞草研究社檛 known for keeping his opinions to himself.
During training, the head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps regularly paces the field, yelling instructions in multiple languages and gesticulating wildly.
His relative quiet at Tuesday含羞草研究社檚 session was noticeable, but as the 含羞草研究社楥aps (13-8-6) gear up for a packed stretch of critical matchups 含羞草研究社� starting with a visit to the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday 含羞草研究社� Sartini is 含羞草研究社渂iting his tongue.含羞草研究社�
含羞草研究社淚 think in this period, the coaching is more the planning than the coaching on the field,含羞草研究社� he said Tuesday.
The Whitecaps head to Texas on a four-game unbeaten streak across all competitions, including a 2-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes last Saturday. The stretch is due to the quality of the players and a schedule that included just one game per week, Sartini said.
含羞草研究社淲e had time to train each week and, having a lot of quality players, the quality of the training was quite high. And that translated in what we did on Saturday,含羞草研究社� he said.
含羞草研究社淭he next few weeks is going to be harder because, basically, you don含羞草研究社檛 train and you always play and you recover every single time. So it含羞草研究社檚 hard also to try things. So I think more than the soccer technique and tactics quality itself, the mental part is going to be very important.含羞草研究社�
Wednesday含羞草研究社檚 game is the second of seven that the club will play over 21 days.
On Saturday, the Whitecaps will be in California, taking on the conference-leading L.A. Galaxy.
With just seven games to go on their Major League Soccer regular-season calendar, the 含羞草研究社楥aps sit sixth in the congested Western Conference where the second-place club and seventh-place club are separated by just four points.
Vancouver is currently a single point ahead of Houston, with both teams jockeying for a top-four spot that brings home-field advantage for the playoffs.
The players know what含羞草研究社檚 at stake for the mid-week matchup, but the standings aren含羞草研究社檛 the first thing they含羞草研究社檙e thinking about, said 含羞草研究社楥aps defender Sam Adekugbe.
含羞草研究社淚含羞草研究社檓 sure it含羞草研究社檚 in the back of your mind, but not necessarily just because it takes away from what you need to really focus on, which is the three points,含羞草研究社� he said. 含羞草研究社淎nd we have a good team. There含羞草研究社檚 no reason why we shouldn含羞草研究社檛 be able to get a result.含羞草研究社�
The Whitecaps have already faced the Dynamo once this season, dropping a 4-3 decision at B.C. Place on July 20.
The game was 含羞草研究社渃haos,含羞草研究社� said 含羞草研究社楥aps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka.
含羞草研究社淚t was kind of a weird game,含羞草研究社� he said. 含羞草研究社淭hey create chaos. So we have to control the game. So if we score or concede a goal, we need to be staying in the game.含羞草研究社�
Houston comes in on a three-game unbeaten streak (2-0-1) after posting a decisive 4-1 victory over Real Salt Lake last Saturday.
含羞草研究社淭hey含羞草研究社檙e obviously in good shape and good football style, like ticky-tacky,含羞草研究社� Takaoka said. 含羞草研究社淪o we need to be very patient. We need to be solid for 90 minutes.含羞草研究社�
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-8-6) at HOUSTON DYNAMO (12-8-8)
Wednesday, Shell Energy Stadium
INS AND OUTS: Whitecaps midfielder Ali Ahmed will miss Wednesday含羞草研究社檚 game with a quad contusion, but is expected to join the team in L.A. ahead of Saturday含羞草研究社檚 matchup. Midfielder Andres Cubas will return to the Vancouver含羞草研究社檚 starting 11 after missing last week含羞草研究社檚 outing with a shoulder injury and striker Brian White is expected to be on the bench after sitting out three games with a concussion.
HISTORY BOOKS: Vancouver holds a 10-9-5 edge over Houston in regular-season play.
ROAD WARRIORS: The 含羞草研究社楥aps are 7-4-3 on the road this season and have a chance to set new club records in both MLS away wins and points. The current highs (seven wins, 24 points) were set in 2015.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
