Many things went right for the Vancouver Whitecaps FC during their inaugural MLS match against Toronto FC last Saturday. To start, even before the match started the clouds parted and the sun made a surprise appearance over Empire Field. What followed during the rest of afternoon not only shocked those at Empire Field, but also soccer fans across North America.
The Whitecaps dismantled Toronto FC by dominating in all parts of the pitch, trouncing the Easterners 4-2. The defense made all the necessary plays. When Toronto did score, it was through two great finishes by Dwayne DeRosario and Maicon Santos. Davide Chuimiento pulled the strings in the midfield and set up two goals in the first half and Terry Dunfield scuppered attacks by Toronto FC's attackers. But, where the Whitecaps dominated most thoroughly was up front where Vancouver's designated player Eric Hassli and Atiba Harris at times toyed with the three defender system employed by Toronto FC.
Toronto FC is still getting used to a new 3-4-3 formation, their relatively new back line trio of Nana Attakora, Ty Harden and Adrian Cann employed by coach Aron Winter undoubtedly played a role in TFC's defeat on March 19th. The team is simply not used to its new formation just yet. But, the physicality of one Eric Hassli also took a significant toll on the defenders. Hassli backed into, tossed to and fro, and systematically wore down Toronto's physically smaller central defenders and it payed immediate dividends as TFC's defense and midfield was stretched and exploited for 4 goals.
Fast forward to earlier today as the Whitecaps took on the Philadelphia Union. Hassli started the match against the Union the same way he did against TFC, throwing his body into defenders. As in the previous match, the burly Frenchman picked up an early (and slightly soft) yellow card in the 27th minute for a trip on Philly's defensive juggernaut, Danny Califf. The physical play continued into the second half and then Hassli saw red. In the 59th minute, he was sent off on a follow through on the Union's defender Carlos Valdez. Definitely worth of a second yellow.
Even prior to the sending off, the Caps lacked creativity in the midfield against the Union. The loss of Davide Chuimiento was evident, there were a number of misplaced passes, and Hassli did not get the same service he did in the team's first match, as the striker was forced to generate scoring chances on his own. The Whitecaps did not have a quality scoring chance in the entire game. Coupled with suffocating pressure on the ball by the Union, the Whitecaps did not look like they would score on Faryd Mondragon at any point during the 90 minutes.
Whitecaps coach Teitur Thorardsson has clearly given Hassli instructions to play as physical as he possibly can this season. Playing a big striker with a smaller, slightly more athletic and quicker forward (in this case Atiba Harris) is a formula that was used by last year's MLS Cup champions, the Colorado Rapids. The Rapids' attack was and is still led by hulking U.S. international Conor Casey and speedy Jamaican striker Omar Cummings, the classic thunder and lightning combination which led the Rapids to last year's championship. The Whitecaps expansion cousins, the Portland Timbers have also attempted this with their own big man, Kenny Cooper.
What is unique about the Hassli experiment is that the big Frenchman is still trying to figure how the North American is refereed. In his first match, it looked as though he tossed around TFC players at will with very few of these instances were whistled down for fouls. Yet, in the second match, the referee called anything and everything, slowing down the game considerably and saw Hassli get sent-off after he came in with a late tackle.
Ultimately, until the Whitecaps can figure out what level of physicality is just right for their top striker to play, and MLS referees can achieve a consistent standard of rule enforcement, Hassli and Caps' fans may be in for more mixed emotions in the coming weeks.
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