We begged Vancouverfrom the front office, for years, to obtain a third high-level DP. One more piece to give them a chance to punch in the biggest matches against the best teams.

This summer, they finally obeyed. And in doing so, they took a generally pretty decent Caps side to “the best version of the Whitecaps in their MLS history.”

It still wasn’t enough. Here we go :

There hasn’t been much movement between the 2023 version of the ‘Caps and the 2024 version – at least until the summer window. So the decision-makers faced a lot of criticism from people like me, Wiebe, Sacha, Brad and the rest of the Season Pass gang every time a camera was turned on or a microphone was pointed in our faces .

“They’re a good team,” the refrain went, “but they’re missing that extra piece to make them a legitimate threat against the area’s best.”

We saw this game play out before the season even started, as they lost a Concacaf Champions Cup at home against the Tigers. We saw it play out in April with a big defeat against Galaxyand in May with an explosive loss against LAFC. We saw it in League Cupwhile they were unable to face a very good Pumas UNAM team in the round of 16.

But just as the Pumas lost, they added the Scottish central midfielder. Stu Armstrong like this third DP. I was skeptical – Armstrong is approaching 30 – and he certainly hasn’t arrived in great shape. He played virtually no role as the Caps stumbled down the stretch and advanced to the Audi MLS Cup playoffs, where almost everyone expected them to lose in the match Wild Card vs. Portland.

It didn’t work like that. Instead, Armstrong was brilliant as a midfield connector in Vanni Sartini’s modified 4-3-2-1, freeing up Ryan Gauld to go all out on attack. The “Caps” won 5-0 in their second playoff victory in club history.

They then faced LAFC in the next round, arguably outplaying the Black & Gold over the course of three games – the second of which was a draw. 3-0 home win it was probably the best performance, taking into account both the stakes and the degree of difficulty, in the club’s history.

As I said above, it still wasn’t enough: LAFC won Game 3, which is why I’m writing Vancouver’s post-mortem instead. But last year’s meeting between these two teams was a killer. This year, two tied teams threw haymakers for 270 minutes.

I am seduced by what I saw in the “Caps”.

Gauld posted 10g/15a in the regular season, then added another 5g/1a in the playoffs. He also added two goals at the Canadian Championship, which the Caps won for a third consecutive time.

Brian White had 16g/2a in all competitions, continuing to be the robust and reliable reference point for the attack. Fafa Picault contributed himself with 10g/8a in all competitions.

Nobody will take this gang for InterMiamiand there are probably a few playoff questions White needs to answer after his close but cigar-free performance against LAFC. But this group remains an excellent argument for prioritizing adjustment when building an offensive group. Their skills are almost perfectly complementary.

In an ideal world, they wouldn’t have had to sign Armstrong since Pedro Vite would have become this guy. But the 22-year-old had a year that oscillated between “ineffective” and “indifferent”. Ralph Priso barely featured, managing less than 800 minutes. Edit Ocampo And Giuseppe Bovalinacombined, played less than half that amount.

No one under 24 got significant minutes on offense. Ali Ahmedat the age of 23, hasn’t made the big move into midfield that many were hoping for.

These guys will need to improve further next year.

• Ryan Gauld (AM/FW): Is at his best as a raumdeuter, floating around the attack out of White’s movement without having to worry about switching to the orchestra.
• Brian White (AF): Will the non-negotiables – take up space here, be a physical presence there, pounce on a rebound now – as well as any No. 9 in the league.
• Stuart Armstrong (CM): More of a high-level connector than a true playmaker, his presence in the lineup was a strength amplifier for everyone around him.
• Andrés Cubas (DM): He’s still one of the best defensive midfielders in the league and he’s in his prime.
• Ranko Veselinovic (CB): He hasn’t really become a Best XI caliber guy, but it felt like he took a step forward this season.

Now that all three DP slots are filled with guys who can’t be bought – Gauld, Cubas and Armstrong – the only way Vancouver can get another high-level winning piece that could potentially be a difference-maker in a playoff series. against teams like LAFC, it’s either:

1. Develop one from within, or…
2. Buy an elite child from the U22 Initiative, who would also need development.

I’m not going to say “and that’s where Vancouver was the worst”, because guys like VeselinovicAhmed and Seb Berhalter are better now than they were two years ago. Damn it, Gauld, White and Cuba. Vanni can make guys better.

But that hasn’t been his strong point – at least, not in the “get a 20-year-old project and six months later he’s Andrés Gómez” kind of way. I mean, just look at the guy whose departure is almost certain and would open up a U22 spot in the first place: Déiber Caicedo. He was really promising in 2021. And since then, he has regressed… and regressed… and regressed.

Looking at the Caps right now, I see a 55 point team; maybe even 60 with a little injury luck and a little better shot stopping Yohei Takaoka.

They can climb higher. Another big signing. Another development challenge. The mountain peak is in sight.