Posted by

Harjeet Johal ,

March 7, 2015 Twitter

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VANCOUVER, B.C - Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps kicked off their respective 2015 campaigns with an exciting fixture at BC Place Stadium in front of 21,000 boisterous supporters. Greg Vanney and his trio of MLS mega-stars gave Vancouver all they could handle in the second half and left Vancouver with a well deserving 3-1 victory in front of a shocked crowd.



It was a match of debuts as Octavio Rivero, Jozy Altidore and Robbie Findley all scored on their team debuts. Rivero opened the scoring before Altidore answered with a brace. The first from a beautiful Sebastian Giovinco pass and the second goal was a lovely as he chipped David Ousted on an 89' minute penalty from the spot. Former Real Salt Lake, striker Robbie Findley scored match winner in the second half after connecting on Justin Morrow's cross from the left flank.

Open Player in a New Window | Subscribe | iTunes | MP3 Sebastian Giovinco was delighted with his MLS debut as he spoke exclusively to RedNation Online after the match.



"It was a great atmosphere. A great performance. I'm happy with the result."



It was expected that Pa-Modou Kah and Kendall Waston would try to rub out the Atomic Ant, but it was not to be. Giovinco was able to do what he wanted and the Whitecaps tower of centre-backs weren't able to contain Seba.



"The centre backs were physical, but they are many strong and physical centre-backs in Italy. It wasn't really different. I knew what to expect."



The Caps created an abundance of first half opportunities to score, but once again they just couldn't capitalize on enough of them. Greg Vanney switched up his second half tactics and Vancouver's counter attacks were snuffed out.



Jozy Altidore silenced his critics who wondered if he could come back to MLS and play as well as he did during his previous MLS stint with the New York Red Bulls.



"There's always going to be critics, you can never please everybody. That's just part of the territory as a professional, so it's nothing new."



The Opening 45

Octavio Rivero had a glorious opportunity to score his first MLS goal and the first of the season for Vancouver. The Uruguayan striker missed an absolute sitter in front of the Toronto FC net. Russell Teibert sent a cross goal pass directly to Rivero, but he fumbled the ball which allowed Joe Bendik and the visitors to dodge a bullet in the 8' minute.



Former Juventus man, Sebastian Giovinco found himself facing the Whitecaps goal after Michael Bradley had his shot deflect in the box right towards the Italian international. Giovinco turned and fired a low shot that curled past the far right post. David Ousted would have been beat had Giovinco's shot been on target.



Moments later it would be Vancouver that kept coming and it wasn't long before they opened the scoring. Pa-Modou Kah played a terrific ball over the top to Octavio Rivero who burst by Steven Caldwell before sending the ball through Bendik's legs. The former O'Higgins striker atoned for his atrocious miss early and bagged a goal on his MLS debut in the 19' minute.



The newly formed back-four for Toronto looked vastly disjointed in the opening forty-five. Teibert, Manneh, and Rivero were able to get around Warren Crevalle and Steven Caldwell on numerous occasions. However, just when it appeared that Vancouver was going to step on the peddle and take over the match, Toronto's newest additions answered back.



Jonathan Osorio found Sebastian Giovinco in the box and delivered a great pass to an unmarked Jozy Altidore. The U.S. intentional rounded David Ousted and scored into an open net. Altidore and Giovinco combined for what Toronto FC fans hope will be the first of many MLS goals this season.



The equalizer by Toronto seemed to burst the bubble of the home side supporters. Vancouver had been dominating the first half in large stretches. If not for some poor finishes Vancouver could have scored more than one goal in the first half. Toronto started slow out of the gate, but rebounded nicely after their dynamic duo showed patience and vision in the 32' minute.



Jozy Altidore talked about Toronto's sign of character as they stepped up and came away with an important victory.



"Today, I thought everybody was a leader. To come from one down in a pretty tough place to play, I thought it was a big sign of character."



The Whitecaps had the better chances in the first half, but other than Rivero's goal, the Caps were unable to add to their goal tally. Toronto looked like they had hibernated in the York University mystery tunnel in the first 30' minutes, but the money that MLSE spent on Altidore and Giovinco paid off at least in the first half.



With all the quick counter attacks from Carl Robinson's side it was Toronto FC with a 52% - 48% first half possession advantage. Vancouver led shots on target 5-1, and held a 5-2 advantage on first half corners with the scored deadlock 1-1. Glad the season has started!! Too bad about the season opener, but there were lots of missed calls from the officials #WhitecapsFC — Pam Brochu (@blondepammy) March 8, 2015

The Second Half

Michael Bradley stepped up with an ambitious delivery from distance that nearly found its way past David Ousted if only it had been on target in the 52' minute.



The second half featured a role reversal, it was Vancouver that looked lost and out of sorts. The tactics that Greg Vanney made to his starting eleven for the second forty-five helped Toronto take the lead in the 59' minute.



Suresnes, France native, Benoit Cheyrou sent in a through ball to full-back Justin Morrow. The 27 year-old was able to get past a bewildered Steven Beitashour before sending in a lovely cross into the Vancouver box. Jordan Harvey was late on arrival, and Robbie Findley pounced on the ball to give the Reds a 2-1 advantage over a shocked Vancouver faithful.



Sensing that the tide was turning towards the visitors. Carl Robinson decided to make some substitutions in the 64' and 65' minutes. Russell Teibert gave way for Gershon Koffie, and Darren Mattocks entered the match for Mauro Rosales. As a result, Kekuta Manneh moved over to the right side and Mattocks occupied the left side.



The Whitecaps Gambian winger had an honest assessment about the Whitecaps missed chances and overall showing.



"I thought we were fantastic in the first half. In the second half we took our foot off the gas and we didn't take our chances and that came back to bite us in the ass. I thought overall there was some good stuff that we did."



The Whitecaps game plan for the second half fell into the waste bin because they simply could not generate enough offensive chances. The pace that Manneh, Teibert, and Rivero showed in the first half was nowhere to be found. Vancouver had trouble keeping the ball and Toronto was happy to play the game out and leave town with a victory.



Toronto FC were awarded a penalty in the 89' minute after Pa-Modou Kah was issued a yellow card in the area. David Ousted and the Whitecaps did not agree with the PK, but nevertheless it was given. Jozy Altidore calmly stepped up and delivered a very cheeky chip past a helpless Ousted. The Caps keeper was swimming in his net as Altidore gave Toronto a 3-1 lead.



Vancouver squandered missed opportunities while Toronto FC didn't need many opportunities to muster a trio of goals. The Reds went marching in and deservingly walked away with their first MLS victory in Vancouver. Man of the Match



For the Whitecaps

Octavio Rivero had a blunder of a missed scoring chance, but he did not let that get the better of him. He focused in and composed himself long enough to open the scoring and give Vancouver a 1-0 lead. Rivero's confidence could have been lost, but he was able to generate offense and play a vital roll during 90' minutes of action.

For Toronto FC

Jozy Altidore came back to Major League Soccer like he hadn't skipped a beat. The Sunderland cast-off scored a brace and a beauty PK to sink the Whitecaps. Altidore showed brilliant patience on both goals as he rounded Ousted and later sent a cheeky PK past the Danish keeper. If Altidore can play as well as he did in this particular match, Toronto FC fans will be in for quite a treat during the rest of the MLS season. Who was your Whitecaps Man of the Match? Who was your TFC Man of the Match? Who was your TFC Man of the Match? Vancouver Whitecaps Starting XI

David Ousted; Jordan Harvey, Pa-Modou Kah, Kendall Waston, Steven Beitashour; Russell Teibert (Gershon Koffie 64), Matias Laba (Erik Hurtado 83); Kekuta Manneh, Pedro Morales(C), Mauro Rosales (Darren Mattocks 65); Octavio Rivero. (4-2-3-1). Toronto FC Starting XI

Joe Bendik; Justin Morrow, Steven Caldwell, Damien Perquis, Warren Creavalle; Jonathan Osorio, Michael Bradley(C), Benoit Cheyrou, Robbie Findley (Colin Warner 77); Sebastian Giovinco (Luke Moore 79); Jozy Altidore. (4-4-1-1)



Notes: The Whitecaps will travel to Chicago to take on the Fire next weekend while Toronto FC will travel to Ohio to take on the Columbus Crew. David Ousted played in his 49th consecutive MLS match.