Apr 29, 2017; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Andrew Jacobson (8) kicks the ball away from Montreal Impact midfielder Ignacio Piatti (10) during the second half at Stade Spauto. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

Vancouver Whitecaps FC turned around an early deficit as they picked up their first points away from home this season. The Whitecaps defeated the Montreal Impact 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.

The Vancouver Whitecaps are above the red line for the first time this season. A goal on the break from Cristian Techera with 11 minutes to go made the difference as the ‘Caps claimed their first points on the road this year – three of them – at Stade Saputo in Montreal.

The win vaults Vancouver into sixth place in the Western Conference, a playoff position. The Impact, meanwhile, remain stranded in 10th place in the East.

The outlook was far less promising for the Whitecaps in the ninth minute, as David Ousted failed to reach Marco Donadel’s long-range shot. But in an unusual turn of events, Vancouver took control of midfield and went in search of the equalizer. When it came, it was from an unexpected source. Christian Bolaños curled in a free kick, the ball was cleared to the edge of the box, and Andrew Jacobson volleyed into the net.

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Vancouver were on the back foot for much of the second half, Montreal coming close a couple of times through 18-year-old Ballou Tabla. However, with just over 10 minutes left, Jacobson turned provider. Alphonso Davies got on the end of a Matías Laba headed clearance and fed the ball to Jacobson, who set up Techera. The Uruguayan winger cut back onto his left foot, completely fooling Laurent Ciman, before finishing past Evan Bush.

New Formation Pays Off

For the second week in a row, Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson ditched his traditional 4-2-3-1 in favour of a 4-1-4-1 formation. There were promising signs last week despite the loss to Portland, and Robinson kept faith with the same starting XI.

The biggest advantage of this formation is it addresses the gaping hole in midfield. Instead of having two defensive midfielders sitting next to each other, a #10 behind the striker, and no way of getting the ball through midfield, the Whitecaps had Jacobson and Tony Tchani in front of Laba.

With Laba covering behind, Jacobson and Tchani were able to bring the ball forward and feed it to Techera and Bolaños on the wings or to Fredy Montero up front. The Whitecaps had 48.5% possession, their best numbers of the year so far (for comparison, against San Jose in their first away match this season, Vancouver put up 22.2% possession).

The formation would work better with a true box-to-box midfielder rather than three DMs (Atiba Hutchinson, anyone?), but it certainly makes a welcome change from “hoof and pray” tactics. The lack of a true #10 in the team also becomes less of an issue.

Closing Out Matches

The final 10 minutes of the game were a mess for the Whitecaps. Just like every match so far this season when they’ve been trying to defend a lead late on, Vancouver collapsed inwards and completely conceded possession.

Of the 19 goals the ‘Caps have conceded in all competitions this year, seven of them have come in the last 15 minutes of games. This time, they resorted to some gamesmanship to try and kill time. David Ousted twice went down clutching his head and then needed his bootlaces tied. Referee Drew Fischer was unimpressed and just added more time beyond the four minutes he’d originally announced.

The Whitecaps got away with it this time but will need to work on maintaining possession during the final minutes of games.

Techera the Superbug

Last season was a year to forget for Cristian Techera, who showed up out of shape to preseason and never really found form. This year, the 2015 version of ‘the Bug’ has been on display.

Techera had another fantastic game on the right wing. He scored his second goal of the season and didn’t stop running for the 89 minutes he was on the field. He also provided defensive support to Sheanon Williams, having learned from his defensive lapses earlier in the year.

With Fredy Montero the only fit striker in the squad at the moment, after injuries to Erik Hurtado and Kyle Greig, the pressure is on the wingers and midfielders to contribute goals. Jacobson and Techera did just that on Saturday.

Final Score:

The Whitecaps will now travel to Commerce City to face the Colorado Rapids as their extended road trip continues.