by Graham Tooke, @chelskitooke
Starting XI
Ousted 9.0
Outstanding. For a second week in a row the Dane has played himself into the MLS Team of the Week and his nearest challenger for MLS Player of the Month is Sebastian Giovinco. He frustrated the Revs over and over especially in the last half hour when the home side were pushing for an equalizer. His stops on Bunbury in the first half and Rowe in the second half were incredible and surely it’s only a matter of time before big clubs come sniffing.
Beitashour 7.5
Continual improvement from our right back as he gets himself further and further forward with each game. It obviously helps when the other team is playing with 10 men.
Parker 6.5
Stepped in for the suspended Waston and enjoyed a comfortable first half but the second was quite worrying as he offered up far too much space for New England to pummel shots at Ousted. His speed allows him to stay goal side but he needs to tighten up the space because at this level the opposition will punish you.
Kah 7.0
Led the backline fairly well in Waston’s absence and did what he could to keep Parker in full concentration. He did the job in the air and kept the ball out of the back even when the team was being pushed back in the closing stages.
Harvey 6.5
Not his brightest day considering he was handed the captains armband on his 200th MLS appearance. Poor fouls early on were met with an early yellow card meaning the full back had to take care and not get caught restricting his forward movement.
Laba 8.0
Wonderful in front of the back four calming the ball down when the Revs were flooding forward and helping start attacks. His performances rarely slip and he’s a big reason why the ‘Caps are holding their own at the top of the Western Conference.
Flores 6.0
Sloppy in possession but he did offer energy to stymy the Revs attack at times. He has the speed to catch up with the Whitecaps counter attack offering another option for Rivero to use.
Techera 8.5
Really good game from Techer who should be picking up the nickname the ‘cleaner’ before long, because that’s a pair of goals he’s scored from sniffing out defensive mistakes. First from RSL’s communication breakdown at BC Place and now on Woodberry’s horrible header in his own box allowed the wee man to sneak in unmarked.
Rosales 8.0
We’re seeing the best out of Mauro playing in behind the forward. In that playmaking role he isn’t expected to track back as much as he has to when playing out on the wing. You could tell the position fitted him better as he linked up well with Techera and Manneh as they interchanged positions to torment the Revs in the first half. He even surpassed being hooked on the hour mark playing 83 minutes.
Manneh 9.0
Consistency is still a worry for Manneh but at least he’s beginning to relax and not look so panicked in possession. When he slows the ball down and lures in the defender he has far more opportunities to break away rather than from a straight dash from when he picks the ball up. Terribly unlucky to not score as he struck the post in the second half and annoyed Woodberry enough in the first half for the full back to be subbed at half time. Not that Alston did any better.
Rivero 8.5
Got the better of Farrell and Goncalves right from the get go. His hold up play was far better than in the past few months allowing Manneh and Techera to involve them in the attack from an advanced position. He smartly put away his penalty in Morales absence and that should give him a boost to start finding the back of the net.
Substitutes
Mattocks 6.5 (74’)
Picked up a booking but pushed the ball around well in the midfield and put in the defensive shift.
Hurtado 6.0 (79’)
Really should have scored when Darren Mattocks had his shot saved, instead smashing wide.
Mezquida N/A (83’)
Managed to pick up a booking in his ten minute cameo, you can’t fault him for his ability to break up the opposition’s momentum.
