Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson suggested in the leadup to Sunday that the first leg of the Western Conference semifinal with the Seattle Sounders might be a chess match.
It turns out he was spot on.
Vancouver and Seattle combined for just one shot on target in a scoreless draw where both teams were content to play cautiously and avoid the big mistake at B.C Place Stadium.
鈥淚t was important we didn鈥檛 concede,鈥� said Robinson. 鈥漈hat was the mindset.鈥�
Vancouver, which missed Major League Soccer鈥檚 playoffs by eight points last season, and Seattle, winners of the 2016 MLS Cup, will tangle in the second leg of the two-game aggregate series on Thursday at CenturyLink Field.
A tie with scoring in Seattle will be enough for the Whitecaps to advance on the away goals rule, while another 0-0 draw would mean extra time. A Sounders victory by any margin will see them move on.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to give anything away in the home leg,鈥� said Robinson. 鈥漈he football wasn鈥檛 brilliant. I thought we possessed the ball very well in the first half without creating shot after shot, but they didn鈥檛 have anything either.鈥�
The Whitecaps, who finished third in the West standings, were coming off the club鈥檚 first-ever playoff victory 鈥� a 5-0 demolition of the San Jose Earthquakes in Wednesday鈥檚 single-elimination knockout round.
The Sounders, meanwhile, won three of their last four to close out the schedule, including a 3-0 home decision over Vancouver on Sept. 27, to grab second in the conference and secure a bye to the semis.
鈥淚 actually wish we would have pressed the issue a little bit more,鈥� said Seattle head coach Brian Schmetzer. 鈥漋ancouver鈥檚 too good of a team for us to just sit in and defend.鈥�
The Whitecaps had to make two big changes to the starting lineup that thumped the Earthquakes, with crucial offensive pieces Yordy Reyna and Cristian Techera forced to the bench after picking up injuries against San Jose.
鈥淚 would have played the same team (as Wednesday) if those guys were fit,鈥� said Robinson. 鈥滲ut they weren鈥檛.鈥�
Brek Shea and Nosa Igiebor, who only signed last month and made his second appearance, slotted into midfield alongside Christian Bolanos in support of striker Fredy Montero.
The Sounders were without leading scorer Clint Dempsey after he was red carded in the club鈥檚 regular-season finale.
Seattle defender Chad Marshall rose to head the match鈥檚 one and only shot on target in the 48th minute, but Whitecaps goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic was there to make a comfortable save.
Reyna subbed on in the 62nd minute to raucous applause before Techera joined the fray in the 76th, but their introductions did little to add any more attacking flair to a game that seemed destined to end 0-0 from the early stages.
鈥淭onight was a bit of a mess,鈥� said Vancouver right back Jake Nerwinski. 鈥淲e can get a little bit more going forward next match. We didn鈥檛 really have that much.鈥�
Things got heated in the 83rd minute with the Whitecaps clearly annoyed at what they viewed as time wasting by the Sounders, with Vancouver captain Kendall Waston in the middle of it.
Robinson鈥檚 team has feasted on getting offence from set pieces this season, and the Welshman felt his team wasn鈥檛 given as many opportunities as it deserved from referee Kevin Stott.
鈥淚 thought he missed four or five clear (fouls),鈥� said Robinson, who also got into a shouting match with Sounders midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro. 鈥�(Free kicks) are ammunition for us.鈥�
Seattle had the only real opportunity at a breakthrough in the 35th minute when Joevin Jones got in behind Nerwinski and fed a dangerous low cross that Waston rattled off his own crossbar on an attempted clearance for what was nearly a demoralizing own goal.
鈥�(Waston) saved me. I got beat,鈥� said Nerwinski. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 see it until it hit the bar. I heard it. I鈥檓 thankful it didn鈥檛 go in.鈥�
The Whitecaps, who wound up a point behind Seattle in the standings, opened most of B.C. Place鈥檚 lower bowl, which pushed attendance to 27,837 and created an electric atmosphere that was helped by a strong contingent travelling Sounders supporters, who will be in full voice back home on Thursday night.
鈥淚n front of their fans 鈥� it鈥檚 going to be a lot of pressure for us,鈥� said Vancouver left back Marcel de Jong. 鈥淚 like those moments, big games. It鈥檚 good for us.
鈥淭here鈥檚 nowhere to hide.鈥�
Notes: Dempsey is eligible to return for the second leg. 鈥� The Portland Timbers, ranked No. 1 in the West, visit the No. 4 Houston Dynamo in the first leg of the other conference semifinal on Monday.
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Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
