Vancouver Whitecaps coach Vanni Sartini isn’t expecting any of his players to look past Tuesday’s cup tie against visiting Cavalry FC, even with a crowd of more than 50,000 expected Saturday for a high-profile league date with Inter Miami at B.C. Place Stadium.
For one, the Canadian Championship comes with good memories for the two-time defending champion Whitecaps.
“The mentality is pretty simple,” said the Italian coach. “It’s showing (them) the picture of the game, the celebration, the togetherness and the happiness after the final versus Toronto two years ago and after the final with Montreal last year.
“For all of the guys who were lucky enough to be in both the games, those are probably the best memories of a Whitecaps player. It would be fantastic to do three (titles) and it only happens if we (move on Tuesday).”
The cup tie can also affect playing time, Sartini added, with players who didn’t start Saturday’s 1-1 draw in Seattle getting their chance Tuesday.
“They have the chance to impress me and maybe start again Saturday.”
He pointed to defender Javain Brown and forward Levonte Johnson, who earned playing minutes after impressing in the 2-1 win over Cavalry in the opening leg of the quarterfinal with Johnson accounting for both goals.
The other cup game Tuesday has semi-pro CS Saint-Laurent at Toronto FC with the Ligue1 Quebec champion looking to overturn a 3-0 deficit from the first leg
On Wednesday, it’s CPL champion Forge FC at CF Montreal (tied 1-1 after the first leg) and Atletico Ottawa at Pacific FC (who drew 0-0 in Ottawa) in an all-CPL affair.
The Vancouver-Cavalry winner will face Montreal or Ottawa in the two-legged semifinal.
Cavalry coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. is well aware of what awaits the Whitecaps in the weekend
“Ali Musse one day, Lionel Messi the next,” said Wheeldon, referencing his Somalia-born striker and Miami’s talisman. “That’s just the tale of the tape right now in Canadian football and I think that makes for some really good stories.”
Musse was injured for the first leg of the cup tie but is healthy this time.
Both Vancouver and Cavalry are winless in league play since the May 7 quarterfinal opener with the Whitecaps 0-2-1 on a three-game road trip and Cavalry 0-0-2.
Vancouver needed a 95th-minute equalizer by captain Ryan Gauld to secure a point Saturday in Seattle and is winless in its last five league outings (0-2-3) since a 2-0 road win over the nine-men Sounders on April 20.
At 5-4-4, Vancouver stands seventh in the MLS Western…