The Vancouver Whitecaps at CF Montreal match preview for Saturday, April 16th. The two teams will kick off the match at 12:00 pm PST from Stade Saputo. The Whitecaps are coming off an exciting 3-2 loss at the hands of the Portland Timbers. If you missed any of the action check it out right here in my recap.
CF Montreal is coming off a 2-1 come from behind victory over the New York Redbull on the road. Rudy Camacho scored in the 71st minute before Romell Quintero secured the victory in the 81st minute. Montreal sits 9th in the MLS Eastern Conference with 7 points through 6 matches. Vancouver is hovering with the basement in the West so a road result would go a long way to climbing back with the pack.
Vanni Sartini About CF Montreal
Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini spoke to the media on Wednesday about what we could potentially see from Montreal and how Vancouver will approach this match. Vancouver hasn’t started well in matches with only 2 goals in the first half through their first 6 matches. Vanni was also asked about what Vancouver can do to combat the “Sleepy” starts.
“It’s actually a good question because, you know, we’ll fly to Montreal tomorrow. And they always find that when we disrupt our routine and we don’t fly the day before the game and we have to train in their facility. We’re not our 100% So to be honest, we work a lot on readiness. We worked a lot on tactics today and yesterday and the next two days will be more kind of competition training fast. Very intense. With I want to raise that kind of intensity because we need to be very, very, very woke I would say from minute one.”
“It’s good, I would say synopsis of the quality. They’re a good team when they have the ball. They have the quality they can go very well and play between lines and play with two guys very wide that guarantee them with so there won’t be one. But they’re also so expensive, defending that they’re easy to beat. So what we need to do is firstly, be very well compact and be in doing a very good aggressive, defensive sorry, because we know that if we limit the chances we will have chances to score.”
Lineup Projections, Injury News, and Updates
The team announced Tuesday that Caio Alexandre had fractured his hand at training. His timeline will be 7-8 weeks but Vanni Sartini was confident with his hard work and positivity he could get back sooner.
“Yeah, it’s very sad the fact that Caio [Alexandre} got another injury and he got the foot broken last year. He was coming back and then the setback again is going to take him off for some weeks. He is a top guy that is a fantastic guy and is so upbeat and he’s so positive that he’s going. So I talk with him today say hey, don’t get yourself down because the time will come I know and this and he has this great quality that he always faces life with a smile and with a positive attitude. So if we will need eight weeks on paper to come back with him. We know that it’s going to be seven weeks because that’s how he is.”
He was seen riding a training bike with a big cast on Thursday afternoon as reported by Har Journalist of Daily Hive. Erik Godoy is good to go this week! But it will be with VWFC 2 when they travel down to take on Sounders FC 2. It will be a great testing point for Godoy who has been plagued with injuries since coming over to the Whitecaps. Lucas Cavallini is back and feeling good after the flu kept him out of the starting 20 against the Timbers.
“The plan is actually if everything goes well. It will be played with [the] second team in Seattle on Sunday. So that’s a huge one of the huge things why we are very happy to have a second team now. So he will do that will be a test for him. And if he can play a significant amount of minutes with the second team and next week he will be an option for the game.”
Besides Erik Godoy and Caio Alexandre, it looks like everyone will be available come Saturday afternoon for head coach Vanni Sartini. Ryan Raposo has seemed to play his way into the lineup week after week. Ryan Gauld and Brian White have gotten back that magic that sent Vancouver on a run late last season. But we will see some changes as that is just what Vanni likes to do with 12 different starting 11s in his 12 matches as the coach.
“Yeah, of course, it’s like the more we play, hopefully, the more we’ll find a kind of consistent solution but at the same time, I would be very disappointing. disappointed if I have to play the same level every time. I like that people play challenges me by showing up in training and being good enough to make me rethink the lineup which will be the case also for this week. There will be some changes for sure.”
Here is my predicted starting lineup for the Whitecaps at CF Montreal match preview for Saturday, April 16th. I expect Tristan Blackmon to get back in the lineup as well as Jake Nerwinksi at the back. Cavallini could start but also could provide Vanni with a “Super-Sub” option off the bench.
Sports Talk Line And The Vancouver Whitecaps
With 3 matches on the road, it will be important for the Whitecaps to start off the road trip the right way. CF Montreal is a team Vancouver could steal points from and if Ryan Gauld and Brian White can continue to get into form. Look for Lucas Cavallini to provide a different dynamic up front.
Make sure to check out our match preview on the 90 + Podcast as Ben Righetti and I look ahead to Saturday’s match. Follow me on Twitter @JoshuaGriffith0 for the latest news and updates as we get closer to kick-off. And of course, check out the Sports Talk Line Website for all your latest sports news and updates.
