Vancouver Whitecaps FC advance to the Semi-Finals after a 4:1 away win over York United FC

Vancouver Whitecaps FC have advanced to the Semi-Finals of the 2023 Canadian Championship after an away 4:1 win over York United FC. All five goals were scored in the second half, with an own goal in the 64th minute the goal that broke the deadlock. Simon Becher, Levonte Johnson and finally Julian Gressel added goals for the Whitecaps while Austin Ricci responded for York United when they were already three goals down.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC will meet either Pacific FC or TSS Rovers FC in an all-British Columbia Semi-Finals in late May. Vancouver are the reigning Canadian Championship winners from last season. The Vancouver win extended their unbeaten streak to four matches in all competitions since 15 April 2023.

As the match approached the hour mark, Whitecaps started to build some momentum, with one Ryan Gauld shot stopped by goalkeeper Niko Giantsopoulos and then a Déiber Caicedo cross into the box just out of the reach of Gauld. Giantsopoulos then made a tremendous leg save on another Gauld attempt in the 62nd minute.

Just two minutes later, Gauld played the ball forward to Ali Ahmed who pressed his way in the box and crossed it back to captain Russell Teibert. Teibert’s shot hit the crossbar, but the rebound hit Elijah Adekugbe’s back and went into the goal for the 1-0 Whitecaps lead.

Another 12 minutes later, Becher made it 2-0 after he intercepted a missed clearance by Giantsopoulos. Ranko Veselinović had played a long ball forward that moved Giantsopoulos out of his box to attempt a headed clearance. The ball, however, went to Becher who simply chipped the ball over the goalkeeper into the empty net.

Another three goals were scored in the last few minutes of the match. First, Johnson took a Pablo Vite pass in the 88th minute, moved towards the six-yard box and beat Giantsopoulos with a low shot from the outside of his right foot. Two minutes later on a quick free kick from York United’s Lassana Faye, Ricci drove a long right-footed shot into the goal to break the Whitecaps shutout. Another two minutes on after Becher was tackled in the box, Gressel scored the final goal from the penalty spot.