Brian White, Bruno Caicedo and Thomas Müller scored for Vancouver, but two goals from D.C. United defender Kimito Nono helped the visitors leave BC Place with a point.
The Story
Vancouver twice took the lead but could not put away D.C. United, settling for a 3–3 draw at BC Place on Saturday, September 26. Kimito Nono scored twice for D.C. United, including the 80th-minute equalizer that denied the Whitecaps a home victory.
Brian White, Bruno Caicedo and Thomas Müller supplied Vancouver’s goals. Lucas Bartlett scored D.C. United’s other goal, giving the visitors an answer each time the Whitecaps moved in front.
Nono opened the scoring in the 16th minute. Vancouver drew level nine minutes later through White, before Caicedo put the home side ahead in first-half stoppage time. The Whitecaps carried that 2–1 advantage into the interval.
Bartlett restored parity in the 65th minute, heading in from Keisuke Kurokawa’s corner. Müller then made it 3–2 in the 72nd minute, striking from outside the penalty area after a pass from Aleksa Cvetković. His shot went in off the woodwork.
Vancouver’s second lead lasted eight minutes. Nono volleyed home in the 80th minute to complete his brace and bring D.C. United level for the final time. Both of Nono’s goals counted for the visitors; they were his first two goals for D.C. United.
The result exposed the difference between holding possession and controlling the opposition’s chances. Vancouver had 62.4 per cent of the ball, but D.C. United finished with 22 shots to the Whitecaps’ 16. Both teams put nine efforts on target. D.C. United also led the corner count, 10–7.
For Vancouver, the decisive frustration was being unable to protect either advantage. Goals immediately before halftime and midway through the second half had put the Whitecaps in position to win, yet neither lead survived the visitors’ response. The six-goal sequence left little room to describe the result as a comfortable point for either side.
A crowd of 26,080 saw Cvetković make his first Whitecaps start and register his first goal contribution with the assist for Müller. Vancouver still had a late opportunity: substitute Sam Adekugbe’s run helped create a stoppage-time chance for Mathías Laborda, whose attempt missed the target.
The draw lifted Vancouver to 50 points. D.C. United reached 30 points after earning its 12th draw of the regular season, alongside six wins and eight losses.
The Whitecaps’ next match is a rescheduled visit to Chicago Fire on Tuesday, October 6, at 5:30 p.m. Pacific. D.C. United hosts Paderborn SC in a friendly on Wednesday, September 30, before its next MLS match away to Inter Miami on Saturday, October 10.
Correction: The original summary incorrectly described Nono’s goals as Vancouver goals. Both were scored for D.C. United. The shot and corner totals and the description of the upcoming schedule have also been corrected.
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