The Colorado Rapids (7-10-5, 26 pts. 10th West) return home following a midweek road match for a tie with Vancouver Whitecaps FC (11-4-5, 38 pts., 2nd West) on Saturday night. Kickoff at DICK'S Sporting Goods Park is set for 7:30 p.m. MT with coverage available on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, ColoradoRapids.com, and the Colorado Rapids app.
Saturday will provide an opportunity for the Rapids to make their way back into a playoff spot after slipping below the line this past Wednesday. Colorado now sits in 10th place in the conference on 26 points with a chance to take down one of the top sides in all of MLS. The Whitecaps have had an impressive first half of the season, putting them in second place in the west and only trailing first place San Diego by one point with a game in hand.
The Rapids will look to bounce back from their most recent result this past Wednesday, a 3-0 loss on the road against LAFC. An early red card to defender Jackson Travis in the sixth minute left Colorado with ten men for the majority of the match. The defender will carry a one-match suspension into this weekend against Vancouver. In the match, Cole Bassett made his return to the starting lineup for the first time since May 17 after being sidelined with an ankle injury.
On the other end of this matchup is a Vancouver side that will attempt to get back on track in MLS play. Their most recent league result came last Friday, when the club lost to bottom of the table LA Galaxy 3-0 on the road. This continued a tough stretch of play for the Whitecaps, that have only won one of their last four MLS matches. Despite their struggles in MLS, Vancouver will be entering this Saturday off a 2-1 victory over Valour FC in the Canadian Championship Wednesday evening.
This will be the second time that these two clubs have faced off this season, with Vancouver earning all three points at BC Place back in April. The Whitecaps came out on top, 2-0, with Brian White and Emmanuel Sabbi finding the back of the net to secure the victory.
The all-time series in MLS play between these two clubs has been fairly even, with Colorado having the slight edge with a 13-12-8 record. The Rapids have seen their most success against the Whitecaps come at home, especially as of late. Vancouver has been winless at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park in their last four attempts. The last time these two sides faced off in Colorado, the Rapids secured a 1-0 victory thanks to a Rafael Navarro goal from the penalty spot.
