VANCOUVER — After failing to connect on several golden chances Ryan Gauld did the next best thing, setting up defender Belal Halbouni’s late goal as the Vancouver Whitecaps battled back for a 1-1 draw with CF Monterrey Wednesday night in the opening match of their CONCACAF Champions Cup series.
Gauld, the Whitecaps’ captain, gave the Monterrey defence fits but was denied a goal on several great opportunities. Finally, with time ticking away in the 86th minute, he sent a free kick from distance into the box that Halbouni headed home.
“I’m not used to having that many chances and missing them all,” said Gauld, who has scored 34 goals in 110 regular season Major League Soccer games with the Whitecaps. “If I (scored) on my chances we could have won the game.
“Hopefully that’s the one time that will happen. I just need to do better.”
Halbouni, playing in his second season in Vancouver, celebrated his first goal as a Whitecap by kissing the turf.
Whitecaps coach Jesper Sorensen praised Gauld’s performance.
“Ryan is always working hard,” said Sorensen. “He’s an excellent captain. He was involved in most of the most dangerous attacks we had.”
The draw was better than a loss, but Gauld said the Whitecaps still felt disappointed.
“Before the game, if you said we were going to get a draw, we might have been all right about it knowing the team we were coming up against,” he said. “But the way the game went, we’re actually quite frustrated with just the draw. We had control of the game mostly, so it’s quite a frustrating feeling.”
The second game in the aggregate series is Wednesday in Mexico.
Monterrey took the lead in the 25th minute. Midfielder Erick Aguirre set up the play with a seeing-eye long pass to Roberto de la Rosa, who then dribbled across the field and fired a low right-footed shot that hit the far post and rolled into the net.
The Whitecaps argued the play was offside, but the goal stood.
The match saw seven yellow cards given, four to Monterrey. Late in the match, Monterrey goalkeeper Esteban Andrada flopped to the turf after an argument with Vancouver forward Brian White, bringing boos from the crowd of 9,613 at BC Place Stadium.
Monterrey coach Martin Demichelis warned his team at halftime the game wasn’t over.
“I spoke to the team and told them to keep chasing,” he said. “We weren’t able to put up a good second half. We’ll just take the result we were able to get here and focus on getting a better result next week.”
Early in the opening half, Whitecap midfielder Sebastian Berhalter looked to have a clear pass to the net after taking a nifty pass through the defence from Gauld. The play was broken up by a sliding tackle by defender Antonio Leone.
Gauld had a good look in the 36th minute after a pretty give-and-go play but his shot sailed over top of the net. Gauld got behind the Monterrey defence a few minutes later but was stopped by Andrada.
Gauld had another chance during a scramble in the 59th minute, sending a bicycle kick wide.
The Whitecaps advanced to the round of 16 by defeating Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa 3-2 in a two-legged aggregate series. Vancouver lost the opening match 2-1 then rebounded to blank Saprissa 2-0 at home last Thursday.
Monterrey, who plays in the Mexican Legia MX, advanced with a decisive 5-0 aggregate win over Canadian Premier League side Forge FC last month.
Sorensen said the draw gives the Whitecaps confidence heading into the second game.
“I think the flow in the game and the pace, it was quite impressive,” he said. “This has to give us a little bit more than just a little bit of hope going there next week.”
NOTES: Whitecaps forward Jayden Nelson left the game in the fifth minute and went to the locker room. … It was the first-ever meeting between the Whitecaps and Monterrey. … Sergio Ramos, the Spanish centre back who captains Monterrey, did not make the trip to Vancouver. … The Whitecaps played their fifth match across all competition in just 13 days. … Vancouver faces CF Montreal in a MLS match Saturday at BC Place.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 5, 2025.
Jim Morris, The Canadian Press
