Veselinovic misses penalty as Whitecaps eliminated by Tigres in Leagues Cup
Vanni Sartini let out a sigh as he began his post-match press conference.
The Vancouver Whitecaps head coach had just seen his team lose 5-3 on penalties against Mexican side Tigres UANL in the Leagues Cup competition.
The shootout loss, which followed a 1-1 draw in regulation time, marked Vancouver's elimination from the tourney.
“We deserved to win. It's a steal,” Sartini said after the match.
Pedro Vite opened the scoring for the Whitecaps, firing a half volley past a stranded Nahuel Guzman in the 10th minute after Ryan Gauld's intended cross to Brian White was deflected to the Ecuadorean.
The Whitecaps held on to the lead until the second half when French striker Andre-Pierre Gignac struck back.
Javier Aquino clipped a cross in from Vancouver's left side, finding an unmarked Gignac who connected on a bicycle kick to even the score in the 53rd minute.
But the goal was criticized by Sartini, who felt the Frenchman fouled a Whitecaps player in the lead up.
“Because it's Andre-Pierre Gignac, and Tigres have more fans than us, then everybody is happy they win. Maybe the league is more happy if they win,” he said.
Ranko Veselinovic missed his shot for Vancouver in the penalty shootout condemning them to defeat.
But the Whitecaps had several chances to win the game before the shootout, with Ryan Raposo glancing a header wide and striker Brian White missing a chance from six yards out.
“I'm proud of the entire team,” said Sartini.
Sartini singled out Canadian wingback Raposo's performance in the tight match.
The praise comes after a week where the Whitecaps signed two prominent wingbacks in the form of Richie Laryea and Sam Adekugbe.
Adekugbe agreed to a Major League Soccer contract through 2026 with a club option for 2027, the team said in a release.
Adekugbe, who has played for several European teams during his career and made three appearances for Canada at last year's World Cup in Qatar, will be added to the roster pending a medical.
Laryea meanwhile joined on loan to the end of the year from English Premier League side Nottingham Forest.
He had spent part of the season on loan to Toronto FC before signing with the Whitecaps.
The signings mean there will be more competition for game time for Raposo and fellow defenders Luis Martins and Matthias Laborda.
“We're paying good money for these guys, they're not coming to sit on the bench,” said Raposo about the possibility of feeling pressure by the new signings. “It's my job to fight for my spot in this team and have performances like today.”
The Leagues Cup features matches between clubs from Major League Soccer and Mexico's Liga MX.
Vancouver previously tied current Leagues Cup holders Club Leon and beat MLS foes L.A. Galaxy.
UP NEXT
Tigres will play Mexican side Monterrey on Tuesday after they beat Portland FC 1-0 on Friday. . . . Vancouver will return to MLS action on Aug. 20.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
3 injured after man with knife enters Montreal-area mosque
Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.
Police arrest 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole Porsche and ran over its owner
Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.
Woman nearly shut out of mother's estate sues brother in B.C. Supreme Court – and wins
Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.
Teen arrested in New Brunswick after emergency alert; 5 people in custody
A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.
Kamala Harris tells Oprah any intruder to her home is 'getting shot'
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday issued a warning to any potential home intruder: 'If somebody breaks in my house, they're getting shot.'
'We're still pushing hard': Search for missing Manitoba boy continues, RCMP find tracks
The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.
On the trail of the mystery woman whose company licensed exploding pagers
What Cristiana Barsony-Arcidiacono, 49, the Italian-Hungarian CEO and owner of Hungary-based BAC Consulting, says she hasn't done is make the exploding pagers that killed 12 people and wounded more than 2,000 in Lebanon this week.
Woman shot by B.C. police was Colombian refugee with young daughter, advocate says
Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.
Video released of person of interest after cat is allegedly set on fire in Orillia, Ont.
Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.