By Canadian Press

Youngsters shine in Vancouver Whitecaps 5-0 drubbing of CF Montreal

Apr 1, 2023 | 9:44 PM

VANCOUVER — Simon Becher scored twice and notched an assist in his first Major League Soccer start as the Vancouver Whitecaps walloped CF Montreal 5-0 on Saturday. 

Ali Ahmed netted a goal and a helper for the Whitecaps (1-2-3), while Brian White and Julian Gressel also scored and Javain Brown picked up a pair of assists.

Goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka did not face a single on-target shot as he earned his first clean sheet for Vancouver.

Jonathan Sirois registered four saves for Montreal (1-4-0).

The visitors ran into trouble early in the first half, losing captain Samuel Piette to an apparent leg injury, then going down a man in the 23rd minute when Rudy Camacho was sent off with a red card.

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The decisive victory marked Vancouver’s first win in league play this season.

The Whitecaps sealed the score at 5-0 in the 59th minute after Brown ran down the sideline and chipped a ball into the box. Becher got a touch on it, sending a shot into the Montreal net for his second goal of the match.

Ahmed — who also made his first MLS start on Saturday — gave Vancouver a four-goal cushion in the 48th minute. 

White was stripped at the top of the penalty area and the 22-year-old Canadian midfielder quickly picked up the ball, then hammered it in for his first MLS goal. 

Sirois stopped White’s shot in the 45th minute but the rebound popped out to Gressel, who tapped it into the yawning net before the ‘keeper could get back in position.

The goal — Gressel’s first of the MLS campaign — put Vancouver up 3-0. 

The midfielder and his teammates celebrated by leaping over the ad boards to hug and high-five supporters in the stands. 

Two minutes earlier, Ahmed dished a short pass to Becher at the top of the six-yard box and the 23-year-old American striker sent a sliding shot into the back of the next for his second goal of the season. 

With the strike, Becher became the first Whitecap in the MLS era to score in his first four appearances across all competitions. 

Vancouver opened the scoring in the 38th minute when Becher sliced a quick pass to White across the penalty area and the veteran forward popped a shot in past Sirois for his first MLS goal of the year.

An ugly foul proved costly for Montreal in the 23rd minute when Camacho pulled Becher down at the top of the penalty area. 

Pushing and shoving ensued and Camacho was sent off after receiving his second yellow of the game. The defender’s first of the night came in the 11th minute when he took Becher out in the midfield. 

Camacho was the second member of Montreal’s back line to leave the game. 

Piette went down hard in the midfield in the sixth minute. He lay on the turf for several moments and was looked at by a trainer before getting up and walking off while grabbing the top of his leg. 

The Whitecaps will be back on the field Wednesday when they host reigning MLS Cup champions Los Angeles FC in the CONCACAF quarterfinals. Vancouver will return to league play on April 8 when the Portland Timbers visit B.C. Place. CF Montreal will take on the Revolution in New England the same day.

NOTES: Ahmed is observing Ramadan and broke his fast on the sidelines during an injury stoppage early in the game after the sun went down. … Saturday marked the first time since June 9, 2019 that the Whitecaps scored five goals in an MLS game. That match ended with a 5-2 win over Orlando City SC. … A crowd of 16,046 took in the game at B.C. Place.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2023.

Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press