With Vancouver Whitecaps FC set to kick off the 2016 MLS regular season this Sunday, March 6 against Montreal Impact, whitecapsfc.com will take an in-depth look at the club’s roster with a different piece every day leading up to First Kick. Today, we introduce the goalkeepers.
THE SKINNY
This is a position where things are still somewhat up in the air. All-star goalkeeper David Ousted will be back after signing a multi-year contract extension, so there’s no question who the number one is. But who will back him up? Will it be 19-year-old Marco Carducci? Will it be Paolo Tornaghi, who is with the team as a training camp invitee, or will the ‘Caps look elsewhere? We’ll surely find out sooner rather than later.
#1: DAVID OUSTED (AGE: 31, HOMETOWN: GREVE, DENMARK)
If David Ousted isn’t the face of the franchise, he’s pretty darn close.
The Danish goalkeeper joined Whitecaps FC in the summer of 2013 and quickly played himself into the conversation as the best goalkeeper in the league. Last year, Ousted led MLS in clean sheets and penalty saves, played in the MLS All-Star Game, and was the runner-up for both MLS Goalkeeper of the Year and MLS Save of the Year.
Oh, and if that isn’t impressive enough, he has played 84 straight MLS games (knock on wood). You can see why the club extended him to a new multi-year deal earlier this month – thank his daughter for that.
Ousted, an avid reader and golfer, also has twin boys.
We call him the Great Dane. Because he’s great. And Danish.
#24: MARCO CARDUCCI (AGE: 19, HOMETOWN: CALGARY, ALBERTA)
The future sure looks bright with Marco Carducci waiting in the wings.
Carducci, 19, is the youngest player on Whitecaps FC’s Major League Soccer roster (though he’s as mature as they come). He has been with the club since 2011, when he joined the club’s Residency program from his native Calgary, Alberta. Last year, Carducci appeared in nine matches with WFC2 in the USL, posting a 2W-3L-4D record and team-best 1.67 GAA.
The 6-foot-1 goalkeeper is a two-time Canadian U-17 Player of the Year – so the future looks bright for Canada, too. Carducci actually holds dual Canadian/Italian citizenship.
Unsurprisingly, his soccer hero is illustrious Italian keeper Luigi Buffon.
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