VANCOUVER, BC – Now we wait.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC defeated Central FC 4-1 on Wednesday night at BC Place to wrap up the CONCACAF Champions League group stage with a perfect 4W-0L-0D record.
We already knew the ‘Caps had locked up a quarter-final birth – the first in club history.
And now we also know that Vancouver will be no worse than a number three seed. The only other teams that could finish ahead of them at this point are Mexican club Pachuca and/or Panamanian side Arabe Unido – and that isn’t even a guarantee.
For that to happen, they will need to win their final matches (Pachuca visits Honduran side Olimpia on October 19 and Arabe Unido hosts Haitian side Don Bosco FC on October 18) and finish the group stage with a better goal differential than Vancouver’s +8.
Either way, the ‘Caps have put themselves in a great position.
Regardless of the remaining group stage results, Whitecaps FC will host the second leg of the quarter-finals at BC Place, which will give them the advantage of knowing exactly what they need to do at home to win the two-leg series. They will face one of the bottom three teams that advance to the quarters (the eight remaining teams will be seeded based on their group stage results).
So who might their opponent be?
We won’t know for sure until October 19 or October 20, when the group stage comes to a close, but here are the current top eight seeds (keeping in mind that some teams have played more games than others and only three teams have actually clinched their quarter-final berths thus far).
<p>SEED</p> |
<p>TEAM</p> |
<p>GP</p> |
<p>W</p> |
<p>L</p> |
<p>D</p> |
<p>GD</p> |
<p>PTS</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>Whitecaps FC (Canada)*</p> |
<p>4</p> |
<p>4</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>+8</p> |
<p>12</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>Pachuca (Mexico)</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>+15</p> |
<p>9</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>Arabe Unido (Panama)*</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>+5</p> |
<p>9</p> |
<p>4</p> |
<p>New York Red Bulls (U.S.)*</p> |
<p>4</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>+4</p> |
<p>8</p> |
<p>5</p> |
<p>Saprissa (Costa Rica)</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>+8</p> |
<p>7</p> |
<p>6</p> |
<p>Pumas UNAM (Mexico)</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>+3</p> |
<p>6</p> |
<p>7</p> |
<p>Tigres UANL (Mexico)</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>+3</p> |
<p>6</p> |
<p>8</p> |
<p>FC Dallas (U.S.)</p> |
<p>3</p> |
<p>1</p> |
<p>0</p> |
<p>2</p> |
<p>+1</p> |
<p>5</p> |
*Clinched quarter-final berth
It’s tough to say how things will shake out.
As mentioned, the ‘Caps will face one of the bottom three seeds. Right now, that’s one of Pumas, Tigres, or FC Dallas. But Pumas and Tigres both play their final matches at home, meaning they both could very well end up with nine points.
In that scenario, there’s a good chance New York Red Bulls and FC Dallas (or Guatemalan club Suchitepéquez, who are tied on points with FC Dallas and will host them on October 20) will end up as the bottom two seeds, potentially setting up a #1 vs. #8 or #2 vs. #7 matchup with Vancouver.
If Whitecaps FC end up as the third seed, however, facing Pumas or Tigres (or even Saprissa/Portland) becomes a real possibility.
Confused yet?
Moral of the story: Vancouver are headed to the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in club history. And they are headed there as one of the top seeds.
The two-leg quarter-finals will take place between February 21 and March 2, 2017.
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