Sabbi shines bright as Whitecaps crush SKC in shocking shutout
notched up yet another clean sheet as the
Vancouver Whitecaps
blanked
Sporting Kansas City
3-0 on Saturday.
The Japanese goalkeeper stopped all three on-target shots he faced to record his Major League Soccer-leading 11th shutout of the season.
Emmanuel Sabbi
got the 'Caps (13-5-6) on the board in the 35th minute,
J.C. Ngando
increased the lead before halftime and Mathias Laborda sealed the scoring at 3-0 with a goal in the 87th minute.
The home side dominated 54.2 per cent of possession across the game and outshot the visitors 22-12, including a 5-3 edge in on-target shots.
Kansas City (6-12-6) is currently third worst in the Western Conference rankings and has lost all three of its recent games (0-2-1).
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The Whitecaps are one point behind San Diego FC for the top spot in the Western Conference and have won their previous three games (2-0-1).
Throughout the first ten minutes of Saturday's game, Kansas City regularly denied the home team possession of the ball, posing a challenge to the 'Caps.
Halfway through the first half, Vancouver settled in and seized charge of the game.
Jayden Nelson cut a ball across the top of the six-yard box to Sabbi, who dipped and pushed a shot past SKC goalkeeper John Pulskamp to give the Whitecaps the lead in the 35th minute, making it 1-0. It was Sabbi's sixth goal of the season in all competitions.
Before the halftime whistle blew, he nearly added to the total.
In the 38th minute, the American striker blasted up and over the Kansas City net. In the 41st minute, he sent a low ball that narrowly missed the post.
In the 43rd minute, Vancouver doubled their lead thanks to a rebound.
The ball bounced out to Ngando, who placed a right-footed drive in just over Pulskamp's outstretched arm after Sebastian Berhalter nodded a shot towards the net but his attempt was stopped.
He gave the 'Caps a 2-0 lead with his second goal of the season.
In addition to controlling 56.8% of the first half's possession, the home team had a 12–5 shot advantage, including the game's only two on-target attempts.
Kansas City had a good opportunity in the 55th minute and worked hard to score early in the second half.
Daniel Salloi, a left winger, sneaked past the Vancouver defence and fired a rocket from the top of the penalty area, but Takaoka jumped to stop it.
When striker Brian White stroked a shot into the SKC net in the 68th minute, it looked like the 'Caps had taken a 3-0 lead, but the goal was promptly disallowed.
Earlier in the week, White was one of four Whitecaps players that participated in Major League Soccer's all-star celebration.
In the 87th minute, Laborda scored Vancouver's third goal of the evening on a corner kick.
Laborda nodded the ball in under Pulskamp's arm for his third goal of the season after Berhalter, who also played for the 'Caps at the MLS all-star game, floated it into the six-yard box.
Observations
Bjorn Utvik started at centre back, replacing Ranko Veselinovic. The Serbian defender tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during last week's 1-1 tie with San Diego FC, and the Whitecaps announced on Tuesday that he will be sidelined for the rest of the season. … Due to discomfort in his groin, Vancouver midfielder Andreas Cubas left the game at halftime. Ralph Priso took his place. … The Whitecaps played their 12th annual Pride game in front of an announced 20,719 spectators. UPCOMING
The Whitecaps' next game is against the San Jose Earthquakes on August 9. On the same night, Sporting will host San Diego FC.
The Canadian Press initially released this report on July 26, 2025.
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