Rafael Navarro scored his team lead-tying eighth goal of the season and Djordje Mihailovic had three assists to lift the Colorado Rapids to a 3-0 home victory over the suddenly sliding Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night.
Calvin Harris scored early in the first half and Andreas Maxso found the net early in the second for the Rapids (8-10-6, 30 points), who scored three or more goals for the first time in 14 league matches, a stretch that extends back to mid-April.
Potential U.S. men’s national team World Cup goalkeeper Zack Steffen kept his fourth clean sheet and Colorado’s seventh in his first start since May 14. He was forced to miss the Gold Cup with the USMNT in June and July to undergo right meniscus surgery.
Vancouver’s Yohei Takaoka saved a late first-half penalty kick to prevent Navarro’s second goal of the night.
But that was the only real promising moment for the Whitecaps (11-5-5, 38 points), who have now lost four out of five after suffering just one defeat in their first 16 MLS games.
Vancouver’s American internationals Brian White and Sebastian Berhalter returned to MLS action from Gold Cup duty, but could not offer a boost for a side that slid down to third in the Western Conference table.
Harris opened the scoring in the 12th minute when Ted Ku-DiPietro’s incisive diagonal pass found Mihailovic in the left side of the penalty area.
Rather than take the shot, Mihailovic composed himself and played the square pass to his open teammate, who beat Takaoka to the bottom right corner.
Navarro scored his goal 18 minutes later. This time it was a sweeping move down the right before Mihailovic curled in an outswinging cross. The Brazilian striker reached out his right leg and poked it out of the air and inside the right post.
Navarro then grabbed the ball just before halftime after Berhalter’s foul gave the Rapids a chance to extend their lead from the spot, a surprise since Mihailovic had attempted all but one of Colorado’s previous six penalties.
Takaoka stood his ground then dove left to make the save and, for the moment, keep his team in the match.
But the Vancouver keeper should’ve done better on the Rapids’ third, when he failed to stop Maxso’s downward header off Mihailovic’s corner kick in the 60th minute.
–Field Level Media
