It was all New York City FC over the Vancouver Whitecaps at BC Place as the visitors left Canada with a 3-1 win. The result mathematically eliminates the Whitecaps from the playoff race.
Heber's suave trivela finish gave NYCFC the lead in the 10th minute and they wouldn't look back, though the night didn't end without a headache. Eleven minutes after his goal, Heber exited with an apparent injury after going down off the ball and immediately signaling for a substitution. He leads NYCFC in goals with 14, which is good enough for 4th in the league.
Later in the first half, NYCFC got their second through the birthday boy Gary Mackay-Steven, his first NYCFC goal. The winger's close-range shot was blocked by Maxime Crepeau, though the rebound ricocheted off Mackay-Steven into the back of the net.
Yordy Reyna's lethal half volley in the temporarily halved the deficit before Alexandru Mitrita's free kick was laced into the bottom corner to restore NYCFC's two-goal cushion just eight minutes later.
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Goals
- 10’ — NYC — Heber | WATCH
- 26’ — NYC — Gary Mackay-Steven | WATCH
- 64’ — VAN — Yordy Reyna | WATCH
- 72’ — NYC — Alexandru Mitrita | WATCH
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: It was a ho-hum result for NYCFC, who climb to second place in the Eastern Conference with the three points. With their games in hand, on top of the Philadelphia Union's difficult remaining schedule, they might be favorite to top the East.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: Heber's classy finish set NYCFC on their way.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: Alexandru Mitrita's goal and assist led the way for NYCFC.
Next Up
- VAN: Saturday, Sep. 14 vs. Houston Dynamo (10 pm ET; TSN in Canada, MLS Live on ESPN+ in US)
- NYC: Saturday, Sep. 7 vs. New England Revolution (3:55 pm ET | Univision in US, MLS Live on DAZN in Canada)
