VANCOUVER, B.C. – The Vancouver Whitecaps' battle for Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs positioning was given a huge boost over the weekend and they didn't even have to take to the pitch to get it.
As he sat at home watching the weekend's results play out in his side's favor, Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson was left with at least one clear understanding – if Vancouver win their last game of the season against Houston (7 pm ET; TSN2 in Canada, MLS LIVE in US), they'll clinch their first-ever home playoff match.
"MLS was MLS this [past] weekend," Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson told reporters this week. "I think it was proven that you don't really know what's coming out of each result, as was shown. Obviously it's great for Major League Soccer. It goes down to the wire."
Exactly where the Whitecaps will finish in the final Western Conference standings is still very much up for grabs. As they head into Sunday's Decision Day showdown at home to Houston, Vancouver could still finish anywhere from second to sixth.
A first-round bye is still up for grabs, but so is the danger of starting the postseason on the road. With similar scenarios in store for five of the other playoff contenders, there are enough permutations to make anyone's brain hurt.
"Good luck with that one, trying to do that," Robinson joked. "You can finish in second, you can finish in fifth or sixth. There's lot of teams that can do that. It's what they want, the spectators. It's what the neutrals want. Obviously if you ask each club manager, they'll tell you it's not what they want. It's exciting."
A win on Sunday guarantees Vancouver at least a third-place finish in the West. On paper, the task looks to be quite straightforward: secure a victory against a team already eliminated from playoff contention. In reality, there are two huge roadblocks in the Whitecaps' path.
Vancouver's injury crisis shows no sign of easing. In fact it's increasing, with Homegrown striker Caleb Clarke the latest to go down to a hamstring injury. With creative midfielders Pedro Morales, Mauro Rosales, Nicolas Mezquida and Cristian Techera already sidelined through possible season-ending injuries, the Whitecaps attack has been badly hit. Mezquida seems the furthest along and Robinson says he has "an outside shot" of playing some part on Sunday.
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With a string of other players also carrying injuries and niggles, rest is important for Robinson's side with the postseason fast approaching. Unfortunately for them, they're not going to get it – and the Whitecaps preparations for Decision Day have been hit hard with a long and arduous trip to Honduras for a now-meaningless CONCACAF Champions League game on Thursday against CD Olimpia, with both sides already eliminated.
"The timing of it obviously isn't ideal, but it's something we've got to deal with," Robinson freely admits. "Outside of that, we're dealing with a serious glut of injuries at the moment that doesn't help us, but we're making the best of it. Everyone that's fit and available to go will go [to Honduras], whether that's 12, 13 or 14 bodies. The rest of the guys I'll try and patch up for Sunday.
"The next game's the most important one, but we have an eye on Sunday. The 13 who are going to travel to Honduras for Thursday's game, six, seven, eight of them might be involved on Sunday as well. It is what it is."
