Despite the effort, the Whitecaps fell short, losing to Inter Miami in the MLS Cup

The Vancouver Whitecaps appeared like a team of destiny heading into Saturday’s MLS Cup final.

Written off by many critics before the campaign began, the Whitecaps responded with an impressively strong regular season (the best in club history) before posting impressive playoff wins over FC Dallas, LAFC and San Diego FC.

Just 90 minutes away from joining Toronto FC as the only Canadian team to win the MLS Cup, the Whitecaps entered Saturday’s final with a big deal, even though Miami had the advantage of playing at their home venue, Chase Stadium. Ultimately, the Whitecaps fell short, but not for lack of effort and heart.

Here’s what you need to know about Vancouver’s loss to Miami.

Vancouver’s thin margin falls short in moments

Sports is sometimes a very cruel business. Mistakes made in the blink of an eye can be the difference between winning and losing, being punished mercilessly by a merciless opponent. Lady Fate can be very cold and unforgiving. Good fortune favors those who make the most of their opportunities at critical junctures. Quite simply, misfortune befalls those who fail to capitalize on their opportunities.

It’s a valuable lesson the Whitecaps learned the hard way on Saturday. A combination of individual mistakes and bad luck in slim margin moments is what ultimately led to their downfall.

Miami took an eighth-minute lead when Lionel Messi freed himself from two Vancouver players, thanks to some fancy footwork on the halfway line before slipping a pass to Rodrigo De Paul. The ball eventually found its way to Tadeo Allende, who charged into the penalty area and played a square ball into the box for teammate Matteo Silvetti. But Ball never reached Salvati. Instead, it was poked into the back of Vancouver’s net by Whitecaps defender Adair Ocampo, who was trying to clear.

To its great credit, Vancouver didn’t buckle under the pressure and held its nerve after the goal, tying the game for long stretches and forcing Miami’s defenders on the back foot with their pressure play. Ali Ahmed’s 60th minute equalizer was the only reward for the visitors.

Two minutes later, Whitecaps forward Emmanuel Sabi cut through Miami’s defense and fired a shot from inside the penalty area that beat goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo, but it didn’t settle into the back of the net. It blocked both posts before defender Maximiliano Falcón was able to clear the danger.

If Sabi had scored, we would be talking about the Whitecaps as MLS champions right now. Vancouver was on the rise at the time, and the second round was a dagger in Miami’s chest.

But the hosts would not be denied and never looked back after taking the lead in the 71st minute. A model of confidence all season, Vancouver’s Andres Cuban was all too comfortable in possession with Messi of all people inside his half. The Argentine ace took full advantage of the situation, storming his countryman to win the ball back and then feeding De Paul, who scored the goal that stood as the game-winner. A third goal in injury time was just the icing on the cake for Miami.

Messi arrives for Miami

Saturday’s contest was billed as a match-up between a pair of World Cup winners in Argentina’s Messi and Germany’s Thomas Muller, although they are both part of two strong squads.

Historically, Müller has been able to get the better of Messi in his previous 11 matches for club and country. Müller’s teams won eight of those occasions, while the German outscored Messi 7-3.

But it was Messi whose star shone brightest on the day, with a performance narrowly eclipsing Müller’s. The German often found himself on the ball and crowded by Miami’s defenders and a relatively quiet afternoon ended.

Messi made the most of his moments with the ball. It was his incisive pass that put countryman De Paul ahead and eventually opened his goal. With the game hanging in the balance, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner then forced a turnover by Whitecaps midfielder Cuban deep inside his half before feeding a slide-roll ball to De Paul, who put it away. Another assist came deep into injury time for Miami’s third goal. It was pure magic from Messi, allowing his team to fend off any chance of a Vancouver comeback.

Sitting on an unprecedented 2-1 lead in injury time, Miami ended the game with Messi’s magic. Jordi Alba’s first-time cross was expertly flicked on by Messi, who then played a one-touch volley without the ball hitting the ground. That brilliant touch from Messi freed Allende behind the Vancouver defense and the Argentine winger made no mistake, curling his shot into the bottom corner, beating Whitecaps goalkeeper Yuhi Takaka.

In the 38th minute, Sebastian Berhalter’s in-swinging set piece was initially headed to the back post by Miami, but the ball fell to Ocampo outside the box. Colombia’s delivery back into the box found Ralph Precio, whose header found Sabi around the face of goal, but his volley effort from inside the six-yard area was blocked by Rocco Rios-Novo, who made himself big.

• Messi and De Paul (Argentina) and Alba and Sergio Busquets (Spain) are the first World Cup champions to win an MLS Cup.
• The home team has won eight of the last nine MLS Cups.

• Messi has currently won 46 trophies during his career.

• Miami went 21-0-3 this season when it scored the first goal of the game.

• Ahmed is only the second Canadian international to score in an MLS Cup final. Dwayne De Rosario was the second.

• Messi has contributed to an MLS playoff record 15 goals (six goals and nine assists) this postseason. His nine assists were also a playoff record.

A noted soccer fan, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wished the Whitecaps all the best ahead of kickoff:

1. Lionel Messi (Inter Miami): The Argentina legend played a role in setting up Miami’s opener and then collected assists on his other two goals in the second half to seal the win for the hosts.

2. Ali Ahmed (Vancouver Whitecaps): scored the equalizer and was the driving force for the Whitecaps with his dynamic play down the left. A tireless horse before stalling.

3. Emmanuel Sabi (Vancouver Whitecaps): was an attacking threat for the visitors with his quick pace on the ball and probing runs. Had one assist and a game-high four shots.