VANCOUVER — It was a quick burst, a moment of genius, by Ali Adnan on the right flank that salvaged a point for the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday in their 1-1 draw against Columbus Crew. With just seconds on the clock, the Iraqi national team player broke through on the right flank and delivered a pin-point cross to striker Fredy Montero, whose header beat ‘keeper Eloy Room.
It is the sort of play expected by a Designated Player in Major League Soccer. The problem is that, like the Whitecaps as a whole this season, moments of brilliance have been fleeting when it comes to Adnan.
The assist in extra-time aside, the Iraqi had a poor game on Saturday. Positionally, Adnan was all over the place and rarely found stationing his post in the back-four. His lack of positional discipline at one point was such a problem that various Whitecaps players had to cover the hole left in defense, a situation that left Russell Teibert seemingly frustrated with his teammate.
Proof that Ali Adnan has moved this game. Seriously though there is some evident frustration with his lack of urgency among his teammates. #VANvCLB pic.twitter.com/2pBah9YQU9
— Manuel Veth (@ManuelVeth) September 21, 2019
Marc Dos Santos was surprisingly frank when it came to his left-back’s tendency to be caught away from where he ought to be against Columbus.
“I agree with you,” Dos Santos said when asked about Adnan’s lack of positional play. “I think that he is still a player that has to grow a lot. Yes, he has very good moments, where he is a player who can unbalance the game. But he has to grow a lot.”
For the Vancouver head coach, it is, however, not just the positioning that is a problem.
“Sometimes when we lose the ball in the way he reacts, in the transition, his decision–making, when to dribble, where to dribble,” Dos Santos said. “So there’s no doubt that he gives a lot to the team, but he also has to grow a lot as a player.
“We talk with him a lot about that,” Dos Santos said when asked on how he wants to get his key player to perform better.
With just 10.3 shots per game on average, the Whitecaps are last in MLS in that category and improvement is needed if the Whitecaps want to succeed going forward. For Montero, however, the problem has not been with the strikers, but with the lack of service into the strikers.
“I think, overall, yes,” Montero said when asked whether the lack of service has hurt his team. “Not only me, anyone that was playing up front.”
The ‘Caps are last in the league with 23% possession in the final third this season, and just 41.98 passes played into the final third per 90 minutes.
Adnan was signed as the highest-paid defender in the league by the Whitecaps to a long-term contract in July. Although his main position is that of a left back, the Whitecaps vision was always that Adnan would also contribute to the attack.
At times, Adnan has done just that, including in the game on Saturday against Columbus. But his impact over the full 90 minutes has often been lacking this year. With 5.59 attacking actions per 90 minutes, Adnan is third in the category behind Lass Bangoura and Yordy Reyna.
Furthermore, Adnan leads the Whitecaps with three assists this season, while in comparison league-leaders Carles Gil and Michael Barrios have collected 12 assists each.
The Whitecaps would surely like to see the same production from Adnan. But for that to happen, Adnan needs to become more consistent over the full 90 minutes.
“Yes, yes we feel that,” Dos Santos said when asked about whether Adnan lacks the consistency over the full 90 minutes. “We see moments sometimes throughout the 90 minutes. Also physically, It’s been not always easy for him. And I want to evaluate that very well going into the next season.”
For Dos Santos, however, a proper preseason with the Whitecaps could make a big difference for the Iraqi national team player.
“Ali is a player that went through a lot this year, a lot the last season with the last preseason at Atalanta [in Serie A],” Dos Santos said. “Then the time without playing, then [he went to] the Asian Cup with Iraq, coming to Vancouver, a lot has happened [to him] in the last maybe 12 to 14 months that maybe he’s not right now at his best moment.”
“I would say that right now is not in his top moment,” Dos Santos concluded. “But he is still a player that we know when he at the top he has his moments.”