Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs Colorado Rapids | Roster Notes | June 22, 2019

Starting XI:

Team captain Tim Howard will make his 16th start of the 2019 season tonight. In January, the New Jersey native announced that 2019 will be the final season in his storied career. Howard was a mainstay on the US men's national team and spent more than 10 years in England before rejoining MLS with the Rapids in 2016. Since then, Howard has featured in 90 games, boasting 20 shutouts (including two against Vancouver) and recording 298 saves. In 2018, Howard was named to MLS Team of the Week (18) following his 10-save, performance at Vancouver Whitecaps FC on July 1, a 1-0 win for the Rapids. 

Defender Keegan Rosenberry will make his 17th consecutive start of the season tonight. The 25-year-old right fullback is the only player that has played every minute of the 2019 MLS regular season. Before joining the Rapids, Rosenberry spent three seasons with the Philadelphia Union, scoring three goals and dishing out six assists in 81 appearances. 

Defender Lalas Abubakar will make his sixth start in central defense tonight. The Ghanaian has had a positive impact since joining the Rapids on May 8 from Columbus Crew SC, where he appeared in 31 games since 2017 for the Ohio-based club.

Defender Tommy Smith will make his sixth consecutive start tonight and pair with Abubakar to anchor the back line. The 29-year-old has featured in a total of ten games in 2019, scoring two goals and adding an assist. He is in his second season with the Rapids. In 2018, Smith earned a spot on the MLS Team of the Week (18) for his performance in the 1-0 win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC on July 1.

Homegrown defender Sam Vines starts at left fullback tonight after going the full 90 in the Rapids last regular season game against Minnesota United FC. The 19-year-old has featured in nine games so far in the 2019 season. 

Midfielder Danny Wilson earns his first start in MLS play since May 11. The 27-year-old has featured in six games during the 2019 season. He opened his MLS account on May 11 against Real Salt Lake. Wilson is in his second season with the club, featuring in 23 games in 2018.

Midfielder Kellyn Acostawill make his 16th start tonight. So far in 2019, the 23-year-old has recorded one goal and two assists in 17 total appearances. Overall, Acosta has 12 goals and 17 assists in his MLS career. The US international joined the Rapids midway through the 2018 season from his hometown club FC Dallas. Acosta's MLS debut was on October 29, 2014 against Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Since that day, the midfielder has one career goal against Vancouver.

Forward Diego Rubio returns to the starting lineup for the first time since May 29. The 26-year-old has scored two goals this season. In 2018, Rubio averaged 0.92 goals per 90 minutes which put him behind only Atlanta’s Josef Martínez and LA Galaxy’s Zlatan Ibrahimović. The Chilean bagged eight goals and six assists in 2018 in just 781 minutes. Rubio scored his first-ever MLS goal while with SKC in a 1-1 draw at Vancouver on April 27, 2016.

Midfielder Nicolás Mezquidawill return to the starting lineup after subbing on for 23 minutes against Minnesota United FC. The 27-year-old joined the Colorado Rapids from Vancouver Whitecaps FC and has since scored three goals and added one assist, including two game-winning goals. Tonight marks Mezquida's first trip back to Vancouver where he spent five seasons before joining the Rapids. There, the Uruguayan scored 12 goals and added four assists for the Canadian club. 

Forward Andre Shinyashiki will make his fifth start of the season tonight after being named to the MLS Team of the Week (14) for his performance on June 1 against FC Cincinnati, which saw the 21-year-old notch his third goal of the season. Shinyashiki will begin the night on the wing and has featured in 13 games so far in 2019. Shinyashiki was selected fifth overall in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft after four productive years at the University of Denver where he scored 51 goals and added 15 assists over 83 appearances at the NCAA level.

Forward Kei Kamara will make his 16th appearance for the club tonight after spending 2018 with Vancouver Whitecaps FC. The MLS veteran currently holds the fifth spot on the all-time goals list in MLS with 120. Kamara has added 44 career assists to his goal total in over 24,000 minutes of regular season play. Kamara converted two PK's against Vancouver in the previous meeting on May 3 at DICK'S Sporting Goods Park.

On the Bench:

Goalkeeper Clint Irwinserves as the backup to Tim Howard tonight. The 30-year-old made his first start of the 2019 season on May 29 in Philadelphia recording five saves. The occasion marked his 120th MLS regular season start. Irwin rejoined the Rapids this season after spending the previous three with Toronto FC. Overall, Irwin has appeared in 122 regular season games over his six-year MLS career, recording 33 shutouts, including three against Vancouver.

Defender Axel Sjöberg is listed on the gameday roster against Vancouver. Sjöberg is in his fifth season with the Rapids after being selected in the first round (No. 14 overall) of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft. Sjöberg was named to the MLS Best XI in 2016 after he anchored a defense that conceded a league-low 32 goals and set an MLS record for average goals against per home game of 0.41. Two of Sjöberg's three career goals were against Whitecaps FC.

Defender Kofi Opare will start tonight on the bench. The defender joined the Rapids in February after spending five seasons with D.C. United. Since arriving in MLS, he's scored four goals and added one assist in over 6,800 minutes of regular season play.

Homegrown defender Sebastian Anderson features on the gameday roster against Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Anderson became the youngest Rapids player to make his MLS debut at 16 years and 262 days old against Atlanta United FC on April 27. He also became the youngest player to sign with the club when he inked his Homegrown contract on April 3. Anderson has made three appearances with the Rapids so far this season.

Homegrown midfielder Cole Bassett will start tonight on the bench in Vancouver. Since signing his contract in 2018, the 17-year-old has scored two goals and recorded two assists in 985 minutes.

Homegrown midfielder Dillon Serna will start tonight on the bench. This is Serna's seventh season with the club after signing on January 14, 2013. The 25-year-old has scored nine goals through the course of his career. Serna became the first Homegrown to reach 100 regular season appearances for the club on April 27 against Atlanta United FC. Serna made his MLS debut against the Vancouver Whitecaps in the last game of the 2013 season, coming on as a 77th minute substitute.

Midfielder Johan Blomberg features on the gameday roster against Vancouver. The Swede is currently in his second season with the Rapids after spending his entire professional career in his home country, tallying 28 goals and 39 assists for Ängelholms FF, Halmstads BK, and AIK. 

Colorado Rapids Injury Report: