Vancouver Whitecaps aim for top form against LAFC [Video]

A good game is no longer enough for the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Heading into a do-or-die playoff matchup against Los Angeles FC on Sunday, the ‘Caps know they need to be at their best.

“We’ve just realized that it’s not enough to play well against these guys. Because if we just play well, it’ll finish like the last two games – we’re very close, and we lose,” said head coach Vanni Sartini. “And so we need to play well and to have a little bit of killer instinct.”

Vancouver is down a game in the best-of-three first-round series after dropping a 2-1 decision to LAFC in California last week.

The stakes heading into this weekend’s matchup are eerily familiar — the ‘Caps were eliminated from last year’s playoffs after LAFC won back-to-back games, first at home, then in Vancouver.

The circumstances are a little bit different this year, said Whitecaps captain …