Manneh feeling it for streaking Whitecaps ahead of matchup with rival Timbers

Kekuta Manneh’s skill level was never in question.

The 21-year-old Vancouver Whitecaps forward possesses tremendous speed, a good first touch and a nose for goal.

The issue for much of Manneh’s career has been putting it all together on a consistent basis, but those attributes meshed perfectly in last weekend’s 4-3 victory at Toronto FC.

Manneh scored twice and added an assist to grab Major League Soccer’s player of the week honours as the Whitecaps picked up a third win in eight days to turn around a sluggish start to the season.

“It was a joy to watch,” said Vancouver head coach Carl Robinson. “Those are the levels I expect and require from him if we’re going to be successful.

“He can win games for you, which we saw.”

The Whitecaps (6-5-2) will be hoping for more of the same from Manneh when they visit the struggling Portland Timbers (3-6-3) — who have lost three in a row — on Sunday.

Against Toronto, the Gambian jumped on a lazy pass early and raced in on goal to slot home his first goal before breaking a 2-2 tie in the 70th minute by turning defender and former teammate Steven Beitashour inside out with a great fake on the way to coolly scoring again.

“Confidence is growing,” said Manneh. “We had a slow start, but now we’re in the races. We’re scoring goals and everybody’s on top of their game.”

Vancouver was a team in some disarray just two weeks ago heading into a home game against the rival Timbers. The Whitecaps had won just one of their last six matches, with Robinson openly questioning his players’ focus.

But they came back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to beat Portland 2-1 and grabbed a late victory against the Chicago Fire prior to the seven-goal barnburner in Toronto.

“We stuck together when things weren’t going our way,” said Manneh, who added an assist against Chicago and has three goals on the year. “We kept encouraging each other. I’m very proud and honoured to be in this locker-room.”

The fourth pick in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft, Manneh became the youngest player in league history to score a hat trick when he put three past the Seattle Sounders in 2013.

He has shown flashes since — Manneh ran wild in the second leg of last season’s playoff loss to Portland before limping off with an ankle injury that continued to plague him early in 2016 — but admitted he had to grow as a player.

“Definitely the past couple of years, decision making (has improved),” said Manneh. “I remember growing up, all the teams I played on it was just get Kekuta the ball and just run with it.”

He added that while he’s never felt more confident, there’s still work to be done — including how he deals with expectations.

“I have to be able to create chances,” said Manneh. “For me that’s the only pressure.

“It’s hard to relax having that in the back of your mind because you know you have to perform. I think it’s something I need to work on.”

Robinson, a former midfielder, joined the Whitecaps as an assistant in Manneh’s rookie season and has been one of his biggest backers while at the same time constantly pushing him to be better.

“He had a good performance (against Toronto),” Robinson said. “But I want the same next week and the week after and the week after.”

Notes: Whitecaps defender Kendall Waston (Costa Rica), midfielder Christian Bolanos (Costa Rica) and striker Blas Perez (Panama) have been called up to their national teams for next month’s Copa America tournament. … Vancouver is 1-1-4 in its last six visits to Portland, with the last three ending in ties, including a 0-0 draw in the first leg of last season’s playoff meeting.

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