Tag: Portland TImbers

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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 4, Nashville SC 1

Photo by Matthew Wolfe

To round out their third game in eight days, the Portland Timbers faced off against Nashville SC Sunday at Providence Park. The match was one of the most complete performances Portland has put together all season, and they continue to rise in the table.

Unfortunately, both head coach Phil Neville and Evander were suspended for this match. Dave Van den Bergh and Eryk Williamson  took Neville’s and Evander’s places, respectively.

The city of Portland is in the midst of a heat wave. The kickoff for the game was 98 degrees. Luckily, there was absolutely no sun on the pitch.

Pantemis, Mosquera, Araujo, Zuparic, Bravo Chara (C), Ayala Moreno, Williamson, Rodríguez Mora Subs: Muse, McGraw, Mabiala, E. Miller, Paredes, Enriquez, Antony, Fogaça

In the early going, neither team could muster much going forward. They were feeling each other out and trying to find the game.

However, the flood gates opened right after that for the Timbers.

In the 18th minute, Jonathan Rodríguez stole the ball near midfield and proceeded to drive to the top of the box. He slipped a ball into Felipe Mora, who calmly finished for his tenth goal of the season.

In the 21st minute, the team executed a perfect counter. Juan David Mosquera initiated it with a dribble and a great ball out wide to Williamson. Williamson returned the ball to Mosquera, who “passed” it to a wide open Rodríguez for an easy finish.

Minutes later, the Portland Timbers won a spell of possession. Santiago Moreno served the ball from midfield out wide to Rodríguez, who calmly took a few dribbles and smashed it far post past Nashville’s Joe Willis.

In the 29th minute, Williamson made it 4-0 off a perfect, low-driven cross from Moreno. This marked his second goal of the season and first since the season opener.

After that, the cooling break took effect, and Nashville SC interim head coach Rumba Munthali had a chance to get after his team for their abysmal showing in the first half.

Unfortunately, that didn’t cool them off one bit and only made it worse. After a VAR check, in the 35th minute, Brian Anunga’s yellow card was upgraded to a red card after video showed Anunga’s  studs going into the back of David Ayala’s leg. The visitors were down four goals and had to play with 10 men for the rest of the game.

In stoppage time, Forster Ajago’s goal was called offside.

In the next Portland possession, Rodríguez was taken down in the box. The official called it right way, but reversed it after going back to VAR.

The first half demonstrated the prolific attack Portland possesses and how dangerous this team is when they are allowed to play on their own terms.

In the second half, the Timbers were on cruise control.

With Rodríguez on hat trick watch, the team did everything they could to feed him the ball.

In the 82nd minute, Nashville’s Sam Surridge found a tap-in goal after the Timbers could not stop their opponent’s initial through ball or the following low-driven cross. They gave up the clean sheet on a very well-worked goal. It was Portland’s only blemish on a beautiful evening of football.

Photo Taken By The Matthew Wolfe

“A bit of a hiccup, obviously, last Thursday, so we wanted to have a bounce back,” said Van den Bergh. “And I think this was a good game for that, so very happy with the three points. On the other side of things, a little disappointed we couldn’t keep a clean sheet that would have been really big for James [Pantemis], for our defenders, but at the end of the day, when you’re facing Nashville at home, and you tell me in advance that we’re going to win 4-1, I would have signed a dotted line. So, all in all, a good win. I would have liked to have scored a couple more goals in the second half, but that’s the way it goes sometimes. But all in all, was a good performance by our guys.”

Eryk

With Evander out, Van den Bergh opted for Williamson in that role.

In the first half, he tallied his second goal of the season.

Once Antony was subbed on in the second half, Williamson moved back to a double pivot with Diego Chará to help preserve the win.

However, after Moreno came off, Williamson moved back to the No. 10.

His versatility, dynamism, and creativity makes him extremely valuable to have on this team. Even though MVP candidate Evander and rising star David Ayala, are ahead of him on the team’s depth chart, there is still a role for Williamson.

“Eryk Williamson showed why he is a very, very good player for us and why we have him on the roster” said Van den Bergh. “I mean, he was outstanding tonight, not just his goal, but overall, I don’t think he lost three balls tonight […] He’s been good in practice, and he deserved his chance.”

History

For the first time since 2022, an MLS club has had three different players to score at least 10 goals or more: Rodríguez, Mora, and Evander.

The three designated players have been money all year and show no signs of slowing down.

“You can see we got along so well, and we try a lot to have fun while we’re playing” said Mora. “And I think we’re enjoying playing alongside each other.”

Image
Graphic via MLS Communications

“Extremely happy with the fact that we have three players on 10 goals,” said Van den Bergh. “I found out that it’s the first time in Timbers history, which is pretty wild. Very happy for those three. They’ve been putting in the work since the day I got here.”

Hat trick watch
Photo by Matthew Wolfe

Never in the history of the Portland Timbers has a player scored a hat trick. Rodríguez was the latest one burned by the team’s curse.

Rodríguez had a brace in a matter of minutes, and had the rest of the game to make club history. He drew a penalty late in first half stoppage time, but for some reason VAR overturned the call. Although the initial ruling was a tad soft, reversing the decision still doesn’t make much sense. After that, the team tried to find Rodríguez every time they got down in the attacking third, but it was not meant to be.

The wait continues…

Photo of the night
Diego Valeri with drums in Timbers Army. Photo by Matthew Wolfe.
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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 3, Minnesota United 2

Photo by Kelsey Baker.

The Portland Timbers honored Dairon Asprilla Saturday with a whirlwind 3-2 victory against Minnesota United.

Unfortunately, the Timbers did not get the memo early on, as the visiting Minnnesota hammered Portland for their sloppy, uninspired, and dreadful play early—and earned two goals for the effort.

Although the home side had their chances, the finishing was absolutely horrific. Jonathan Rodríguez, Santiago Moreno, and Felipe Mora all had chances and could not put anything away. When they got a good shot on goal, United goalkeeper Clint Irwin denied them. It looked very similar to the Philadelphia Union debacle earlier this season.

However, Mora drew a penalty late in the half, and Evander converted convert to halve the lead at 1-2.

The second half was all Portland. In the 73rd minute, Moreno finally broke through to equalize with a left-footed rocket.

Asprilla came on right after and looked to make one last heroic play.

The Providence Park crowd rightfully gave him the standing ovation and applause he desperate deserves. He is loved, adored, and appreciated by the Rose City. As a club legend, he will never be forgotten.

Thank you, Dairon Asprilla

Asprilla joined the Timbers ahead of the 2015 season. Little did he or the club know, it would change their lives forever. Nearly 10 years later, he finally said goodbye to his second home, Providence Park.

In his goodbye letter to Portland, Dairon Asprilla shared a heartfelt message to everyone:

Image

Head coach Phil Neville confirmed the club legend would play minutes in his final game at the last training before the Minnesota match.

As reported by Jeremy Peterman of Cascadia FC, it was Asprilla’s wish to retire as a Portland Timber. Unfortunately, the front office and ownership could not agree on the terms.

As he arrived to the stadium, fans were waiting to greet and thank him one last time. There was something special in the air, and it was going to be a wonderful night.

Photo by Kelsey Baker.
A magical moment

In the 82nd minute, Evander lobbed a ball to find Asprilla. He hit it one-time into the box. It found Moreno’s header in stride and directed it to Rodríguez, who just needed to tap it in. But Rodríguez missed it…

The Timbers again thought they’d found the game-winner in the 87th minute off Antony’s header, but after VAR called it back.

The stage was set for the Timbers legend to shine and finish his story the only way he knows how.

Like a fairytale, in the 92nd minute, Asprilla got on the end of a long ball and hit it off the bounce. He placed it in front of the box to find Rodríguez for the match winner! In his final game as a Portland Timber, he created a moment that 22,000 supporters would never, ever forget.

Photo by Kelsey Baker.

This player has been magical since he arrived. Would you expect him to end it in any other way? Of course not.

“I’m very fortunate to have been part of this club for nine years,” said Asprilla. “I’m leaving happy, and my heart is happy.”

Postgame, he has one final message for the fans: “I think not only today, but these past days have been very, very long days” he said. “I tried my best to prepare for it, and I didn’t expect the moment of leaving to come so fast. I have a good opportunity to go back home and be very close to my family. I’ve tried to control my emotions as best as I can through these days, maybe hide my feelings a little, although people around me have given me a lot of great words. It’s been great to be around them. It was hard to come here from another country alone, but then this became my home. It’s been hard to see all the amazing messages and not being able to respond to them all. But mostly, I just want to thank everyone for the love that they’ve given me. I hope they can see this video, this message, and just to tell them that they’re my family.”

Photo by Kelsey Baker.
¡Gracias, Dairon!

“Thank you” is not enough, and it’s not even close to what he deserves, but all we can do now is say those two words.

Thank you for sharing your gifts on the pitch with everyone. Thank you for always being your authentic self. Thank you for all that you did for the city and community.

Thank you, Dairon Asprilla!

Photo by Kelsey Baker.
Did you know?

Asprilla, Diego Valeri, Diego Chará , and Darlington Nagbe are the only four players in club history to make at least 200 appearances for the Portland Timbers.

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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 2, Sporting KC 1

Photo by Matthew Wolfe.

The Portland Timbers had a favorable home run, going against the Seattle Sounders, the San Jose Earthquakes, and ending with Sporting KC. All three opposing teams were near the bottom of the table. But Portland fell short against the Sounders. The Earthquakes were on their way to a win before Portland was gifted a late red card to turn a 0-2 deficit into a 4-2 win.

Sporting KC is not a good team this year, which they’ve shown through their play all season long. Playoff teams—as the Timbers hope to be—need to beat these types of sides at home. The Timbers were the better team going into Saturday, and they needed to show it.

Crépeau, Mosquera, Araujo, Zuparic, K. Miller Chara (C), Ayala, Antony, Evander, Rodríguez Mora Subs: Pantemis, Bravo, Mabiala, McGraw, E. Miller, Paredes, Williamson, Asprilla, Fogaça

The main surprise was Portland head coach Phil Neville opting to start a four-back after beginning the past few matches in a three-back. Along with the formation change, he gave Kamal Miller the start at left back for the first time all season.

In the beginning, it was an ugly affair of football. Miscommunication, sloppy passes, and bad decision-making consumed most of the first half.

It took until the 16th minute either side to get a shot off. At the half both neither had registered a single shot on target.  Although the Timbers were the better side, they had almost nothing to show for it. They were ahead in shots (five to one) and expected goals (0.39 to 0.05).

Portland took over in the second half. In the 51st minute, Evander put on a bunch of moves and played a perfect cross into the box. The ball found Felipe Mora’s head to open the scoring.

But true to form, this team struggled to hold a lead or sniff a clean sheet.

In the 62nd minute, Sporting worked the ball in and around the box under barely any pressure from Portland. Alan Pulido laid it back to Memo Rodríguez, who ripped one past Max Crépeau to equalize.

Still, the Timbers were largely the better team on the field, which paid off in the 79th minute. Antony steamed forward with the ball and played it to Jonathan Rodríguez. He found Mora for the header. Mora who steered the ball to Evander, who placed it past KC goalkeeper Tim Melia for the 2-1 lead. Initially the ruled was called offside, but a VAR check overturned the call.

In the last minutes of stoppage time, Crépeau came up with possibly his biggest save as a Timber when he denied Johnny Russell’s header to preserve the win.

Portland needed to take care business, and they did. Outside of one hiccup the Timbers played like the better team, putting up an expected goal margin of 2.05 to KC’s 0.25, and got the job done.

“I’m really pleased with the three points” said Neville. “It’s two wins out of three now, which is what we expect and what we want. I think we’ve seen improvements now over the last two or three weeks. Tonight was probably our best defensive performance in terms of our shape and organization.”

David Ayala’s time?

With Diego Chará at 38 years of age, the Timbers have been looking for his successor. They may have found him in David Ayala. Both play similar brands of football and do all the hard work necessary to be Portland’s No. 6. When either leave the pitch, there is no doubt that they gave it their all.

Ayala was the biggest bright spot for the team in the first half. He led the team in five stats: defensive actions, clearances, chances created, duels won, and interceptions.

This has been a common occurrence for him. He fills the stat sheet with his incredible work rate, efficiency, and soccer IQ.

Neville has spoken glowingly about him all season, and the hype has not slowed down one bit.

“I thought David had his best game” said Neville. “I got him in before the game tonight, and I told him I didn’t want any bullshit tonight… He needed that little bit of tough love. He knows what I think of him.”

The only thing holding Ayala back seems to be his match fitness. After coming back from an ACL tear, he has yet to play a full match. The 75 minutes he played against KC were the most since his return to the pitch.

“I told him I’m not taking him off after 60 minutes anymore,” Neville said. “If you can’t make it to 90 minutes, you can’t make it at this club.”

Kamal Miller LB
Photo by Matthew Wolfe.

Miller was one of the biggest surprises in the starting XI. The shock did not come from him starting, but that he started at left back.

“Kamal obviously is a centerback when I brought him [in],” said Neville. “In a way, he’s my boy. But there’s no way I could leave out Miguel Araujo, or Dario Župarić [who both started the match in the middle of defense]. They’ve been playing really well, and they give us some maturity in that back line.”

With Claudio Bravo returning and only available for limited minutes, Neville opted to start Miller.

Miller provided stability on the left side and ventured forward in opportune times. This was one of the most solid performances from any left back who has started for Portland this season—although we should note that it was against Sporting KC.

Wow

Miguel Araujo led the team Saturday in defensive actions with 15, clearances with six, recoveries with 11, and interceptions with two.

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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 1, Minnesota United 2

Photo: Kris Lattimore
Photo: Kris Lattimore

A new loss hit Portland. Although the Portland Timbers scored first, Minnesota United turned the tables in the second half.

It was encouraging to see the Timbers going into halftime winning. The feeling that they were going to concede just before the end of the first 45’ was looming in the air, but they held on.

Individual mistakes

For the umpteenth time, the team wasted clear opportunities to extend the lead. And again, they made individual defensive errors that cost them the match.

Granted, this was their third game in the span of one week, but after the win against San Jose, this was a major setback.

“We have been massively, massively let down by individual errors defensively,” said head coach Phil Neville after the game.

The Timbers’ defensive errors were noticeable even before they opened the counter. After beating Miguel Araujo with a nutmeg, the defense couldn’t stop a diagonal back pass from Joseph Rosales, and nobody was marking Teemu Pukki, who was standing inside the box. Hence, the shot (although it was off-frame).

Image: MLS / Apple TV
Image: MLS / Apple TV

To add more, the Timbers had to be grateful VAR didn’t grant a clear penalty against them after Kamal Miller fouled Bongokuhle Hlongwane.

Even though Minnesota was pushing the Timbers against their own goal and generating chances, the visitors scored first. Dario Župarić saw Felipe Mora and Jonathan Rodríguez among the host’s backline and tried to pass the ball to the gap Minnesota left in the middle (as you can appreciate in the capture below).

Image: MLS / Apple TV
Image: MLS / Apple TV

The pass was blocked, but David Ayala was around, and he rushed to recover that ball and finish the job. He got there before any ‘loon’ and sent a through pass to Rodríguez, who finished with a diagonal shot.

Three goals in two games? Not too shabby for the Uruguayan.

Image: MLS / Apple TV
Image: MLS / Apple TV

When half an hour passed, Portland was playing on their side of the field to defend the lead, and occasionally they’d send a long ball to one of their wingers to produce a counterattack. In the 39th minute, Cristhian Paredes did this. Juan David Mosquera ran toward goal, but goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair prevailed in that one-vs-one.

To his credit, St. Clair won all his one-vs-ones against the Timbers like a boss. It was an amazing thing to witness. And the only time he didn’t, the woodwork helped him.

Another one-vs-one happened at the beginning of the second half after a bad back pass that Rodríguez ended up controlling. He tried to chip the goalkeeper, who came out 40 yards away from his line, but St. Clair made an incredible save with his head.

The Timbers also suffered from bad luck. Mora could’ve doubled the lead, but the crossbar denied him. And even though he argued one of the defenders pushed him, VAR didn’t concede the penalty.

Parking the bus

“We scored the first goal, we then set off and didn’t play our football like we said,” Neville said. “We dropped off too deep, we stopped playing balls and started to play balls long, and we put ourselves in the pressure.”

The second half was mostly Portland’s 10 players defending the short lead. Only Rodríguez was near the midfield to be on the receiving end of long passes and then go in a one-vs-one with the goalkeeper. Sadly, that plan didn’t work much, and the Timbers didn’t have many chances in the second half.

As a result, Minnesota did what they couldn’t do in the first 45 minutes. Teemu Pukki got rid of Župarić and passed the ball to Joseph Rosales. David Ayala was marking Robin Lod but lost him, and Lod put the ball in the back of the net.

It was the nightfall for the Timbers. After that, they suffered a big scare when the referee awarded the host a penalty kick, but VAR overturned the decision.

Things didn’t improve for the visitors. Ten minutes later, Sang-bin scored the winning goal. In the image below we can see him unmarked at the top of the box. Araujo stayed close to him but as soon as he saw Taylor getting inside the box he forgot about Jeong Sang-bin. The South Korean held his run, so he was very much open to receiving that pass and finish.

Image: MLS / Apple TV
Image: MLS / Apple TV

The match was long, and with 10 minutes of stoppage time added, Portland had time to search for the equalizer. It looked as if they were going to make it—especially after Miguel Tapias was sent off for a dumb foul away from his box. The Timbers put the hosts against the wall, but in the end, they held and they had to go home without a point.

If we talk about the substitutions, they didn’t make much of a difference. Mora was clearly angry to be subbed off when the clock hit the hour mark, and his complaining pissed the referee off. As a punishment, the ref made the Timbers play with one man down for more than one minute by not letting Eric Miller come in for Mora.

The coach made more substitutions but no one was impactful enough. He then put in another attacking player—Antony—and things improved a little but not enough to find the equalizer.

Three-back

Neville decided to stick with a three-back formation just like he did in the match against San Jose. This time, he put Araujo in instead of Larrys Mabiala, and he moved Župarić from the right to the middle.

In defensive phase, Ayala and Mosquera dropped to help, although the entire team tried to show solidarity and help with defense. This is shown below, where we can see a line of six players defending.

Image: MLS / Apple TV
Image: MLS / Apple TV

Although Portland lost, the three-back formation worked well, and we can’t put the blame on that for the loss. If there’s something  Neville has shown, it is that he’s not afraid to try new things. It’s just like K. Miller said: “I think we’re just in a position where we’d like to try to find something that works.”

That’s what Neville has been doing, and not just with the defense. 

Three-back, four-back… at this point, it doesn’t matter. Neville hasn’t been able to find the key to fix the individual defensive mistakes, and he knows that’s on him. It’s a real puzzler and more so when we think about the regression some of Portland’s former starters suffered, such as Zac McGraw.

Another loss sucks but there are some positives about the next game against Sporting KC: It’s going to be played at home, the Timbers already played them and got a draw, and they’re one point away from being at the bottom of the table. It’s a pretty winnable match—or so it looks like. We’ll see.

Categories
Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 1, Seattle Sounders 2

Photo Taken by the Amazing Kelsey Baker

After the Portland Timbers 2 and the Portland Thorns put on exciting shows Friday and Saturday against the SeaTac side of their respective leagues, the Portland Timbers had a chance Sunday to try to hit the trifecta for a nine-point PTFC weekend. Unfortunately, that’s not how the day played out.

Timbers head coach Phil Neville has been very open about the team’s struggles and his frustration with Portland’s lack of results and disastrous performances. Going into the weekend, the Timbers were winless in their last eight games.

Fortunately, the Seattle Sounders have struggled mightily all year. They have had trouble to scoring goals, while the Timbers have problems keeping the opposition out of their net.

The cumulative issues meant that this edition of the Cascadia Clash featured the two worst teams in MLS’ Western Conference. Portland and Seattle had 10 points apiece and sat in 13th and 14th place, respectively.

Crépeau, Mosquera, Zuparic, K. Miller, E. Miller Moreno, Chara (C), Paredes, Antony Mora, Rodríguez Subs: Pantemis, Mabiala, McGraw, Ayala, Evander, Williamson, Asprilla, Fogaça

The Timbers’ head coach said to expect lineup changes, and they arrived in a new center back pairing of Dario Župarić and Kamal Miller. He also started Eric Miller in the place of the injured Claudio Bravo. Antony and Cristhian Paredes also made their returns to the starting XI. Evander would return, but only to the bench.

One thing about Neville: he is never afraid to make changes.

In the 15th minute, Župarić played a long ball in to find Jonathan Rodríguez, who chested it to Felipe Mora in-stride to make it 1-0. Mora has shined since coming back from injury, scoring five goals in six games.

Unfortunately, in the 19th minute, Cristian Roldan equalized off a deflection.

At halftime, it was tied at 1-1, with both teams tallying five shots. However, Portland was sound defensively and was unlucky to concede. Seattle offered very little in attack and were hesitant moving forward.

Still, it was the Sounders who took the lead in the 50th minute, thanks to Raúl Ruidiaz. The Timbers refused to close him down, and Max Crépeau had no chance to stop the goal.

Ruidiaz’s tally made the match Portland’s eighth consecutive game where they allowed two or more goals.

Evander made his return in the 56th minute. This team has struggled mightily without him. But beyond his return to the pitch, the remainder of the game and the entirety of the second half was one to forget. The drive and urgency was nowhere to be found.

The inconsistency of the backline is the only consistency this season has provided. In this game, they actually played well, but when your team isn’t performing, the luck or bounces don’t tend to go your way either. This team needs to create their own good fortune, but they refuse to shoot the ball to create opportunities. It’s a complete mess right now.

“Massively disappointing. I think the run that we’re on at the moment, I’ve got to take full responsibility for this run,” said Neville. “There’s no time for sulking. Any criticism that comes our way begins with me. I select the team, I pick the system, I pick the tactics. The last nine games, we’ve got to be better.”

Tillamook

What an announcement to make before kickoff! The Timbers faithful have been hoping for a new shirt sponsor that everyone can get behind since DaBella was dropped for allegations of sexual harassment against the company’s CEO.

There was one unanimous dream: Tillamook. That became reality when Diego Chará was shown on the jumbotron with the beautiful new kit on.

All credit to the Timbers and Tillamook for listening to the incredible supporters of the club and doing what’s best for business and everyone involved.

Make no mistake: this doesn’t make up for everything, but it is a step in the right direction.

New backline
Photo Taken by the Awesome Kelsey Baker

The Timbers started the quartet of Juan David Mosquera, Župarić, K. Miller, and E. Miller for the first time all season.

Župarić has made it clear that he wants to play and earn every penny of his paycheck. He has made a trade request if the club does not see that as a possibility.

He provided the ‘hockey’ assist on the lone goal for Portland.

Although the scoreboard is unpleasant, his partnership with K. Miller was a definite positive for the Timbers. Neville will need to make sure he comes back to this partnership later on.

At this point, however, Zac McGraw being benched and without a chance to regain his form could hurt this team a lot. Neville teased a three-back early in preseason, but he has not tried it in regular season play. McGraw, K. Miller, and Župarić could execute this very well. The formation would also allow Mosquera to attack even more without worrying his defensive duties as much—though (sigh) this is the case anyway.

E. Miller provided a ton of stability on the left in place of Bravo. He is underappreciated for what he brings to this team on and off the pitch and for his consistency in what he brings to every match. His fullback counterpart, Mosquera, had a decent game, but Mosquera’s attention on the defensive side of the ball was below par—and has been for the majority of the season.

Rivalry week
Photo Taken by the Fantastic Kelsey Baker

As with every Cascadia Clash, these teams absolutely despise each other. The game is played on another level physically, no matter what.

This game was no different. Unfortunately referee Alan Chapman allowed too much rough play to continue all match long, inevitably leading to at least some kind of skirmish.

The game got incredibly chippy in the 54th minute when Nouhou Tolo and Mosquera went at it. The Sounders’ defender picked up a yellow card for multiple shoves.

However, the play was ultimately uninspired from both sides. I’m not quite sure either team deserved three points. The only thing that met expectations was the intensity in the challenges, fouls, and rough play that we’ve come to expect from this rivalry.

Lone bright spot

The only true positive from this match was Mora scoring his fifth goal in six games.

Honesty
Photo Taken by the Incredible Kelsey Baker

“I’ve got to be better, but the one thing I’m absolutely convinced of is that we will get this right,” Neville said. “I’m more convinced today than I’ve ever been.”

The grace period is over, and the excuses for this team need to stop. They need to start getting results, or they’ll be heading for the No. 1 draft pick in the MLS SuperDraft very soon.

What evidence do we have to believe they’ll get this right?

Categories
Soccer Timbers

Kickin’ It with Felipe Mora

Photo by Matthew Wolfe.
Photo by Matthew Wolfe.
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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 0, Charlotte FC 2

Photo: Kris Lattimore.
Photo: Kris Lattimore.

The Portland Timbers collected another loss Saturday in a hard-to-watch game.

The Timbers continued their quest on the road, this time against Charlotte FC. The Eastern team is not the brightest in that conference, but Portland had a flat match with almost no chances on goal.

Both teams finished with only three shots on goal, but the hosts got 14 chances to test goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau, while the Timbers only had six shots total.

A Portland team without Evander is something that is not pretty at all. The Timbers also had to play without Diego Chará, which contributed to the poor final product on the field.

Passing sideways

Eryk Williamson, Cristhian Paredes, and David Ayala were tasked with distributing the ball, but their ball distribution was not the best, to say the least. When we see the maps below, we can see how most of their passes were sideways, and they failed to progress the ball properly, contributing to the lack of opportunities the Timbers had in the final third.

Passes by Williamson, Paredes and Ayala. Source: Opta.
Passes by Williamson, Paredes, and Ayala. Via Opta.

Six shots are not enough, and we know the Timbers have had a hard time being clinical.

Due to the absence of Evander—or any other true playmaker—Felipe Mora had another very quiet game. The balls weren’t getting to his feet, and he finished his shift with zero shots, six passes, and only one touch inside the box.

Passes by Felipe Mora. Source: Opta.
Passes by Felipe Mora. Source: Opta.

Portland’s new designated player, Jonathan Rodríguez, was on the field, but couldn’t put his name on the scoreboard like he had against LAFC. He could’ve scored at the end of the first half; Charlotte’s goalkeeper gifted the ball inside his box, but Rodríguez failed to make a simple finish that could’ve changed the whole dynamic of the game.

Rodríguez’s performance in this match was disappointing. He has been hired to score goals, and in matches like this one, he needs to get his hands dirty and show why he’s Portland’s biggest signing this year.

That was ’embarrassing’

“The two goals we gave away again were embarrassing,” Timbers head coach Phil Neville said. “Things have to change and change very quickly because if they don’t, we’re in trouble.”

The thing is, the Timbers are already in trouble and have been for some time now. They haven’t won in almost two months and have conceded goals like crazy. It looks as if every Portland opponent has gotten a check with at least two goals in their favor before every game, no matter who the Timbers play.

And Neville was right about how embarrassing the goals were. Even before the second half started, Portland was getting roasted in defense. Kamal Miller couldn’t suit up due to illness, so Zac McGraw started in his place. According to Opta, McGraw finished the match with eight clearances, four blocks, five recoveries, three duels won, three duels lost and one foul won. That’s not exactly impressive, but in the end, they’re just cold numbers.

However, when we combine those stats with what we saw from him… Well, we can say he’s not in the same form we saw last season.

 

It was a miracle the Timbers went to halftime without having conceded. (Though VAR saved Portland from conceding a penalty kick at the end of the first half.)

Nonetheless, the parity in the score didn’t last long. In the 54th minute, Nikola Petković left McGraw and the rest of the defense behind.

Source: Apple TV / MLS
Source: Apple TV / MLS

“Embarrassing” indeed.

It didn’t help was that Miguel Araujo had to be subbed off at the end of the first half, and Dario Župarić replaced him. Araujo didn’t have an excellent performance. but he did well and covered for some of his teammates’ mistakes. Putting a centerback who has been surrounded by rumors on the field maybe was not the best, but Neville didn’t have much of a choice with Kamal Miller unavailable.

A week set aside

After three games on the road and only one out of nine possible points collected, Portland is finally going home. On Sunday, they’re going to play a very important match—not only for the rivalry but because the team will have a new chance to collect three points again. Their fans will play a very important part in this match, and the Timbers must use them to the team’s advantage.

By this point, the fans are disappointed but keep waiting for a convincing performance from their team. This rivalry match is the perfect opportunity to make them happy again—and to give them a reason to regain confidence. After all, the reality between these two teams is pretty similar. Portland sits 12th in the table with 10 points, and Seattle has the same number of points, although they’re 11th. The big difference between these two? The number of goals conceded. The Timbers have conceded 10 more goals than Seattle but have also scored seven more.

It should be an even match, one where the midfield can make the difference. No doubt the best news Portland(ia) received this week was Adam Susman’s report that everybody was fit and good to go against Seattle, including Evander and K. Miller.

Hopefully, Sunday will be a turning point in the season.

Categories
Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 2, LAFC 3

Photo: Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore.

Not even a point. The Portland Timbers fell 3-2 at BMO Stadium on Saturday.

Portland was disappointing to watch once again. They conceded two goals to Los Angeles FC, which made them chase the match as they have countless times this season.

Can’t stop conceding

“We cannot keep giving teams a two-nil [lead] and expect to win games of football,” Timbers head coach Phil Neville said after the match. “It’s unacceptable, it’s on me. We need to fix it, and we need to fix it quickly.

“We are so close to being a good team if we learn that one bit. If we don’t learn that one bit, it will be a long season.”

And Portland’s coach couldn’t be more on point. The Timbers have shown so much potential—not only this season, but we could see glances of what they were capable of last year. It’s a shame, though, that they keep making the same defensive mistakes. And Neville is once right, too, that it’s on him—and on previous Portland coaches. You don’t wake up one day and become terrible in defense. This problem has a history.

The Timbers remain in second place for most goals against in MLS this season, reaching 21 in the match against LAFC. On the flipside, they’ve scored the second most goals of any team in the Western Conference. Is that enough for this club?

“We’ve been receiving a lot of plaudits for the way we attack,” Neville said. “To be honest, right after the game on Saturday, the first thing I thought about was, ‘I’m getting fed up with that.’ I want people to praise us for winning games of football, not playing well and losing.”

By winning Saturday’s match, LAFC inclined the scale in their favor, since the California side has only won three of their last 11 regular season matches against the Timbers. Nonetheless, LA seemed the stronger side going to this game, since they were unbeaten in eight straight home games and, just like the Timbers, had scored multiple goals in seven of those eight matches.

What fullbacks?

LAFC found themselves very comfortable in Portland’s wings, especially in the left. Denis Bouanga, Mateusz Bogusz, Eduard Atuesta, and Ryan Hollingshead found space and time to do as they pleased.

 

Timbers Miguel Araujo and Juan David Mosquera had a complicated night, which helped the home team find their way to open the score. Mosquera was caught ball-watching, completely unaware of Bouanga until too late. As a consequence, Araujo had tried to stop Bouanga but couldn’t. The LAFC attacker crossed the ball, and Kamal Miller ended up pushing into the back of his own net.

Capture: MLS / Apple TV
Capture: MLS / Apple TV

Portland wasn’t having a good first half. LA’s wingers were killing them, and if not for some lucky offsides, the match would’ve gotten very ugly very early. But even so, scoring an own-goal hurt a lot. Friendly fire is always hard to deal with, and if we add another goal against just seconds before halftime… well, let’s say it was a hard pill to swallow.

It feels like the Timbers are under a lot of self-imposed pressure to not concede, and that’s playing against them; it’s messing with their heads instead of making them play with a chip on their shoulder to prove everybody wrong.

Diego Chará’s Series of Unfortunate Events

On the day when Portland’s iconic captain, Diego Chará, became the player with the most appearances for a single club in MLS history, everything went south for him.

Not only could he not enjoy the special day with his fans in Portland, but he collected a loss. And he he, in his good old-fashioned way, collected a yellow in the 72nd minute.

One minute later, Santiago Moreno scored the equalizer for Portland, and two minutes later, Maxime Chanot received a yellow for a foul on Chará. Then, Chará received his second yellow, when, after being dispossessed by Atuesta, he fouled the LAFC midfielder trying to recover the ball in the 76th minute.

As a result, Cristhian Paredes had to come into the match for Felipe Mora, who had a quiet game. The absence of Evander harmed Mora, since he wasn’t fed with as many balls as needed.

LAFC grew after Chará’s send-off, and goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau had to intervene many times to keep Portland in the game.

Outside of the box

Due to Evander’s absence, the game’s fluidity wasn’t there. Portland’s goals weren’t as fancy as they have been.

However, it was good to see Jonathan Rodríguez finding the back of the net again for Portland’s first goal of the evening. He showed great technique in his tally and was the Timber with the most shots in this game, with six (two blocked, two off target, and two on target).

It was also good to see that the Timbers had some luck in this game. If it wasn’t for a deflection, Santiago Moreno’s goal—Portland’s second—wouldn’t have happened.

It was a shame the Timbers couldn’t get at least a point. Bouanga’s confidence was high after scoring not only a brace in the previous game against LA Galaxy but also the equalizer in stoppage time.

The Timbers showed they have problems defending second balls, and Bouanga took advantage of that when he showed up completely unmarked after Crépeau stopped a header and the defense couldn’t clear it. The striker shot a diagonal ball that hit the far post and got in. As a result, Bouanga scored the winning goal in stoppage time again and left Portland empty-handed.

The Timbers will continue their string of road games against Charlotte when they play at Bank of America Stadium May 4 at 4:30 p.m. PT.

Categories
Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 2, LAFC 2

Photo by Kris Lattimore

After a dramatic tie against Sporting KC, the Portland Timbers returned home to Providence Park—to earn another draw against Los Angeles FC.

“I thought it was a brilliant game of football,” said Timbers head coach Phil Neville. “We spoke three weeks ago about mentality, and I think we showed that mentality today. There’s a clear identity forming with our mentality, and I’m super proud with the way that they played.”

In one of the most aggressive moves of his tenure, Neville opted to play Jonathan Rodríguez on the left and Felipe Mora in the middle, starting the Timbers’ two best attackers in the same game for the first time. Their limited time together has been super effective—and one the head coach was forced to field due to Mora’s stellar play.

Neville also put Diego Chará and David Ayala in a double pivot for the first time. Ayala has been drawing rave reviews from Neville and the coaching staff. He has been influential in every game thus far.

Crepeau, Mosquera, Araujo, K. Miller, Bravo D. Chara ©, Ayala, Antony, Evander, Rodriguez Mora Subs: Pantemis, Mabiala, E. Miller, Moreno, Paredes, Williamson, Asprilla, Fogaça

In the 12th minute, Evander slipped in a beautiful ball to Mora, who somehow guided it home for the 1-0 lead. The home team’s sequence of play started with Juan David Mosquera winning a turnover and dribbling toward the right side of the box before laying the ball off to Evander.

Portland dominated the early proceedings. They didn’t allow LAFC’s first shot until the 21st minute (and by that time the Timbers already recorded four shots).

Unfortunately, all it takes is one bad moment. In the 22nd minute, the Timbers’ backline fell asleep, and Mateusz Bogusz made them pay dearly with a perfectly pinpointed far-post shot past Max Crépeau. Kamal Miller tried to close it down, but he had absolutely no help from Miguel Araujo, who was nowhere to be found in the sequence.

After being outshot four to zero in the following 10 or so minutes, Mosquera hit a nicely-weighted cross to Evande,r who smashed home a  gorgeous volley in the 34th minute. That goal came against the run of play.

Unfortunately, the second half could not have started in worse fashion for the home side.

In the 48th minute, Crépeau came off his line hard, but could not win the ball and was given a red card for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. This forced Portland to take off Mora and bring on James Pantemis.

Bogusz struck the ensuing free kick brilliantly to equalize for LAFC in the 52nd minute.

In the 66th minute, Evander struck a nice free kick at the top of the box, but it hit off the post. Even down a man, the Timbers continued to fight.

The teams traded shots back and forth the rest of the way, but neither was able to put together enough for a win. The game ended with a 2-2 draw.

Although they went down a man, the Portland Timbers worked their butts off to preserve the point.

No ZZs
Photo by Kris Lattimore.

Zac McGraw and Dario Župarić were both unavailable for the game, due to a concussion and personal reasons, respectively. That left Miller, Araujo, and Larrys Mabiala as Portland’s only options at centerback for the game.

Miller and Araujo ended up with the starts. Miller has been a starter all season, and Araujo made his second consecutive start.

The results were very mixed in their first start together. In this regard, Neville had no choice due to lack of options.

“It’s growing better and better,” said Miller. “Those goals […] could have been avoided, but all throughout the run of the 90 minutes, I feel like we’re defending strong. And to go man down with so long left in the game, against a team like LAFC that keeps possession of the ball so well. I felt like we defended well, and I believe we got a clean sheet with a man down.”

Their chemistry is building, but I do think McGraw should be starting all future games alongside Miller.

Jon and Pipe

The first start together for Rodríguez and Mora was not a surprise and was the right move by the head coach. Neville has spoken to the media about the sense that they paid to play Rodríguez as the No. 9. Mora’s stellar play as a reserve forced Neville’s hand, and rightfully so.

Although their connection is new, the duo are currently Portland’s best two goalscorers and finishers. They only got to play 48 minutes together, but the team looked extremely dangerous, with the attention both of them draw opening space for Evander, Mosquera, and Antony.

Moving forward, they are going to scoring tons and providing a ton of assists. This is just the start for the dynamic duo.

Another new pair
Photo by Kris Lattimore.

Neville and his staff have talked up Ayala big time since his return. He does all of the hard work necessary in the midfield and has an accurate left foot. His passing has surprised some, but it shouldn’t. Ayala can switch the point of attack, do the defensive work, and keep the attack moving.

His pairing with Chará is a bit special, as Ayala has been seen as a possible heir apparent.

This midfield looked sharp with those two rotating the defensive and attacking assignments. Their chemistry looked smooth and efficient. Although the Timbers have Eryk Williamson and Cristhian Parades, who are both extremely talented, Ayala offers the perfect balance. Depending on the matchup, Williamson should still get his fair share of starts, as should Parades.

Neville’s range of available options in the midfield is a blessing. For now, it seems like he has finally found the right mix (especially once Ayala returns to full fitness).

The Evander

“I think Evander is the best player in the conference at this moment in time. He’s playing incredibly well,” said Neville. “I don’t see a better No. 10 in either conference at this moment in time than Evander—that’s how highly I rate him.”

In the past three games, Evander has five goal contributions (three goals and two assists), including his golazo against LAFC.

He has quickly become one of the most dangerous players in all of MLS and is heating up at the perfect moment.

Categories
Soccer Tennis

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 1, Philadelphia Union 3

Photo by Kris Lattimore

The Portland Timbers match against the Philadelphia Union Saturday was headlined by the arrival of new Portland designated player Jonathan Rodríguez. Rodríguez’s signing was announced Wednesday of last week, and he was cleared to play the day before the game. Sadly, his first match was a mix of emotions, with Rodríguez opening up his scoring account, but his new team falling 1-3 at home.

Before we get into the game: If you are wondering if he prefers to go by his famous nickname, he does not. He prefers to be called, Jon or Jonathan.

The game, at a glance

 

 

 

Pantemis, Mosquera, McGraw, Zuparic, E. Miller Williamson, Chara ©, Moreno, Evander, Antony Rodriguez Subs: Sulte, Mabiala, Ayala, Paredes, Asprilla, Fogaça, Mora

After dominating the early proceedings of the half, the Timbers just could not find the back of the net. The woodwork denied them twice, and they created multiple scoring opportunities on top of that.

In the 28th minute, Philadelphia scored against the run of play on a header from Julián Carranza off a corner kick.

Both clubs traded haymakers back and forth for the rest of the half. Despite mostly dominating the first 45 minutes, the home side had nothing to show for it. Even worse, they were somehow down a goal.

In the 58th minute, the Timbers had another breakdown in communication, when a misplayed pass allowed the Union to counter. James Pantemis came up big, but the rebound landed right to Quinn Sullivan to make it 0-2.

Ten minutes later, Philadelphia would add another tally to make it 3-0. This time, it came from Carranza, making it a brace for the No. 9.

Portland wasn’t completely out of the game. In the 80th minute, Rodríguez headed home a cross from Santiago Moreno to make it 1-3.

Unfortunately it was too little, too late. One team did all the work needed to win, and the other played beautiful football.

“I’m probably as disappointed as I’ve been since I came to the football club,” said Timbers head coach Phil Neville. “If you don’t take your chances, you’re gonna have a hard time winning games of football.”

Mistakes and miscommunication
Photo by Kris Lattimore

For Portland, this game came down to mistakes. The worrying sign for the Timbers is that they’re conceding and losing games off miscommunication and set pieces. The team is not fully in sync defensively right now, and it’s heightened when they struggle to finish their chances in front of goal.

In the 28th minute, they conceded the opening goal off a corner kick.

In the 58th minute, Portland conceded off a rebound.

In the 67th minute, the Timbers allowed a goal when they were caught in transition off a quickly-taken free kick.

“I hope they’re disappointed. I hope they’re angry in the locker room,” said Neville. “If we don’t do the basics well, we’re not going to be where we want to be.”

The frustration has definitely kicked in for the team over the past few matches.

“As a group we’re incredibly disappointed,” said Eric Miller. “You can’t concede the types of goals that we’re conceding in this league and expect to win consistently.”

Although the Portland Timbers played some of their best attacking football, they did not take care of the basics.

“Who were the best footballers? I think we were by far,” Neville said. “But it’s not always about the technical abilities; it’s about the mentality to win games. It’s about doing the dirty jobs really well.

Jonathan

Negatives aside, Rodríguez did score in his Timbers debut. He was dangerous all match. It is very clear to see that he can work with a variety of different services, as he can score in any way.

“He scored a brilliant header. He hit the post with another shot,” said Phil Neville. “What I saw from Jonathan was that he makes some incredible runs. The more games he gets, the more standing he’ll get. He’s going to be a goal threat in every single game.”

Against Philadelphia, Rodríguez had only trained with the team for a week. He is going to gain more comfort and chemistry with the team from here on out.

Besides Rodríguez, Felipe Mora made his 2024 debut as a second half substitute. Having a healthy Mora and Rodríguez will be a huge boost in attack for the Timbers the rest of the way.

Numbers

Possession: Portland – 72.1%, Philadelphia – 27.9%

Expected Goals: Portland – 2.06, Philadelphia – 1.82

Shots: Portland – 18, Philadelphia – 15 (Rodríguez alone had five shots.)

Passes: Portland – 671, Philadelphia – 258

Evander led the teams in shots on target with three, chances created with five, completed passes in the final third with 24, and successful dribbles with four.