Tag: PTFC

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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.

Categories
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

Kickin’ It with Dario Župarić

Photo by Kris Lattimore
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Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 2, Real Salt Lake 1

Photo taken by the Kris Lattimore

Interim head coach Miles Joseph earned his first win as the leader of the Portland Timbers with a 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake in front the Providence Park home crowd.

The Portland Timbers snapped a four-match losing streak across all competitions—and a three match losing streak in MLS regular season play.

Bingham, Mosquera, McGraw, Zuparic, Bravo, Paredes, D. Chara (C), Evander, Moreno, Boli, Blanco Substitutes: Ivacic, Araujo, Mabiala, Miller, Acosta, Antony, Asprilla, Y. Chara, Mora

Portland came out on the front foot and with a ton of energy.

Back in the starting XI was Zac McGraw, who has been absolutely superb this season. His partnership with Dario Župarić has been one of the few bright spots for the Timbers this year.

Starting in his first MLS regular season game in 2023 was Timbers legend Sebastián Blanco.

In the 13th minute, the home side worked the ball beautifully down near the box. Franck Boli slipped a pass to Evander out wide. Evander played a well-placed ball to Juan David Mosquera, who looped a high cross in the top of the box. Real Salt Lake refused to make any effort to the ball, and Santiago Moreno made them pay with a headed goal to open the scoring.

Felipe Mora subbed on for Boli in the 57th minute. After scoring in the match against Vancouver Whitecaps, he would make it a second consecutive game. In the 64th minute, he doubled the lead for the Portland Timbers, thanks to a well-played assist from Moreno.

Real Salt Lake did not go down quietly. In the 82nd minute, Cristian Arango would cut the lead back down to one with a deflected goal past David Bingham.

Photo taken by the Kris Lattimore

Mora’s continued comfort and ascension is the extra boost the Portland Timbers need to possibly make a late playoff push.

First win

Joseph led the Portland Timbers to a 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake for his first ever head coaching win.

After praising the team’s second half efforts against Vancouver, he was proud of how his team came out for this game.

“I thought it was a good continuation from our last game in the second half,” Joseph said. “So that was kind of the message going into the game to continue on from the second half of the last game and the guys really put a great effort in the first half to start off on the right foot.”

The Santi Moreno Show
Photo by Kris Lattimore

Don’t look now, but Moreno has put up consecutive fabulous performances.

“He did what was asked of him,” Joseph said. “On the attacking half of the field, he stayed wide, and I think his opportunities came pretty frequently.

“I think the important thing is for Santi to get his confidence, and I think tonight was a really, really good start for him,” he said.

Moreno scored his first goal of the season and tallied an assist for a goal contribution brace. The best part? His mom was in attendance to see him play his best football of the season.

“A very special moment for myself to score a goal and also do it in front of my mom,” Moreno said. “I haven’t been able to score this season, so it has been rough. But in front of my mom, it makes it very special and also, for me, to be able to score when we get the three points makes it even better.”

Officiating

The referees have been a bit inconsistent in their officiating against the Timbers for the last few weeks.

Diego Chará mentioned it in the post-game presser, and Joseph seem to agree with his captain’s sentiment about how games are being called for the team.

Next: Seattle

The Timbers make the trip up to Lumen Field to face their rivals, the Seattle Sounders today.

Joseph and the team will be ready.

“This is a great win for us to build momentum,” he said after the RSL victory. “I think every game against Seattle is important.”

Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Categories
Soccer Timbers

Takeaways: Portland Timbers 2, Vancouver Whitecaps 3

Photo by Kris Lattimore

A week ago today, the Portland Timbers fired the winningest coach in the history of the franchise.

Gio Savarese gave everything he had to the club, fans, and city for over six seasons as head coach. He and his family will be missed for everything they did in the community.

There will never be anyone else like him. We, at the Rose City Review, wish Gio and his family all the best.

Former assistant Miles Joseph was asked to take over as the interim head coach in this final stretch, starting at home against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Even with the incredible effort the Timbers showed in the second half, it was not meant to be. They fell to Vancouver 2-3.

The loss was the Timbers’ lost their fourth straight defeat in all competitions.

In the 13th minute, the Whitecaps’ Ryan Gauld got the road team on the board, when a deflection fell perfectly to him. In the 36th minute, Gauld placed a brilliant cross and found the head of Brian White to double Vancouver’s lead.

The Timbers would not go down without a fight.

In the 53rd minute, Darion Asprilla hit a perfectly pinpointed cross to find the head of Felipe Mora, who scored his first regular season goal of the year.

In the 60th minute, Evander recklessly tackled Richie Laryea in the box and gave up a penalty kick. Gauld would finish past David Bingham for his goal contribution hat trick (two goals and one assist).

In the 84th minute, the home team would respond once again. Sebastián Blanco, who came on as a second half sub, played a low driven ball near the top of the box to Evander, who made no mistake with it to cut Vancouver’s lead back to a one-goal difference.

During the final moments of the game, the Portland Timbers gave it all they had, but they couldn’t find the equalizer.

Interim

Taking over for someone as successful and beloved as Gio Savarese is a tall task.

Joseph has an uphill climb to bring Portland to the playoffs.

Still, his energy is fantastic and on display constantly. The players seem to be responding positively to it, both at training and during the game.

And he seems to have a game plan for the team.

“We trained this week on the wide triangles and trying to open up the field, especially against Vancouver,” Joseph said after the match. “The first half we were getting a little bit too narrow. So, we presented some video at halftime, and they corrected it. We needed to get to the end-line more, and we did. We got a goal out of it.

“I think as we stick to the process and move forward, we’re gonna create a lot of scoring chances.” 

No Bash Bros
Photo by Kris Lattimore

Although star center back Zac McGraw returned to training this week, he was not ready to start. Miguel Araujo took his place once again. Unfortunately, any pairing outside of Dario Župarić and McGraw has been unsuccessful for the Timbers this season.

Each time one of the stud centerback duo is not available, it is a struggle for the team.

Without McGraw starting the last two games, the Portland Timbers have surrendered eight goals.

This shows the lack of depth the team has, Araujo’s need for more time to get used to the pairings and system, and the importance of the Zs duo.

Cascadia Cup

Coming into the game, the Portland Timbers could have controlled their own destiny with a win or a draw at home against Vancouver Whitecaps.

With the loss, they now need to win next weekend in Seattle and for Vancouver to lose to Seattle in their Cascadia Cup finale.

Photo of the Match
Photo by Kris Lattimore
Categories
Soccer Timbers

Just a Kid Named “GOJ”

Photo courtesy of Anderson Mathews.

12-year old Anderson Mathews is like any other middle-school kid. He plays FIFA, enjoys collecting stickers and scarves, and secretly hopes that school will not return before his birthday. More than anything, he loves patches, soccer, and the Portland Timbers.

Mathews is a well-known member of the Timbers community, and his white Jeanderson jersey is often easy to spot in the stadium. Yet while his name may be Anderson, many fans know him by a different moniker: Ghost of Jeanderson, or GOJ for short. The nickname was given to him at a 2016 game in Seattle, when two members of the Soccer Touchdown Podcast mistook his name for Jeanderson, a former Timber who only played in three matches for the club. Both Mathews and Jeanderson were happy-go-lucky people, so the nickname ultimately stuck.

While Mathews may be young, he is a Timbers Army veteran. He attended his first Timbers game in 2012, when the team hosted Valencia in a friendly, a match he still has the scarf from. In 2016, he and his father traveled to the aforementioned Seattle game on the Timbers Army charter bus, where they made new friends and ultimately became dedicated fans. Now, his family is a staple among the thousands of supporters who fill the North End of Providence Park every home game.

It was a year after that first trip to Seattle that Mathews became intrigued by the patches that many Timbers Army supporters wore and collected. By 2017, that budding curiosity quickly became a hobby for both him and his family. After attending an away game at Cincinnati last season, Mathews came up with an idea. Collecting and trading patches was cool, but what if he could make some of his own?

When he returned home, he began to brainstorm an idea for his first away days patch.

“We lost terribly, but it was on St. Patrick’s day, so we made this patch that was Portland versus FC Cincinnati,” Mathews said. “It was in the shape of a shamrock, and it said PTFC versus FCC. We put a lot of detail into it. Last year I handed them out to all the people that went to Cincinnati.”

That patch became a hit, and sparked the idea to create a new and unique one for each time a new opponent plays the Portland Timbers. For the game against Nashville SC, Mathews and his family designed a patch in the shape of a guitar bearing the names of both teams, along with the phrase “Inaugural Game.” When the season resumes, the Timbers are scheduled to host Inter Miami. Right now, Mathews is thinking about shaping the patch like the Miami Vice logo with the words “PTFC versus Inter Miami,” but the concept is still being brainstormed.

This guitar patch was distributed to visiting Nashville SC supporters at the Timbers’ last home game.

While these patches may sound simple, it takes months to see an idea through to its final stages.

The first step is coming up with an idea. Then, Matthews’ dad takes colored pencils and sketches out the design. From there, he and his family make small corrections before sending them into the factory that will produce the patches in bulk. The factory makes one copy of the patch and sends an image back to the Mathews family for approval before producing roughly 100 patches to ship to Oregon.

Last year, Mathews and his family created his favorite patch yet: an old-fashioned travel suitcase that sported mini pennants representing different MLS franchises. The patch was nominated for an award at last year’s Patch Palooza Pizza Party, an annual gathering for patch collectors and traders in the Portland community.

This “Away Days” patch was nominated for an award last year. (Photo courtesy of Mathews)

Oftentimes, these patches sell out quickly, but no single patch received more positive feedback than one designed as a pair of car keys that read “Go home you bums.” This patch, representing a Timbers Army tradition, sold out within 15 minutes. The family hurriedly placed a second order.

“People are nuts for patches,” Mathews said. “If a patch sells out in 15 minutes, people get mad at you.”

The thing about patches is that they are popular among fans and players alike. For example, if you take a close look at the right sleeve of Zarek Valentin’s jean jacket that he wore before a home game against Seattle last season, you may notice a small, circular patch depicting a ghost with a soccer ball. That is the “Ghost of Jeanderson Patch,” one that Mathews’ family created back in 2016.

That particular picture was a surprise to Mathews, but he did know that Valentin was a fan of his patches. The two were first introduced to one another through the Soccer Touchdown Podcast. From there, they started to talk after games. In 2018, Mathews gifted Valentin his green jersey. Valentin kept that jersey with him, and during each game of the Timbers’ 2018 MLS Cup run he would send Mathews a picture of it.

Photo courtesy of Mathews

“When Zarek was a Timber, him and I hit it off,” Mathews said. “He would want to talk to me, and wanted to get some of the patches.

“Last year we made a mini patch jacket for his new baby which was a big hit,” Mathews added.

Over the years, Mathews and his family found success in creating these unique patches—even making some profits, which are ultimately redistributed.

“Any money left over from the patches we donate to charity, Mathews said. “Towards diabetes, cancer, just donating the money.”

When it comes time to finally deliver these patches at games, it is Mathews who makes the trip from section 102 to the top corner of 223 to personally deliver them. It allows him to meet new fans and potentially trade scarves. Even when there are no patches to deliver, he tries to carve out time to interact with visiting supporters before each home game. Well, most visiting supporters; there are some caveats.

“Here’s where I lay down the line,” Mathews started. “Seattle, I only go over to take pictures. Sometimes [I also don’t interact with] San Jose fans because they get a little too riled up.”

Those little moments of trading scarves and interacting with other soccer fans are what Mathews sorely misses right now. These days, most nights are spent anxiously thinking about and awaiting the return of MLS. When that happens, he will be ready to continue making and trading patches while supporting his favorite club. But, until then, Mathews will be at home doing what any other middle-school kid would be doing during this time of social distancing: playing FIFA, brainstorming new ideas for patches, and holding out hope that, for the first time, he won’t have to worry about school on his birthday.