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.
For everyone on the name Jonathan Rodríguez prefers to be called #RCTID
“Call me Jon or Jonathan.” pic.twitter.com/l0R7UIbUlp
— Phuoc "Francis" Nguyen ✍️ (@Phuocerman) March 21, 2024
The game, at a glance
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
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.
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