—by Chris Rifer

The Timbers got back to their struggling ways on Saturday, as they again snatched defeat from the jaws of a positive result in Columbus, falling 1-0 to the Crew on a sticky evening in central Ohio.

As is not uncommon, the Timbers established themselves well in the first half hour of the match. Portland controlled much of the possession and seemingly found opportunities at will. Portland’s passing was crisp, and the Timbers’ midfield dominated the Crew.

Opportunities don’t win matches by themselves, however, and the Timbers couldn’t turn their opportunities into goals. A Lovel Palmer strike from distance was stopped by Crew keeper Andy Gruenebaum. A Jack Jewsbury shot sailed off target. A Darlington Nagbe go, set up by a dazzling run, was pulled wide.

Even if the offense couldn’t put a number on the scoreboard, in the first half the Timbers defense was ready to answer the few questions that Columbus asked of them. Eric Brunner and company held Columbus at bay, maintaining their shape much better than the previous several weeks and crisply clearing away any crosses that the Crew sent into the box.

The Timbers offense would go silent in the second half, however, as an early Jewsbury strike from distance would be virtually the only serious threat of the stanza. Instead it was the Crew that would dominate. The Timbers midfield that had controlled the first half hour suddenly couldn’t keep possession, and when they did they couldn’t take it anywhere.

Meanwhile, the Timbers defense found itself under siege. For a split second it appeared as though the Crew had broken thorough, as Chad Marshall bowled over Brunner to get a nod to a Columbus corner, only to have Darlington Nagbe volley it off the line. The ball was perilously close to breaking the plane of the goal, but the linesman and referee signaled to play on.

The Crew would continue to apply pressure, and their efforts would pay off in the 79^th minute. After Robbie Rodgers shed two Timbers defenders to send a cross to the far post the ball would pinball through the box before finding Eddie Gaven who would softly volley it past Futty for the winner.

As we have frequently seen, after conceding the goal Portland retreated into its shell. Absent was any sense of urgency or desperation. Instead, Portland looked a side that was exhausted and defeated. Probably because they were.

Match Observations

• There were some moral victories out there, but at this point in the season those are worth the same in the team’s mentality as they are on the table. Nothing. Yes, there were some very positive moments from the wide midfielders. Yes, Lovel Palmer showed that he has the potential to be a good upgrade at right back. Still, a tough team would have earned a result out of that match. Right now, plain and simple, the Timbers aren’t a tough team.
• The forward situation is interesting. Neither Jorge Perlaza nor Kenny Cooper were effective on Saturday, but I think Perlaza brings a necessary element in the 4-5-1 that Cooper doesn’t—his pace. With Perlaza in the game it seemed that the Columbus defense and even midfield had to hold back a bit more, otherwise they would get burned by one of Jorge’s signature runs. When Cooper came into the game, it seemed that the Crew were able to pin their ears back with impunity because he doesn’t provide that same threat. On the whole, I am bit less curious about the 4-5-1 than I was before the match. I’m not saying it’s time to scrap it, but absent success over the next few matches it may be time to reinsert Kenny Cooper into the lineup in a 4-4-2. I am bracing myself for the comments on this that will be forthcoming.

Timbers Grades

Troy Perkins, 5 Didn’t have a ton of work to do, and can’t be faulted for such a strange goal. When he was called on he generally did well, but can’t really get a very positive grade for such a rather average outing.

Rodney Wallace, 5.5 Rod actually had a nice game at left back. Had a few timely tackles and was one of the players that acted as a catalyst when things were going well up front. Had a couple plays where he misplayed a ball forward or a pass back, but I think that comes with the territory with Rod. Overall a positive game for him.

Futty, 5 Can’t really be faulted for the goal, and didn’t have a poor game in back. Still, he had a couple nervous moments. He is very much Robin to Brunner’s Batman. I like the beard, though.

Eric Brunner, 6 I thought Brunner was just a hair short of fantastic. He came through with multiple saving tackles and always seemed to be in the right spot. Can’t be faulted for the Chad Marshall almost-goal, as he was blatantly fouled by Marshall coming way over the top. Had the referee signaled for a goal, that would have been the topic of discussion.

Lovel Palmer, 5 Had a couple sloppy moments in back, but considering he only had one training session with the team, it was a good debut. I do like how he fancies himself from distance.

James Marcelin, 4 Ranged between invisible and out of control. Gets the most responsibility for the concession, as when the ball falls to you like that in the box, you have to be able to clear it out. I’m not giving him the hook just yet, but if he is going to keep another striker off the pitch, he is going to have to justify it a bit better than he did on Saturday.

Darlington Nagbe, 5.5 Looked electric at times with the ball at his feet. I agree with Robbie Earle that he looks much healthier than he did a month ago. Still, he had two golden opportunities that he pulled wide.

Diego Chara, 5.5 A few people have alluded to this, but one of the most interesting developments has been the chemistry between Chara and Nagbe going forward. I also still love how Diego sidles up to opponents on defense. Or maybe I just like the word “sidle”. I don’t know.

Jack Jewsbury, 4.5 One of Jack’s poorer performances. Put one shot on frame that could have turned this frown upside down, but other than that had a rough day in the midfield as he got knocked around a lot and wasn’t especially effective.

Kalif Alhassan, 5.5 I think Kalif and Palmer are going to get along just fine. Alhassan looks to be getting his groove back a little bit.

Jorge Perlaza, 4 Needed to be a little bit more aggressive, but to be honest, against a good defensive team like Columbus he is going to have his work cut out for him all alone up front.

Kenny Cooper, 4 At one point John Strong said something to the effect of “Kenny Cooper would have had a free run if he hadn’t fallen down at the top of the box.” That, friends, is the season in a nutshell. That said, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him reinserted into the lineup in the next few weeks. Look, if there is one thing you can say about strikers it is that they are streaky. Kenny is in a really bad stretch of form right now, but there is an argument to be made that he just needs to play his way out of it. Again, don’t hate me for saying that.

Sal Zizzo, 5.5 His form over the last few weeks makes it awfully hard to keep him off the pitch. The only problem is that the guys in front of him are also in good form. Sallie was really the only guy in the last 15 minutes that looked like he had the legs and the will to try to find an equalizer. Maybe that’s his role – the closer. Sallie the Closer. It may not be that accurate, but it has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

Peter Lowry, 4.5 I think everybody is sort of confused about what his role is on this team. He is a nice enough player – as he showed against West Brom – but I just don’t know where to put him.

Onward, Rose City!