—by Chris Rifer

In many ways this one hurts the most.  With seemingly every sign pointing toward a drubbing in Sandy, the Timbers put in their best performance of the season at the Rio Tinto Stadium on Saturday night, but nonetheless came away empty-handed in a 1-0 loss to Real Salt Lake.

The first ten minutes looked as forecasted, as RSL dominated the ball and put the Timbers under siege early.  Portland’s defense held firm, however, only allowing a 9^th minute Luke Mulholland cross to nobody from the left[1] in a sequence unlocked by the magnificent Javi Morales.

Despite initially showing some attempts to spread the field with both fullbacks getting up the line a little bit, the Timbers seemed to retreat into a more conservative setup as the opening spell of play progressed.  For the rest of the evening, the Timbers were a little bit more conservative both with their fullbacks and their defensive central midfielders, choosing to pick their attacking spots rather than try to surround Real Salt Lake with midfield numbers.

Sometimes a retreat can create an attacking advantage.  After the initial fifteen minutes, the Timbers began to get their foot on the ball.  And in the 19^th minute, they very nearly put the ball in the goal.

After Darlington Nagbe ran by all of the RSL midfield and defense, he burst through on Nick Rimando and from close range put the ball in the perfect spot from a tight angle—high and over the keeper’s head.  Nagbe’s shot would beat every other goalkeeper in MLS, but on Saturday it couldn’t beat Rimando, who swatted it away.  Darlington wouldn’t be the only Timber feeling so robbed on Saturday.

As the half progressed, however, the game began to foreshadow its entertainment quality.  After RSL’s initial spell, the Timbers asserted themselves for their own quarter-hour.  The Claret-and-Cobalt battled back, however, and in the 40^th minute nearly broke through.  Mulholland, who had himself a nice attacking first half, set Olmes Garcia free down the right wing.  Garcia cut the ball back into the box for Alvaro Saborio, whose finish went wide under pressure from Pa Modou Kah.

The Timbers should have been encouraged at halftime.  While they hadn’t put Real Salt Lake under tremendous pressure, they controlled enough of the play to limit RSL to one clear look at goal and created the best chance of the half for themselves.

The second half started in much the same fashion, with the Timbers holding their fair share of the ball, but Real Salt Lake presenting the greatest attacking impetus even if they couldn’t unlock Portland’s backline.

The first good chance of the half came for RSL in the 57^th minute when the Timbers struggled to fully clear a corner, allowing the ball to rotate back to Morales on the left wing.  The best Argentine on the field fired a cross back into the box where Chris Schuler got free head to it, but the central defender couldn’t keep his finish on frame.

The Timbers answered back with a trio of quality chances that unfortunately fell to the ineffective feet of Maxi Urruti.  In the 58^th minute, Urruti gathered a bouncing ball and drove at RSL’s defense, but his well-struck shot was denied by the crossbar.[2]  A minute later, Diego Valeri, despite having a tough outing, played a pretty chipped pass through to Urruti in the box, but Maxi didn’t have his feet right to provide the finishing touch.

Urruti really made a mess in the 60^th minute, however.  After Diego Chara tackled the ball away from Mulholland, the ball fell to Urruti and set him on a free run at goal between Schuler and Borchers.  In perhaps the biggest moment of the game, however, Urruti pushed his finish disappointingly wide.  Whereas the prior two had been half-chances Urruti couldn’t quite convert, this was the type of golden opportunity a legitimate MLS striker has to put away or force heroics from the goalkeeper.  Urruti did neither.

Having failed to capitalize, the Timbers couldn’t continue their surge, and as the game neared its final fifteen minutes RSL shifted decisively onto their front foot.  In the 73^rd minute, Chris Wingert ran past several Timbers defenders, including a gassed Kalif Alhassan and a momentarily lame Chara, and slipped the ball through to Javi Morales.  The Claret-and-Cobalt’s string-puller, however, pushed his finish off the post and Will Johnson cleared.

There was no post to save the Timbers five minutes later.  After Sebastian Velasquez found Ned Grabavoy in the middle, the journeyman midfielder drove toward the left corner of the eighteen-yard box, a step ahead of Nagbe the whole way.  What truly made the play that was about to happen, however, didn’t occur on the ball.  Rather, Joao Plata put Jack Jewsbury in a bind by making a decisive run wide on the left wing,[3] forcing Jewsbury to decide whether to step to Grabavoy or let Plata loose where Ned could spring Joao on the byline.  Simultaneously, RSL queued three runners up at the back post, making Futty justifiably hesitate to rotate to cut off Grabavoy’s look at goal.[4]  The result was an open lane for Grabavoy to fire at goal, where he cut the ball back under the hand of an underachieving Donovan Ricketts and inside the far post.

The Timbers didn’t go away, however, and were unlucky not to find at least an equalizer.  In the 85^th minute, Gaston Fernandez found Alvas Powell on the right side of the box with a beautiful vertical ball, but when Powell looked to cut the ball back across goal toward the back stick, Nick Rimando somehow managed to keep his trailing foot in long enough to deflect the ball away.

Rimando was back to the heroics three minutes later.  After an uncharacteristically poor giveaway by Kyle Beckerman, Fernandez bought a foot of space at the top of the box and left-footed a curler toward the top corner, but a diving Rimando was there again to parry behind for a corner kick.[5]

Thus, the most complete performance by the Timbers to date went begging in Sandy.  A Portland team that managed the game very well, created a sufficient number of chances, and limited Salt Lake to a relative handful of opportunities nonetheless came away empty-handed as a result of a little poor finishing, a well-worked RSL goal, and a boatload of brilliance from Rimando.

But while Saturday wasn’t short on moral victories, it was short on points. And that’s becoming a concern.

Match Observations

GOALZ

Result notwithstanding, Saturday was a really good soccer game.

While it’s easy to look at a 4-4 match and come away thinking it was an epic, Saturday provided everything—short of a Timbers win, I suppose—to please the discerning soccer eye.  Both attacks created a fair number of chances, albeit in very different ways.  Those chances, however, usually weren’t the result of especially bad defending, as both defenses were solid, perhaps with Portland’s being the sturdier on the evening.  In addition to both sides playing pretty well, the game featured a really well worked late goal, some outstanding goalkeeping, and a genuine push for a late equalizer.

No, Saturday didn’t provide the drama that Portland-Seattle did a few weeks back; but there is no question that, considering the two teams on balance, it was a much better played game.  Goalz, it turns out, aren’t everything.

Reforming the Shield

DieJo's Recoveries

The Timbers were a bit more conservative with Will Johnson and Diego Chara on Saturday than they have been.  And to great effect.

First of all, the two of them dominated the center of the field in front of the defense, rendering that part of the pitch a virtual dead zone for the Claret-and-Cobalt for extended periods on Saturday.  Chara and Johnson combined for 21 recoveries, a very substantial portion of which were in that crucial transition zone into RSL’s final third.

Second, Chara and Johnson did a great job of feeding the ball to the wings, where the Timbers found a fair amount of attacking joy.  Together, DieJo completed 74 of 86 passes, with Johnson’s 41 of 46 leading all 90-minute players in passing percentage.

DieJo's Passing

Both of these things were key elements to the increased defensive continuity, as the central shield made it difficult for RSL to find promising attacking angles and their precision with the ball helped Portland keep their foot on the ball and away from RSL.

Timbers Grades

Donovan Ricketts, 3 Ricketts doesn’t look right out there.  Looked awkward when he was forced to move around and, if we’re being honest, 2013 Ricketts makes the save on Grabavoy.  In a game in which his counterpart dazzled, a fair amount of the culpability for the game’s lone goal falls on Ricketts’ shoulders.

Michael Harrington, 5.5 In a game in which RSL were primarily trying to exploit the Timbers’ right side, Harrington had a quiet but effective shift offensively and defensively on the left.

Pa Modou Kah, 6 After giving up a horrible goal last week, Kah produced his best defensive performance of the year.  Still a couple lost runners and squirrely clearances, but on the whole pretty good considering the opposition.

Futty, 5 A little bit shakier than Kah, but a wholly acceptable performance from Futty.  Bears a tiny slice of the culpability on the concession, but, in reality, it was just a good goal.

Jack Jewsbury, 5 In a similar boat to Futty on the concession.  Could have made a play to potentially stop the strike, but not without opening up a different, equally dangerous play.  Solid performance from Jack, who made service difficult from his flank.

Will Johnson, 6.5 Let his frustration out perhaps a bit too much after the game, but he and Chara put in a masterful performance in front of the backline.

Diego Chara, 6.5 DieJo was back on Saturday and Chara should have had the best tackle/assist in recent Timbers history but for Urruti’s bad miss.  No coincidence that Chara was hampered by a knock throughout RSL’s best spell in the second half.

Darlington Nagbe, 5 What a wonderful play in the first half only to be absolutely robbed by Rimando.  Still, hard not to notice Nagbe (again) faded a bit as the match wore on, with his redundant run with Urruti and failure to close down Grabavoy as the biggest sins.  Are we certain he isn’t still carrying that hamstring niggle?

Diego Valeri, 4 Aside from his brilliant chip to Urruti, it was a tough night for Valeri.  For a guy who thrives on space, RSL was always going to be a tough matchup.  The concern going forward, however, is about a knock Caleb Porter referenced postgame.

Kalif Alhassan, 4 Had a nice first half, but ran out of gas in the second and became a liability by the 65^th minute.  Playing at altitude isn’t easy and he missed a few weeks in the early season, but his fitness has to improve.

Maxi Urruti, 2.5 His analytics line is shocking for a player who was on the field for ninety minutes.  Sometimes strikers don’t log much in the stat column if they’re starved for service, but good ones find other ways to contribute and the Timbers weren’t without chances.  Urruti had a few opportunities fall to his feet, and by and large made a mess of them.  You have to wonder about the stability of his starting spot…

Dumpster Fire                                   

Gaston Fernandez, 6.5 …in light of Gaston Fernandez’s performance on Saturday.  While he looks most comfortable in the 10 spot, where he was quite good against RSL, Fernandez has been solid, if not perfect, at the 9 as well.  At this point, he gives the Timbers a better chance to win than Urruti in that role.

Michael Nanchoff, 6 What an opportunity for Nanchoff and he didn’t let it pass by.  Nanchoff just worked his way into a rotation that is very short on attacking options off the bench right now.

Alvas Powell, 6 Speaking of working his way into a role on the bench, Powell showed why he’s a better fit as a late-game attacking substitute than as a starter at right back.  Great run and good finishing touch on his should-have-been goal.  But here’s the question in the back of my mind about Powell: Is he the next Rodney Wallace?

Preseason Prediction: RSL 1, Timbers 0.  Saborio.

Actual Result: RSL 1, Timbers 0.  Grabavoy.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Chris Rifer

The Portland Timbers are behind the eight ball.  That the results have been poor thus far is beyond debate.  But more fundamental problem for the Timbers is how easily opposing defenses have blunted the once-incisive Portland offense.

For the first five games of the season, opponents dropped their lines deep to keep the Timbers from breaking through on goal.  Lacking final third chemistry or a decisive striker to break down the backline, this strategy kept the Timbers at bay for the first four games of the season.  Time and time again the Timbers moved their way through the midfield only to stall on the edge of the box.

The results they did earn in this stretch, draws against Philadelphia and Chicago at home, came by way of balls that fell their way to the feet of Gaston Fernandez sitting at the back post.  By and large, however, the Timbers made middling backlines look impenetrable.

Portland finally put an end to this against Seattle.  Although perhaps a couple weeks later than promised, the Timbers finally produced a multiple goal effort in which the offense did its part to earn a victory.  With the Sounders doubling down on the sit-deep strategy, the Timbers drove around and at Seattle’s backline.  When they gave Diego Chara time and space on the edge of the attacking third – time and space that had also been there to varying degrees in the previous fixtures – the Colombian made them pay with a pair of strikes from the top of the box.  When Portland found a way to the backside of Seattle’s backline by way of good combination play between Michael Harrington and Darlington Nagbe to dive toward the byline, Diego Valeri planted himself at the near stick and fired into the goal.

Finally it appeared the Timbers had found a way to break down their opponents’ prevent defense.  The consequence was seemingly that Portland would force their foes to come play on the Timbers’ turf in midfield.

And that’s exactly what Chivas USA did last weekend.  Rather than sit back as their predecessors had done, the Rojiblancos flooded the midfield with Goats to disrupt the Timbers’ passing lanes and keep Portland’s one remaining potency – the attacking midfield – from finding any rhythm.

This represented a gamble for Chivas.  By deploying as many as seven or eight players at times into primarily disruptive midfield roles, the Goats would expose themselves if Portland’s strikeforce could break through and, on the attacking end, put their offense in a position where it wouldn’t be able to quickly throw numbers forward.  Chivas’s gamble, then, was that Portland’s man up top – Maxi Urruti – wouldn’t hurt them too badly while Portland’s backline would at some point gift the Goats a goal.

That, of course, is precisely what happened.  Urruti struggled to help break the midfield stalemate with his alternatively ill-placed or ill-timed runs and Pa Modou Kah masterminded a defensive mishap.  Sure, Nagbe and Will Johnson made a play.  And, sure, the Timbers had the better quality chances even if they didn’t have the better of the ball.  But for the most part Chivas got what they wanted from their midfield war of attrition – a draw in the center of the park and on the results sheet.

But the Timbers saw this tactic a few times in 2013.  So why did it flummox them on Saturday?

Because the 2014 Timbers as they stand today are not the 2013 Timbers.  Not even close.

Despite the Porterball stereotype breathlessly peddled by a nuance-averse media, the Timbers’ offense in 2013 was most remarkable for its flexibility.  Last year, if an opponent sat back and tried to absorb pressure, the Timbers smothered them with possession.  If an opponent came out pressing, however, hoping to disrupt Portland’s powerful midfield, the Timbers the Timbers bludgeoned them with a direct attack built on strong wing play and an underrated strikeforce.

The starkest example of the latter in 2013 was a June 23^rd undressing of the Colorado Rapids in which the Rapids came out to pressure the Timbers in the midfield, outshot the Portland 18-6, and, in an uncommon feat at the time, split the possession.  But Portland didn’t care.  To counter, they went as direct as any team in MLS, with Rodney Wallace logging a trio of assists in the easy 3-0 triumph.

That flexibility to transform into a direct threat is a luxury Portland doesn’t have in 2014.  The players that permitted the 2013 Timbers to do so are gone, unavailable, or ineffective.  Departed are Ryan Johnson and Jose Valencia.  Injured is Rodney Wallace, whose surprising play on the wing was instrumental a year ago.  Ineffective is Frederic Piquionne, who was firmly rooted in his deserved resting place on the bench on Saturday despite two substitutions left in Caleb Porter’s pocket and a game that begged for the Timbers’ only direct threat.  Indeed, Piquonne’s exclusion was an appropriately damning indictment of the veteran’s disinterested performance so far in 2014.

And so, last Saturday the Timbers missed their 2013 offensive flexibility as Chivas flooded the midfield.  But whereas Chivas could only hope to gum up the Timbers gears by flooding the midfield with disruptive numbers, Real Salt Lake’s famed diamond acts more like a tornado than a flood.

Rather than win the midfield by attrition, Salt Lake’s “narrow diamond,” as Caleb Porter referred to it on Tuesday, wins the midfield by creating micro-advantages.  Along with being narrow, RSL’s midfield is also mobile, making it look at times like a small band of four marauders roving through the midfield.  Thus, rather than try to outnumber its opponent in the midfield on a macro scale as Chivas did last week, RSL likes to pick its spots offensively and defensively, creating three- and four-on-twos in the spots they choose to turn opponents over and establish their own passing groups.

Thus, just as Chivas did a week ago, the Claret-and-Cobalt gum up opposing midfields, but they usually do so using four players rather than the Goats’ seven or eight.  In addition, RSL boast a backline that is arguably better than the Timbers at every position and a strikeforce that carries one of the best game-for-game goalscorers in MLS.[1]

The current one-trick-pony Timbers midfield, then, plays right into RSL’s hands.  And because the Timbers lack the attacking versatility of 2013, it’s hard to see any viable alternative.  Add to that Portland’s defensive woes coming up against a ruthlessly efficient RSL frontline, and it’s difficult to envision a favorable result ripe for the Timbers’ picking in the Land of Plenty.

On Tuesday, Porter hinted at a tactical rabbit he has left to pull out of a hat.  What remains to be seen, however, is whether such a rabbit exists.  To date, however, the Timbers’ offensive flexibility has been far from magical.  If the Timbers remain limited to their one trick on Saturday, they are likely heading into a Spencer-style away loss.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Andrew Brawley

I think we could use a few more down-tempo songs to work into Timbers chants. Apparently our version of "Can't Help Falling In Love," always sung after the 80th minute (when soccer games are totes boring), just isn't enough.

It might be due to the fact that it's been covered by Elvis (yeah...he covered it...he didn't write it), UB40 (a British reggae band...BRITISH!!! REGGAE!!!), and some Swedish pop group called A-Teens (SWEDISH!!! POP!!! TEENS!!!), and now the Timbers Army.

I say we double down and add a few more slow numbers to our chant catalog. What say ye? But instead of slow jams, let's amp it up a bit with some power ballads. They've never lead to eye-rolling. Here are a few suggestions: (Video no longer available.)

When Kip Winger wasn't singing about minors, he was cranking out power ballads. If there was ever a tune where the title alone describes the decades-long ethos of a Timbers fan, it's this one.  

I think this is a funny one because A) it's the band Europe, and we've been known to do The Final Countdown now and then, and 2) the song is called Carrie, which is also the name of a classic 70's revenge flick where an unfortunate high school girl gets set up for love, but then get's tricked, so she ends up murdering a lot of people. 

Not sure why I picked this one.

 

Y'know what happens when the Timbers give up a goal late in the game, right around the time we start chanting "Can't Help Falling In Love?" The children...they cry.

 

Y'know what I need after the Timbers give up a goal late in the game, right around the time we're chanting "Can't Help Falling In Love?" Someone...to be there...for me.

 

Y'know what happens every time the Timbers give up a goal late in the game, right around the time we chant "Can't Help But Falling In Love?" We come to realize that we don't know what we got...till it's gooo-ow-wooonnnne. (Followed by the total realization of learning what we had...two extra points.)

Believe it or not, some people get bent out of shape about this stuff. They'll scream "it's tradition" every time I whine about this chant going down at every game. To that, I say: y'know what else was a tradition? Slavery. And we managed to end that one, so I think we can reconfigure moving a slow-tempo chant to a less-impactful point in the game. Put it in the first half, I really don't care. I'm not asking to eliminate it. But dropping it right in the likely flashpoint of a match makes no sense to me.

Alright I'm done. Im'ma go make a snack.

 This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the 107ist or the TA.

Despite the slow start to 2014, the Timbers still have a chance to win all four major competitions they're a part of this season.

With CONCACAF Champions League that fourth competition (apart from MLS Cup, US Open Cup, and the Supporters' Shield), why not get up to speed on where the Timbers may be traveling internationally, even though the draw won't take place for a couple months?

The CONCACAF Champions League draws teams into three pots - Pot A, B, and C - based on the strength of their competition and where they finished. The Timbers are in pot B, the "middle" pot. There are eight groups of 3 teams apiece with the winner of the group advancing to the quarterfinals. This means the Timbers will play a home and away with two other teams.

Kansas City and New York are in Pot A for winning the MLS Cup and Supporters' Shield. D.C. United finds themselves in pot B for winning US Open Cup Pot B also hosts the Canadian Voyageur's Cup champion, so the Timbers won't be going to Canada for the group stage of this competition.

The Timbers can't play a team from the U.S. or Mexico in the group stage, which limits the options of clubs they can be drawn against in Pot A. They also can't play two clubs from the same country in the group stage.

POT A

The Timbers will be drawn against the champions of Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, or Panama.

Because these leagues split their season up into Opening and Closing seasons ("Apertura y Clausura"), this will be the team which won either their country's Opening or Closing season with the better record. It may not actually be the team with the best aggregate record.

In Costa Rica, Alajuelense, from a San Jose suburb, won the Apertura. Alajuelense, Saprissa and Herediano look probable to qualify for the Clausura playoffs, and Saprissa and Herediano could still overtake Alajuelense in the aggregate table, so the Timbers will be drawn against one of these three teams. All of them are from the general vicinity of San Jose, Costa Rica's capital.

In Honduras, Real Espana, from San Pedro Sula, the world's most dangerous city by murder rate, won the Apertura. They will be in Pool A unless Real Sociedad or Olimpia can overtake them in the aggregate table in the final game of the season on Sunday. The standings show Real Espana tied on points with Real Sociedad and one point ahead of Olimpia, but Real Espana have a better goal difference than either team.

In Guatemala, Comunicaciones won the Apertura and currently top the aggregate table by a point over Municipal with four to play, making the Guatemala City club the likely team to come out of Pot A.

And in Panama, Tauro won the Apertura, but have struggled in the Clausura (currently 8th from 10). With 4 games to play, Tauro have the best chance of coming out of Pot A, but a number of teams could overtake them in the aggregate table, all of which would participate in the playoffs. Panama City plays host to all of these possible teams.

POT C

Pot C finds a number of interesting teams awaiting the Timbers. The Timbers could be drawn against the Clausura winners in Guatemala (from anywhere in the country), El Salvador (possibly Isidro Metapan, a rural-ish team), or Panama (a Panama City club). Nicaragua has one berth, occupied by Real Esteli, from Esteli, a three-hour bus ride north of Managua. Belize will also bring its aggregate winner to the pot, but recent developments in that country's football association make it probable a Costa Rican team will take over Belize's spot yet again.

The Caribbean clubs recently allocated their slots in the CFU Cup. The qualifying Caribbean clubs: Bayamon of Puerto Rico, Waterhouse of Jamaica, and Alpha United of Guyana (a country in South America, but culturally a part of the Caribbean. It's east of Venezuela.) The Timbers could travel or host any of those teams.

Whatever the draw, it's sure to be interesting come September, and given the Timbers' current struggles it's possible they won't be favorites to advance from the group.

So, whether it be Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Belize, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, or Guyana, it's obvious the Timbers most interesting international trip to date will happen in 2014.

And until then, beat S**ttle.

—by Garrett Dittfurth

*this is just me writing and not reflective of the 107ist board or anyone but myself*

So where are we at? Five games, 3 draws and 2 losses. I'm not quite ready to toss the towel in yet and repeat 2012. We have definitely had some problems. Our inability to defend set pieces is troubling considering that was a problem last year going into it and nobody bothered to address it this year. Paparatto is looking like a huge bust at this point. Personally I'd rather The Great Wall of Gambia be back in there and to be really honest I'm not a big fan of that pairing either. I'm a pragmatist in pretty much all things and that pairing appears to be the lesser of two evils at this point. Futty has been around for years and while he is a great person we know his limitations as a defender. Kah is also a good person, but a walking red card waiting to happen. Paparatto is the new guy and there are only so many excuses one can make that he is the new guy trying to figure his way out in MLS.

Fortunately our offense seems to have found their way against Seattle. Chara, on his birthday (congrats, dude!), was nails. It's almost like he spent 3 years luring scouts into thinking he had no nose for the goal just for this day. Maybe it was luck but if he can recreate that performance a few times a season that bodes nothing but good things for the Timbers. Urruti impressed me the entire match. He made smart runs and made Seattle's defense pay a lot of attention to him. When he had his opportunity he capitalized with a golazo. If he is able to add on to this nothing but good things will come.

I want to point something out. History. I am not trying to go all OG on some people but I really want to point it out because I think it makes us who we are. The Timbers have never been good for long stretches. The NASL Timbers had a magical run. The USL Timbers had a great run in 2004 then crashed out of the playoffs. There was also an unexpected run in 2007 followed by another crash out in the playoffs. 2008 was a nightmare and then the push for MLS happened. Every borderline MLS player in USL wanted to be here because of where the team was going. 2009 was amazing...right up until Cameron Knowles had his leg broke in Montreal and the wheels came off. Crashed out of the playoffs again. 2010 was a weird year. It was mostly a MLS tryout for a lot of players and nothing ever seemed right as the coach played players who they felt might have a spot on the MLS roster rather than USL players that were better (cough cough Scot Thompson).

I'm not being critical to management regarding 2010. I understand their position as I'm a pragmatist. I still want to make a point regarding our history. We have traditionally had a mediocre to bad team. Sometimes we are good. What has never changed is our commitment to supporting our team. We were there in 2006, 2007, 2008, etc.

Years ago there was a message board. It was the way everyone interacted with the Timbers outside of going to games. Allison Andrews was the moderator and it was called Soccer City USA. SCUSA for short. At some point it devolved but without it I can guarantee you we wouldn't be in MLS. One of the themes that came about when SCUSA was still around was the idea, "so what if we suck," (#SWIWS). Yes I want to win. Yes I would prefer to trash talk my friends in Seattle rather than having to deal with their barbs about our terrible defense. You know what though...looking back I had a hell of a lot of fun in 2012 despite the fact the team was miserable in almost every regard.

Buck up. The season is long and we're just getting on the horse. It may be a bumpy ride but I can guarantee you no matter what once you're done it is going to be a lot of fun. We may scream a lot during the ride both in joy and pain but just let it ride. You're a Portland Timbers fan. This is how the ride is supposed to be. Nothing new going on here. Own it.

—by Chris Rifer

Progress isn’t always a pretty process.  And Saturday afternoon, the Timbers showed significant signs of progress before crashing to a disappointing 4-4 draw against the Seattle Sounders.

Signs of hope weren’t the first thought that crossed the Timbers faithful’s mind.  Rather, it was an old foe; set piece defending.  After Seattle earned an early third minute corner, Gonzalo Pineda found Jalil Anibaba beyond the far post where he fired the ball across the face of goal for Kenny Cooper to poke it home.  With Will Johnson screened off, Alvas Powell failed to aggressively attack the ball or close down Anibaba, giving the centerback a rare opportunity for an easy assist.

The Timbers didn’t waste any time getting back in the game, however.   In the 10^th minute, Diego Chara forced a giveaway in Seattle’s end and drove right at the Sounders defense.  With Chara’s reputation preceding him, the Sounders didn’t close him down and the Colombian punished Seattle by burying his shot from the top of the box inside the side netting.

The action didn’t abate.  One minute later, Cooper floated away from Norberto Paparatto and volleyed DeAndre Yedlin’s cross on frame, but Andrew Weber made a diving save.  Powell gathered the rebound, shook Clint Dempsey and Cooper on his way up the touchline, and sent an excellent long switch to Darlington Nagbe who made a fool of Yedlin and ran at the Sounders defense before ripping a shot off the post from the corner of the area.

Three minutes later, Nagbe, firmly implanted in Yedlin’s head, drove at the young right back and left the ball for an overlapping Michael Harrington.  Mikey drove byline and fed Diego Valeri at the near corner of the six-yard box where he spun and fired off the underside of the bar and in.

But the Timbers were punished for another major defensive lapse ten minutes later.  After Paparatto shanked an unhurried clearance, Cooper and Alonso combined headers to Obafemi Martins.  The Nigerian slid the ball past a helpless Pa Modou Kah to Clint Dempsey who slotted easily past Weber to level the score at two just 24 minutes in.

As the half progressed, the game settled into more of a rhythm.  That rhythm didn’t extend to the Timbers’ defense.  Seattle found a free head in the box in the 39^th minute when Micheal Azira looped a long cross to Chad Marshall at the back post.  Marshall beat Powell to the ball, but his header was palmed away by Weber.

After a dreadful opening 40 minutes, Maxi Urruti got into the game in the 41^st in very nearly a big way.  After the Diegos conspired to turn Seattle over and get the Timbers out on the break, Urruti stuck a left footed shot from a tight angle on the left side of the box across the face of goal, but the ball eluded a finishing touch and skidded just wide of the far post.

In one way, the second half began much like the first as Seattle earned set pieces that the Timbers struggled to clear.  Portland kept the ball out of the net, however, which is more than Seattle could say.

In the 55^th minute, after the Timbers drove up the right, Kalif Alhassan played centrally to Chara.  Form there Diego—yes, Diego Chara again—ran at the Seattle backline and, feeling no pressure, let loose from 20 yards again for his second stunning tally of the game.

If Jalil Anibaba hadn’t had a bad enough game having had a hand in three Timbers goals already, Cooper made things worse for his fellow rookie Sounder two minutes later.  Cooper, under some pressure from Will Johnson, played an ill-advised back pass to Anibaba.  Cooper’s pass never reached its target, however, as Urruti stepped in, burst through, and curled a beauty of a ball inside the far post.

That should have put the nail in the coffin.  And, even if that weren’t enough, the Timbers were unlucky not to really put things out of reach in the 65^th minute when Paparatto, who missed a good chance on a set piece in the first half, got head to Valeri’s corner kick only to put the ball off the underside of the bar and Yedlin’s face—which may have been in the goal—and onto the goal line, where Seattle cleared.

But, once again, old and new foes joined together to burst the Timbers’ bubble.  Throughout 2013, the Timbers struggled mightily to close out desperate opponents throwing numbers forward.  In disappointing road draws at Chicago and Vancouver, and even the 2-1 away win at Seattle in the playoffs, the Timbers looked overrun and gave up crucial goals late in games.

On Saturday, from the 75^th minute to the 91^st, with the Sounders hurling players into the Timbers’ defensive third, Seattle took nine shots to the Timbers zero.  Portland couldn’t relieve the pressure, and while the Timbers dodged bullets for the first ten minutes, their luck quickly ran out.

In the 85^th minute, Harrington looked to have Lamar Neagle bottled up on the Sounders’ right side, but the substitute turned Harrington and made a beeline for the box.  Paparatto stepped up to contain Neagle while Kah stepped to cover Martins.  Neagle’s cross went through to Dempsey, however, whose late run was covered by Chara initially but an asleep-to-the-danger Powell failed to anticipate his arrival, and the suddenly on-form American finished past a diving Weber.

If the old demon haunted the Timbers, the new one sealed their fate.  After Diego Chara intervened on Obafemi Martins’ plans to unlock the Timbers’ defense, Ben Zemanski failed to anticipate the intercepting touch, and when Yedlin got there first, Zip clattered into Zip and Dempsey buried the ensuing penalty to round out his hat trick.  After being stingy in putting opponents on the spot a year ago, the Timbers frittered away two points on Saturday with their fourth penalty in five games.

The teams traded half chances in the closing minutes, but after eight goals and three leads squandered, the game didn’t have any drama left in it.  The Timbers’ offensive awakening soothes the nerves of those concerned that the offense may be in the throes of a long-term crisis.  But as one concern wanes another waxes and Portland’s leaky defense on Saturday begs another old question the Timbers have had to answer before.

Is the defense good enough to allow the Timbers to win games?

Timbers Grades

Andrew Weber, 5 Certainly had a couple nice saves, but there was one to be made on the third concession.  In his two weeks at the helm, Weber proved himself competent, but far form a savior.  The Timbers defense needs a savior right now.

Michael Harrington, 4 Nice run and cross on Valeri’s goal, but committed a cardinal sin in letting Neagle get loose on the third concession.

Norberto Paparatto, 3 Put in as poor a first half as Providence Park has seen since Mikael Silvestre against New York in 2013 and Seattle’s tactics occasionally resembled kick-the-ball-at-Norberto.  Patched things together a little bit in the second half, however, and came oh-so-close to a goal that would have made a whale of a difference.

Pa Modou Kah, 4 Another game, another yellow card for Kah.  When the going gets rough on the backline, Kah gets reckless.  Which isn’t an ideal reaction.

Alvas Powell, 4 Saturday was a good example of what to expect from Powell.  Some of it was good—even very good—such as his 11^th minute marauding and long ball.  But some of it was quite bad, as Powell was primarily responsible for the first concession and secondarily responsible for the third.  Such is the nature of gambling by starting Powell over Jewsbury.  What the Timbers gain in athleticism and width, they lose in consistency and recognition.  On Saturday, Porter both won and lost that gamble.

Will Johnson, 6.5 Rumors of Johnson’s demise were always a little exaggerated.  While his play thus far this season wasn’t bad, it was somewhat short of what we have come to expect from Will.  There was no disappointment on Saturday.  Johnson was very good.

Diego Chara, 7.5 This would be higher for obvious reasons, but Chara gets docked just a little bit for sharing a bit of culpability on the third concession.  While, in theory, Powell should be picking up Dempsey’s run in the box and Chara should be breaking off at the top to keep the Timbers’ shape, the defender passing off an attacker shouldn’t do so unless he knows his teammate is going to pick him up.

Darlington Nagbe, 5.5 Dominant for the first twenty minutes, but his hamstring limited him substantially thereafter.  While Nagbe popped up sporadically throughout the game, his workrate, pace, and ability to break defenders down one-on-one was clearly limited by his hamstring.

Diego Valeri, 8 Last week was no fluke.  He’s back.

Kalif Alhassan, 7 It’s going to be hard to take Kalif out of the lineup.  We’ve seen this in spurts from Alhassan, but on Saturday was Kalif at his facilitating best.  Chara, Valeri, and for periods Nagbe got the headlines, but Kalif was the one unselfishly presenting himself in the right spots for combinations to set them loose.

Maxi Urruti, 5 – His first forty minutes were poor, as Urruti struggled to find his role in the offense.  In his worst moment, Urruti ran down a teammate on a breakaway like he was a defender.  In his best, he curled in a beauty of a goal and showed some early signs of starting to figure out his role in the attack.

Frederic Piquionne, 4.5 Worked a little more effectively as a target, but is still far from the form the Timbers need from him.

Ben Zemanski, 3 Came into the game a step off the pace, which the Timbers paid for dearly.

Steve Zakuani, 5 What a spot in which to come into the game.  Didn’t make much of a difference either way.

Preseason Prediction: Timbers 3, Sounders 0.  Johnson, Fernandez, Zakuani.

Actual Result: Timbers 4, Sounders 4.  See above.

Onward, Rose City!

—by Garrett Dittfurth

Surprise surprise surprise (say that like Gomer Pyle) the MLS disciplinary committee has rescinded Michael Harrington and Je-Vaughn Watson's red cards. In other news the assistant referee that decided he wanted to make his presence know is also the AR2 this weekend. His name is Kermit Quisenberry. It'll be fun to keep an eye on him. I'm sure PRO will totally do the same thing *rolling eyes repeatedly*.

It's cool though. Even though MLS totally agrees with Caleb Porter they're going to fine him anyway. Gotta slow clap you, MLS. You really know how to make a point. Your representatives in the disciplinary office unanimously agreed with Porter and you're still going to fine him. Good work. You never cease to amaze.

Good things to watch for this weekend from The Axe.

This is just too funny to not post. He says the MLS should get rid of the salary cap (cause that would be an actual disaster for every team outside of NY, LA, and Seattle). But he a wise old man who can't spell on twitter so lets get more into his opinions, which are better spoken than tweeted. Eddie Johnson, the bro rolling around with his Louis Vuitton bags, was upset last year when MLS gave Clint Dempsey crazy money and turned into locker room cancer after that. In a sense I get Eddie's point. He was arguably the best player they had and was making a journeyman's salary. But it's still hilarious to relive the temper tantrum that probably ruined their season. Schadenfreude.

This is going to draw some ire from the faithful. Kenny Cooper is super psyched on the rivalry now that he's in Seattle. You remember him as the guy who is nice and really likes pasta. Start marking your tallies up because this could be fun. I have question that I want answered this week. Who falls down more? Kenny Cooper or Max Urruti?

Orlando City is making some news. Seems like some pretty good hires. Circle Orlando in 2015 as a destination if its available. That will be a fun trip.

If you need some entertainment Ian Darke will provide it for you.

Evan Dabby is gone. Best of luck to him.

Tons of legal obstacles with the Miami franchise. I imagine there is going to be a lot of grief when when it all comes down to it.

Saturday is a big day, and, as with any derby match, emotions will be running high. We cannot directly control what happens on the pitch, but we can control what happens in the terraces.

One of the biggest areas of contention within the TA the past few years has related to seat saving. The Timbers Army has a very simple guideline on this: You can save one seat for yourself, and one for a mate. You need 6 seats for your crew? Great - make sure 3 of you are in there to save the 3 extra seats.

When someone strolls in and empties a backpack full of No Pity scarves they're disrespecting their fellow supporters. No single issue causes more problems in the North End than egregious seat saving.

Don't do it.

Don't be an asshat - It really is that simple.

But, what do you do if you see someone putting themselves above everyone else in the section and saving a swath of seats? Take the time to educate them - explain the 1 Scarf and 1 Seat ethos. If they decide that they are going to be a certifiable asshat, then there isn't much you can do at that point. Shake your head, take a modicum of solace in knowing  that karma is a bitch sometimes, and find yourself another spot.

Realize that the only thing that will be accomplished by escalating the situation is the creation of a bunch of negative energy and anxiety. Do you really want to spend the next few hours pissed off at someone who is so self-involved that they don't give a shit about how you feel? It's literally like slamming your head against the wall - the wall doesn't really care, and you get a concussion.

In closing, let's work to make sure all of our energy is directed at supporting the boys at the pitch versus creating drama by acting like spoiled five year olds who feel they're entitled to behave in whatever way makes them feel the best.

One seat + one scarf.

The Timbers make their only 2014 regular-season appearance in Seattle on Sunday, July 13th, the same day as the final match of the World Cup.  This should make for an epic event in the annals of Timbers’ away-day lore.

Although match tickets for Timbers Army travelers are not yet on sale, we wanted to provide a few likely parameters of this year's ticket availability.

As this is the Timbers' only regular-season match in Seattle this year, we anticipate demand for TA tickets will be exceptionally high.  Consequently, we expect to offer tickets to 107ist members only, with each member able to purchase just one ticket per 107ist membership.

Shortly after the offering to 107ist members the remaining seats will be offered to the general public. We do not expect there to be many left at that point. If you are not a 107ist member then become one here for your best chance at these tickets.

As with prior years, we expect to offer a bus/match combination package, as well as a match-only option.

We'll post additional details when they're available, and we hope to do that soon.  In the meantime, to increase the likelihood of joining the TA for this trip, please make sure your 107ist membership is up to date!

—by Chris Rifer

The Timbers offense is a mess.  Sure, there is plenty of on-ball talent in the Timbers attack, but no amount of quality can compensate for an offense’s failure to function off the ball.  Until Saturday, the only thing keeping the Timbers in games was the Timbers’ imperfect, but still solid defense.[1]  Until Saturday.

Portland’s backline broke in Frisco on Saturday evening, as F.C. Dallas limped their way to a 2-1 win over Portland.  And as the Timbers’ backline crumbled, so seemingly did Portland’s prospects for earning results any time soon.

The first twenty minutes looked awfully familiar to Timbers supporters.  Plenty of possession, plenty of good on-ball play, and nobody doing anything off the ball to present themselves for opportunities.  The Timbers weren’t short on chances, but those they created early were typically of the type that has been the staple of the Timbers’ very bland offensive diet this year.

In the 6^th minute, Maxi Urruti took a ball off of Michel’s foot after the Brazilian was caught in possession,[2] and ripped a shot well wide from the top of the box under a potentially felonious challenge.

Speaking of felonious, Dallas was very lucky not to be reduced to ten men four minutes later when Jack Jewsbury won a ball from Fabian Castillo only to be “tripped” in the face by the young Colombian.[3]  Having dodged that bullet, the only thing criminal about the Burn’s play two minutes later was the amount of space Dallas allowed Diego Valeri 25 yards from goal.  The Argentine, however, pulled his effort wide.

It was even better from the Timbers in the 22^nd minute.  After Valeri and Gaston Fernadnez played a slick series of combination off of each other, Fernandez set Valeri through for a promising shot from the top of the box, but Chris Seitz saved and Urruti strayed offside to kill any opportunity of a putback.

If the first twenty minutes inspired hope, the next ten were equally disconcerting.  In the 27^th minute, Dallas worked the ball nicely around the edge of the final third and released Jair Benitez on the left wing after Darlington Nagbe became momentarily entranced by the ball.  Benitez found Je-Vaughan Watson at the back post, who beat Pa Modou Kah and Michael Harrington in an aerial challenge, but his header looped off the top of the bar and was cleared away by Norberto Paparatto.

Two minutes later, Benitez was at pace on the wing again, this time with Jewsbury covering.  Benitez sent an early cross into the box for Blas Perez, whom Paparatto had somehow let loose, but Andrew Weber came off his line well to block Perez’s shot.

An up and down game turned bizarre in the 39^th minute when referee Sorin Stoica sent off both Michael Harrington and Watson for a phantom fight that no camera caught and, if postgame comments are any indication, nobody may have actually participated in.[4]

If losing Harrington was bad, however, matters got a whole lot worse for the Timbers just before halftime when Darlington Nagbe pulled his hamstring making a cleverly awkward pass.  The pass was successful, but the pulled hamstring came back to haunt the Timbers almost immediately.

After Nagbe couldn’t stay with Benitez on the left wing, the temperamental left back looped a cross to Kellyn Acosta beyond the far post where Acosta squared a headed pass to Perez at the mouth for an easy finish.  Norberto Paparatto was nowhere to be found in a play in which Dallas simply created numbers advantages in the box to leave Kah and Jewsbury little chance.

Despite each team playing with ten men, the second half presented a paucity of genuine chances for each side.  While the Timbers squeezed the trigger on a lot of shots in the second half, none of them presented much in the way of danger.

In fact, the only thing that seriously troubled Dallas was an ill-advised pass.  After Paparatto stepped up and headed to Will Johnson, the captain played to Valeri who hit and outstanding pass to play Urruti through between Stephen Keel and Matt Hedges.  With Kalif Alhassan making a good run to his right that was cut off by Hedges beside Urruti, the Argentine head-scratchingly tried to hopelessly play wide to Kalif.  The soccer gods had seen enough, though.  They couldn’t take any more of the Timbers’ offensive impotence, perhaps best encapsulated by Urruti’s mind-numbing impossible pass to Alhassan in a situation where he clearly just needs to take his (not insignificant) chance. Out of pure frustration, the fates deflected the ball off of Hedges’ foot and looped it into the back of the net.

There is simply no other explanation.

The Timbers couldn’t back their way into a second goal, however.  Whenever Portland found space—which was frequently as a result of the double sending off and Dallas’s makeshift central midfield—the attacker on the ball, which more often than not was Valeri, looked up to see his teammates blinking back at him, waiting for Diego to work some magic.[5]

There was magic yet to be made, but it wasn’t the type the Timbers would like to think was real.  In the 84^th minute, after the Timbers cleared a Michel free kick, the ball pinged around to the feet of Paparatto.  The new centerback failed to clear, however, and Mauro Diaz made the Timbers pay with a beautiful turn and strike that sealed the game.

The Timbers’ sleepy offense stayed in hibernation Saturday, as Portland failed to truly take advantage of a severely weakened Dallas central midfield and extra space generated by both teams playing down a man.  But the Timbers’ real undoing in Frisco was an exposed defense that made too many mistakes to permit Portland to benefit from their good fortune.

Match Observations

Where’s Zemanski?

I was shocked Caleb Porter opted for Alvas Powell instead of Ben Zemanski at halftime.  First, while Powell wasn’t disastrous, he certainly wasn’t anywhere near good.  Zemanski gives you every bit of defense Powell provides with much more going forward both in situations where he is halfway forward and combining with the midfielders or when he drives to the byline.

More important, however, is putting Zemanski on the field would have poised the Timbers to make their next move without having to make a substitution.  When the Timbers needed to chase a goal, Porter went to a 3-5-2 and had to withdraw one of his better crossers in Jack Jewsbury for Frederic Piquionne.  If Zemanski were in the game, the Timbers could have pushed Ben to holding midfield and Will Johnson into an attacking role, accomplishing the same (and arguably better) result without having to burn a sub.

2013 Comparisons

It’s time for comparisons to 2013 to put up or shut up.  Yes, the Timbers were less-than-inspiring through Week Four in 2013.  But that turned around dramatically in Week Five with one of the best performances of the year.

Frankly, I think the current Timbers’ problems are very different, and arguably more fundamental.  In 2013, it was a matter of tinkering with the shape and getting everybody used to their tactical roles.  This year, however, the shape and identity are relatively clear.  There’s a chance the Timbers just don’t have the right players to execute it.

Even as far back as preseason, Porter noted that everybody in the Timbers’ attacking four is a passer.  This is exactly right.  And it’s also a huge problem.  The Timbers have shown a propensity to overpass at times in 2014, but that’s actually not the biggest problem.

The biggest problem is none of the Timbers’ passers seem to have any idea what they’re doing off the ball.  The reality is creativity on the ball is only as good as the players off the ball getting in position not only to receive the pass, but also to generate genuine scoring chances.  As Valeri can tell you from his experience on Saturday, nice passes to players who haven’t done the work to bend the backline out of shape or put themselves in good scoring positions are prettier than they are productive.

Thus, it’s this lack of movement that turns backlines of Kellyn Acosta, Matt Hedges, Stephen Keel, and Jair Benitez into impenetrable obstacles.  Dallas’s backline isn’t bad, but it’s far from elite, and the Timbers really had no questions to ask of it despite Valeri playing well and the Timbers having their way with a makeshift Dallas midfield.

Which brings us back to our passers and the biggest worry for the Timbers in 2014.  What if moving off the ball just isn’t these guys’ game?  It’s one thing to plug a player into a slightly different role than he’s been in before or even to drill a new tactical setup.  It’s another thing altogether, however, to take an on-ball specialist and ask him to be the creative force away from the play.  The former takes a matter of weeks or a couple months.  The latter can take years, if it ever happens at all.  Unless Caleb Porter finds a way to make that light bulb go on for his passers in relatively short order, 2014 could be a very long season.

Timbers Grades

Andrew Weber, 5 Weber was solid, if far form spectacular.  Neither goal was really his fault, although there is an argument there were heroics to be made on both that Weber didn’t come close to.  Otherwise had a couple nice moments, but, frankly, nothing extraordinary.

Michael Harrington, 4 Was probably hard done by the sending off, though the lack of video makes it impossible to know for sure.  Otherwise, didn’t have his best game, most notably when Watson beat him for the header in the 27^th.

Pa Modou Kah, 3.5 With Paparatto struggling beside him, Kah’s been asked to be the alpha man in the middle.  Unfortunately, Kah tends to border on lunacy in such a role, as his stoppage time tackle demonstrated.

Norberto Paparatto, 2.5 Mistakes define defenders, and Papa made them in spades on Saturday.  On the first concession, Paparatto abandoned Kah and Jewsbury to defend grass and on the second failed to clear a ball that fell to his feet.  The Timbers will want to stick with Paparatto to help him adjust to the league, but at what cost? The truth is Norberto’s fingerprints are on all four concessions that have taken place with him on the field.

Jack Jewsbury, 5 The centerback problems have put the Timbers fullbacks in an impossible position.  They’re being asked to pinch in to help cover the middlemen, defend the flanks, and get up and contribute to the offense.  It’s simply impossible.  To the naked eye, Jewsbury looked involved in both concessions, but upon closer examination, Jack was only trying to cover for his teammates’ mistakes.

Will Johnson, 4.5 Will didn’t have as bad a day as many suggested, as his distribution was right all night and helped the Timbers to quite a bit of midfield success.  But his finishing was just as disastrous as it looked.

Diego Chara, 5.5 The Timbers defensive midfield was pushed deeper than usual, which resulted in six of Chara’s seven recoveries occurring within 35 yards of the Timbers’ goal.  This isn’t Chara’s best defending position, as he’s much more careful about committing fouls and therefore doesn’t sidle as aggressively or effectively.

Gaston Fernandez, 3 Disappeared for extended stretches on Saturday, as he is wont to do from time to time on the wing.  Had the one nice moment of combination with Valeri, but otherwise had little genuine impact.  Still, I had hoped we’d see him moved up top.

Diego Valeri, 6.5 Once it went 10 v. 10 with Nagbe coming off injured, this was Valeri’s game.  He looked like Valeri, just without anybody ahead of him being available for anything bona fide.

Darlington Nagbe, 5 Really unfortunate he was forced off.  He would have been a disaster for the Burn with the extra space in midfield.

Maxi Urruti, 3.5 Don’t get me going again on the goal.  That was the garbagest of garbage goals.  In seriousness, though, Urruti is one of the Timbers’ biggest problems when he starts.  Yes, it’s nice that he presses high and logs the miles.  No, his runs within the offense aren’t effective, which presents a problem considering Maxi is the player primarily responsible for that.

Alvas Powell, 4 He came.  He ran.  He got elbowed by Blas Perez.

Kalif Alhassan, 6 Yes, there were the usual Kalif frustrations.  But there is no question that after coming on, Kalif was the offensive player demonstrating the most intent.

Frederic Piquionne, 4 There really should be an opportunity for Freddie to break into the starting eleven.  There really should be.  His play guarantees there won’t be.

Preseason Prediction: Dallas 2, Timbers 0.

Actual Result: Dallas 2, Timbers 1.

Onward Rose City!