Lucas Melano will need to have another big game against Seattle, like he did on July 17, 2015 at Providence Park. Photo by Diego Diaz.
Cascadia Cup Preview: Timbers Look for First Road Win in Seattle
By Ed Pham
July 17th proved to be a good day for the Timbers. At home, against their arch-rival Seattle Sounders, Portland found themselves 3-1 victors. It featured a brace by Diego Valeri, including a wonder goal, and two assists from Lucas Melano. It may have been arguably one of the Timbers’ best games of the season, as they took advantage of the counter and their slumping opponents to see themselves to victory.
However, a lot of things have changed since that mid-July meeting. Nat Borchers is out for the season. No longer is Sigi Schmid with the Sounders. Seattle has a new playmaker in Nicolas Lodeiro. And the Timbers’ opponents this Sunday are currently on a three game unbeaten streak.
Despite their 2-0 loss at RFK Stadium versus D.C. United, the Timbers are still in sixth place in a very competitive Western conference. Two places below them, the Sounders are picking up steam and find themselves five points behind the Timbers. It makes this game that much more important for the Timbers. A win not only could further the gap against their northern rivals, it can potentially deny the Sounders the opportunity at playoffs and eliminate them from Cascadia Cup contention.
There is a lot of pressure on Portland. They only have two wins in their last eight games and have lost three out of their last five matches. They are one of four teams to have yet win a game on the road this year, with an away record of 0-6-6. And coming into Seattle as defending champions, they have a target on their back. Any sort of slip-up in Seattle could potentially be season-changing for the Timbers. There is a lot at stake here in this game, both in momentum heading into the final stretch of the season and in the playoff picture.
How the Timbers lineup against Seattle will be a big question. They had recently been using an experimental 4-4-2 with Fanendo Adi and Jack McInerney up top. With the addition of Lodeiro, the Timbers now have to address a rejuvenated Sounders attack. Defensive midfielder Diego Chara returns to the side after serving his red card suspension from the home match against Sporting Kansas City, which will be a key match-up. If Chara can limit Lodeiro’s presence in the attack and impact on the game, the Timbers could find themselves more comfortable defensively, as that will limit the number of dangerous balls in their defensive third. It’s possible that the Timbers may look to the counter again, by running their well-documented 4-2-3-1 and adding Jewsbury as a second defensive midfield to provide additional cover against Lodeiro.
If Steven Taylor does come into the lineup for Portland, it may address some of the issues that the Timbers had last Saturday, which featured a lot of passive and uninterested defensive play from the backline. Timbers center-back Jermaine Taylor looked very poor against D.C. United, finding himself watching defenders make runs onto the ball and showing a lack of hustle. Alvas Powell seemed to struggle to get into the game as well, mishitting passes and showing disinterest in wanting to defend as well. The Timbers will need to bring that grit, focus, and intensity defensively that they had during their playoff run last year into the game on Sunday. Else, they could find themselves down a couple of goals down and having to trying to dig themselves out of a major hole. That can be rough in a volatile environment like CenturyLink Field.
While Diego Valeri will have to work past Sounders’ Ozzie Alonso in order to create chances for the Timbers, the match-up that could completely shift the midfield in the Timbers’ favor is Darlington Nagbe against Cristian Roldan. With Nagbe’s tendency to go inside and ability to hold the ball, pace, and vision, he will look to be a handful for the second-year Sounders midfielder and surely a point for Portland to exploit in the Sounders’ midfield. The Timbers will need him to make his mark on the game and create chances on the attack. The Sounders will likely look to try to possess the ball as much as they can, so Nagbe’s ability to make the transition and assist in the counter will be very important.
Lucas Melano’s best game of the season was against Seattle on that July afternoon. His darting runs past the full-backs and his pace created constant problems for Seattle. Portland will need him to replicate that kind of performance on Sunday, as that was instrumental to two of the Timbers’ goals. This game could be defining for his lore as a Timber.
There are so many interesting storylines and match-ups for Portland as they head up to Seattle. But it’s about the urgency to get back on track in terms of their march to securing a playoff birth and contending for the MLS Cup trophy again. They need their key players to step up and make an impact when it matters the most. While the Timbers may be winless on the road this year, for them to get their first away win against their arch-rivals would be the perfect way to do so.
Projected lineup for the Timbers: Gleeson – Powell, S. Taylor, Ridgewell, Andriuškevičius (Vytas) – Jewsbury, Chara – Melano, Valeri, Nagbe – Adi
