FRISCO, TX – It was a tough, although, not completely surprising result as the Timbers fell to FC Dallas 4-1 Saturday evening. After gutsy 1-1 first leg result against Club América in CONCACAF Champions League action earlier this week, it was clear the Timbers were set on resting key players against Dallas. The Timbers will head to Mexico City on Wednesday for the second leg against the Liga MX giants, in what could be an unprecedented run in CCL tournament action.
Coach Gio Savarese made seven changes to the lineup, including the MLS debuts of goalkeeper Hunter Sulte and defender Zac McGraw. After turning 19 years old just a few days ago, Sulte became the second-youngest starter in MLS history. The 6’7” homegrown player also became the tallest keeper ever to play in MLS.
FC Dallas quickly overpowered the inexperienced Portland side and found the back of the net twice in the first fourteen minutes of the match. Andrés Ricaurte finished off a nice sequence from teammates Ryan Hollingshead and Freddy Vargas in the 2nd minute, then minutes later it was FC Dallas goalkeeper Phelipe Megiolaro providing the assist to a sprinting Jáder Obrian to make it 2-0.
The Timbers defense looked close to settling down before heading to the locker room for halftime, but Dallas added a third goal in first-half stoppage time. FC Dallas’ Bressan cleaned up a ball initially saved by Sulte to put the game out of reach for the Timbers.
To begin the second half, Gio put a number of his usual starters in the game, and it was a far more competitive Portland side for much of the second half. Diego Valeri, celebrating his 35th birthday, had some excellent 1-2 combination play with Eryk Williamson that resulted in a Williamson goal in the 62nd minute.
More good news for Portland came in the 75th minute when forward Jeremy Ebobisse made his 2021 MLS season debut after dealing with a hamstring injury. While Sebastian Blanco and Jarek Niezgoda are still recovering from ACL injuries, The Timbers add another important attacking piece with the return of Ebobisse.
The match ended 4-1 with FC Dallas tallying another goal in the 85th minute. Dante Sealy finished a nice cross from Franco Jara to earn his first career MLS goal.
After their second leg CCL matchup, the Timbers next MLS opponent will be the Seattle Sounders on Sunday, May 9th at Providence Park.
