Photography by Diego Diaz, Mark Hoffman and Mark Gordon Murray
Captions by Tenzin Choephel
Despite being down two key players to international duty before the start of the game, the Portland Timbers put together a complete performance at Providence Park to the tune of a 2-0 win over FC Dallas.
It was “Mr. Brace” himself, Fanendo Adi, who powered the Timbers through two close range finishes. In the 32nd minute, Sebastian Blanco darted up the middle of the field and found Adi with a through ball. The Nigerian international held off Hernan Grana and tapped the ball past Jesse Gonzalez. In the 71st minute, Adi struck again. A low cross from Dairon Asprilla fell straight to Adi’s feet. Faking out Gonzalez, Adi crushed the ball up the middle to ensure the Timbers had the insurance goal, his 8th of the season. The win moves the Timbers up to 2nd place in the Western Conference.
Love. Unite. Support. Defend.
The Timbers Army celebrated Pride Month with a tifo display before the match and were joined by sailors visiting for the Rose City Festival. The north end was loud as always and were able to celebrate the win with their famous “Tetris” chant at the end of the game – only played when the Timbers win by two goals.
Sailors greet the Timbers Army before the match.
The Timbers Army faithful celebrate Fanendo Adi’s 32nd minute goal.
Injuries Take their Toll
In the first half, Liam Ridgewell went down with a quadricep injury. To make matters worse for the Timbers, Roy Miller went down with an apparent ankle injury in the second half. By the end of the game, the Timbers were playing with two new center backs in Lawrence Olum and Amobi Okugo. Depth will be tested heading into the U.S. Open Cup match against the Seattle Sounders on Tuesday.
Maxi Urruti lands on Roy Miller’s ankle in the first half. The lingering injury would cause Miller to leave the game in the second half.
Wingers Delight
While Adi may have gotten the goals, it was his outside wings who set him up. Sebastian Blanco and Dairon Asprilla attacked the Dallas back line with pace and linking up with Diego Valeri. Blanco found room cutting inside and attacking down the flank on Hernan Grana.
It was Asprilla’s best performance to date according to Head Coach Caleb Porter during his post game press conference. The Colombian caused fits and displayed his dribbling skills including a nutmeg in the 76th minute on Aaron Guillen that left Timbers fans in awe. Asprilla created five chances, more than Dallas had the entire game.
Asprilla beats Guillen with a sublime nutmeg in the 76th minute. He would hit Diego Valeri whose shot was just over the bar.
Wall of Defense
Despite Ridgewell and Miller’s injuries, the Timbers back line held up against Dallas’ high powered attacking four. The depth of the team was on full display through Lawrence Olum and Amobi Okugo, while Zarek Valentin and Vytas put it solid shifts at outside back. Timbers keeper, Jake Gleeson didn’t need to make many saves but he came up clutch when it mattered. In the 22nd minute, Dallas had their most threatening opportunity through a Roland Lamah shot in the the box. Gleeson was able to get a hand on the ball and Valentin was able to clear it before it crossed the goal line. This was the Timbers 3rd clean sheet this season.
Dallas’ most threatening opportunity was saved by Gleeson and cleared by Valentin in the 22nd minute.
The Incredible Adi
The Timbers striker is one of the strongest hold up 9’s in MLS and it showed against Dallas. Adi physically frustrated Atiba Harris and Walker Hume. Both could not match up against Adi and the Nigerian was able to power his way to two goals, while allowing Blanco, Valeri and Asprilla the ability to dart forward in the attack. Adi was on a five game goalless streak before his brace on Saturday. He’s now tied with Valeri with eight goals on the season.
Adi celebrates his brace with teammate Diego Chara.
On the Road Again
After two wins in a row, the Timbers will start their U.S. Open Cup campaign against their bitter rivals the Seattle Sounders on Tuesday. Depth will be tested with international duties and the injuries from the FC Dallas game. The confines of the Starfire Sports Complex has historically been a hard place to play for the Timbers, but the last the time the two teams faced off was the infamous “Red Card Wedding” in which the team pulled off a 3-1 victory.
Tenzin Choephel is a Portland Timbers contributor. He can be found on Twitter at @TenzinTChoephel covering the Portland Timbers and Major League Soccer.
