A Good Point

*Cover photo credit to Rolan Johnson/Cascadia FC*

The Portland Timbers did not complete a 9-point week, but they did try their hardest to do so. Their busy week ends with a 2-2 draw at home against the Houston Dynamo.

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The visitors began this game on the front foot, and they took the lead in the 9th minute after a Hector Herrera free kick bounced off of Cristhian Paredes’ backside and Sebastian Kowalczyk slid the ball into the net. Very bad start for Portland. But they slowly grew into the game, and pushed for the equalizer. That equalizer came when Evander played a through ball for Jonathan Rodriguez, and Felipe Mora put Rodriguez’s square ball into the back of the net. 1-1, 37 minutes in. Portland would have loved for the first half to be longer, but that scoreline held as they entered halftime with considerable momentum.

That momentum didn’t carry over to the start of the second half. Houston retook the lead after Kamal Miller’s poor pass was intercepted, and Herrera fed Coco Carasquilla who slotted it past Maxime Crepeau for the 2-1 lead in the 50th minute. Quite a kick in the teeth, and a very avoidable one. But the Timbers kept pushing, and several half-chances failed to result in the equalizer. Then Nathan Fogaca entered the game. He drew a foul on the right wing, and headed home the resulting free-kick in the 76th minute. Portland spent the rest of the game trying to find the winner, but all they got were two crossbars and a draw.

Some draws feel like wins, some draws feel like losses, and some feel like a draw. Tonight’s draw certainly felt like a draw, but it also felt like a missed opportunity. The Timbers’ lack of discipline on Houston’s first goal resulted in a golden opportunity that couldn’t afford to give up. Miller’s bad pass turned into another golden chance for the Dynamo. Add that to several missed chances on the attacking end and the Timbers definitely got the result that they deserved. But all I wanted from this game was a Timbers team that played with confidence. And Portland definitely did that.

Houston won the possession battle 55-45, but the Timbers were the better team. This is what makes the Houston Dynamo a perfect measuring stick for Portland. Houston could do whatever they wanted in the two games against Portland last year, but both of their meetings in 2024 favored the Timbers. Houston has a defined identity: creating chances through good spells of possession and using the ball to both attack and defend. Portland isn’t on their level yet, and the Dynamo could definitely use some more attacking talent. Every time I see Ben Olsen’s Dynamo I am impressed. Tonight, they did impress, but Portland gave them a serious run for their money. The difference in this game was a couple of missed chances and a couple of defensive errors. Somehow, it’s a perfect encapsulation of the Timbers’ season so far. I wanted this team to show confidence; something I didn’t see in any of the meetings between Houston and Portland last year. 

My word, this map is glorious. Portland was able to control the midfield and severely limited Houston’s influence in their half of the pitch. Sure, the faint orange streak on the right side of Portland’s defense is something we’re kind of expecting to see, but this graph perfectly illustrates why I’m very happy with tonight’s performance. Phil Neville said that the San Jose game was “a turning point,” and now the players have the confidence to play their own game, not react to how other teams play. Excellent work.

I would like to talk about the refereeing, and there’s a lot of negativity about tonight’s officiating. However, I thought that Guido Gonzales Jr. wasn’t any worse than the average PRO referee, but he wasn’t exemplary either. Let’s start with the negatives. A total of 10 yellow cards were handed out. Yellow cards are important because they act as cautions and are supposed to be used to punish repeat offenders or players who commit bad fouls. Some players got booked for dissent, delaying restarts, and hard fouls tonight. Dissent is subjective, delaying restarts should always be a yellow card offense, and hard fouls are subjective. One thing that PROReferees always struggle with is booking players for time-wasting and diving. Houston is no stranger to flopping, and they were doing it from the second they took the lead in the 9th minute. Houston also crowded the referee on several occasions, but those confrontations will be punished with a fine rather than on-field discipline. That’s a systemic failure. When a potential winner from Ibrahim Aliyu was being looked at on VAR, three Dynamo players were crowding the referee. That’s not allowed, and none of them saw any discipline from them. Systemic failures will continue to doom PRO until every referee has some sort of consistency. I didn’t have any issue with most of the on-field calls, but two decisions were unequivocally bad. The first is a phantom foul by Antony that nearly led to a Houston winner. The Dynamo were looking for contact all game, and routinely went down after a slight touch. Horrific call. The second was a yellow card issued to Eryk Williamson a mere seconds after he entered the game. Yellow cards have to mean something, and issuing one to a player right after he comes onto the pitch is a terrible decision. From what I saw, his foul wasn’t even that hard, and it was a sign that nothing would ever truly be punished. However, tonight’s VAR review was exactly what a VAR review should look like. The whole review took less than a minute, and the call was correctly overturned from goal to no goal. Until consistency can be league-wide, bad calls will continue to permeate. No referee is perfect. 

Felipe Mora only played 45 minutes, but he made his mark and scored his team-leading 8th goal. It was a little surprising to see him exit at halftime, but he was feeling some muscle tightness and the coaching staff decided to be cautious with him. I think they made the right call because the gap between Mora and any other striker is massive. Any long-term injury to him could be catastrophic. I’ve said before that the Timbers really need to find another striker this summer because they are missing a true aerial presence and a player like that could really help this attack. 

Jonathan Rodriguez assisted Mora’s goal, and he now has 6g/3a in 13 games. I feel very comfortable in my assessment of him: he’s not a lone striker. That isn’t a knock on him, but once Mora exited the game Rodriguez kept shifting out to the left. But above all, the Uruguayan is an excellent soccer player. He shared the pitch with Hector Herrera, and both players carry themselves in a certain way. Rodriguez is dangerous wherever he is on the pitch. Sometimes he tries to do too much, or he misses big chances, but the best players in the world can’t score every single big chance that comes their way. Volume is still the name of his game. Tonight, Rodriguez did some excellent defensive work and was a threat to score whenever he touched the ball. 

Evander got his assist when his cross found Nathan Fogaca’s head, but his through ball to Rodriguez in the first half was a perfect hockey assist as well. I don’t really know what else I can say about him. He elevates the players around him and isn’t afraid to drive with the ball. He has an uncanny ability to draw fouls and the other players on this team trust him completely. After Diego Chara exited the game, Evander took the armband. He showed so many flashes last year, and he’s finally coming into his own in 2024. 

Santiago Moreno made his first start in a week-and-a-half, and he impressed me with his defense. He won all 5 of his attempted tackles and made 5 recoveries. All of that happened in the first half. It was one of those tackles and recoveries that led to Mora’s goal. But he still isn’t at his best with the ball at his feet around the box. That inconsistency has defined his season, and he still needs to work on his decision-making. His defensive work was instrumental in that first half, and I love seeing him add that layer to his game. After Chara exited, Moreno moved inside and played as a twin 8 alongside Evander. It was a position I thoroughly enjoyed watching him play last year, and his flexibility must be a joy for Phil Neville. 

Cristhian Paredes showed why he is behind David Ayala in the pecking order tonight. The Paraguayan is at his best when the Timbers are out of possession because he’s so inconsistent on the ball. However, he is capable of playing excellent passes. He looked a lot better in the second half and is still at his best when he is a supersub. 

Diego Chara picked up his 5th yellow card today, and he will be suspended for next week’s game in St. Louis. I thought the booking was a little harsh, but persistent infringement is something that should always be yellow carded. Sometimes referees don’t know how to handle Chara, and any challenge from him is always an incentive for an opposing player to flop. Sigh. Portland’s biggest question since Chara arrived in 2011 has always been, “What do you do when he’s out of the lineup?” But the answer to that question is on the roster at this very moment. 

David Ayala didn’t start tonight, and it’s understandable given the herculean shifts the young Argentine has already put in this week. A bit of rotation was a perfectly fine choice to make. Time to talk about his position. For 7 minutes, he played as a lone 6 and looked incredibly comfortable. The quality of his passes has never been in question, but opposing players have to fight to get him off the ball. Tonight, his toughness shone through. With a full week of rest ahead, I expect to see him in the starting lineup next week in St. Louis. That’s the same place where he tore his ACL last year. Time for his recovery to come full circle.

Claudio Bravo made his first start in almost a month, and he looked a little rusty. I’m willing to look past that, but he was more of a liability than an asset tonight. With Kamal Miller heading off to Copa America, the Argentine will be back at left back next week. I hope he’s able to shake off some of that rust before the next game.

Kamal Miller is about to head to Copa America. I’ve already touched on his big error, and he looked better when he moved over to left back late in the game. I hope he has a productive time with his national team and can bring back some of that experience. He’s a locked-in starter when he returns.

Dario Zuparic sits atop the Audacity Meter tonight, and it’s because of one particular moment. In the 44th minute, he lined up a shot from distance that was parried by Houston goalkeeper Andrew Tarbell. The entire stadium responded with a loud chant of “ZUUUUUUUUP!” I’m sure that the Croatian is upset that he has to wait an entire week to play another game of soccer, but since he regained his starting spot the defense has improved. There is no international duty for him, so he will partner with his good friend Zac McGraw for a few weeks. 

Miguel Araujo kept his first clean sheet for the Timbers against Austin, and he didn’t start tonight’s game. But he did enter the game as a sub and made several crucial defensive plays to keep the game tied. Like Miller, I wish him all the best with Peru during Copa America. 

Juan Mosquera wasn’t incredible today, but he also wasn’t a liability. Pretty solid game from him. It might sound odd for me to say this, but I want him to start taking on defenders more. He has the quality, and sometimes he opts for the safer route. Having two maverick fullbacks can bite this team in the ass, but Mosquera has a ton of talent and I would like to see him use more of it. 

There might not be a more polarizing player in Portland than Maxime Crepeau. Is he being let down by his defense or is he just not good enough to start? I think both goals should have been saved, but the defensive mistakes that created those chances aren’t his fault either. However, there is one aspect of his game that no goalkeeper can replicate: distribution. Crepeau completed 9 of 14 long balls and is very good on the ball. I hope that he has a great time at Copa America.

Nathan Fogaca entered as a substitute and scored the equalizing goal. The best part of his game is his tireless work rate and pure will to find the back of the net. That’s exactly the type of mentality I want out of my striker and I will always love him for that. Even though he rarely finds the net, he has scored all of his goals at Providence Park. “Everytime I play here it’s so special for me. Portland opened the door for me to show my quality. Everytime I play here it’s the best time.” Although his English isn’t that good, his bright eyes and wide smile spoke louder than his words. For me, at least, Nathan Fogaca is a cult hero. He wears 99, he always works his ass off, and the Timbers never lose when he scores. That dedication and work ethic will take him far in life, and it’s very telling when his head coach holds him in such high regard. “We’ve been really impressed with him…We believe in him, and maybe he should have come on at halftime.” No matter what time he enters the game, he is running at full throttle for the entirety of his shift. The blue-collar hero of this team: Nathan Fogaca.

Phil Neville continues to improve in terms of his in-game management. The lessons he learned from the DC game back in March have come full circle. Today, the Timbers changed formation three times (4-2-3-1 to 4-3-3 back to a 4-2-3-1) and none of the players looked out of sorts. In every press conference, he mentions that he’s trying to build something here in Portland. And his actions both on and off the field are backing up his words. Although he might regret keeping Fogaca on the bench for too long, the other subs that he made were excellent. He’s learning how to manage this squad, and he’s adapting very well. Tonight, the head coach gave us an insight into how he’s dealing with the season so far:

“I’ve been loving every single minute of it. I was talking to a friend back in England yesterday about the run we were on when we weren’t winning. I feel like that was the most enjoyable bit because that’s really when you test yourself. That’s when adversity kicks in and you find out more about you and the people around you and the people around the club and their support for you and that made me feel stronger and more committed. My wife is incredibly happy. We bought a house the other day and she’s happy. Happy wife, happy life. When you’ve been on the treadmill for so long it feels like you’re lucky to be in this job and in this role at this football club. We’ve witnessed most teams in the West by now and I don’t think there’s any team that we should be fearful of. I think the difference from top to bottom is very marginal. I think we’ve got a hell of a chance if we concentrate, if we play, if we stick to the plan. If their attitudes are good I think we can be a match for anyone. Every manager I speak to after a game says, ‘You’ve got one hell of a team.’ I know we’ve got to improve, I’ve got to improve, their attitudes have got to be better, they have to decide whether they’re on the bus or not. But that’s every team in MLS right now coming up to the transfer window. So, I’m happy.”

This team’s Achilles’ heel is the defense. Over the past couple of weeks, the structure has been improved. That’s really all that the coaching staff can do. Put the players in a place to succeed and then let the players do their thing. More individual mistakes doomed the Timbers tonight. A winnable game turned into a draw. So where does that leave them in the table?

Their position hasn’t changed. But they have conceded the second-most goals in the West. However, they have scored the second-most goals in the West. There is so much quality in this team and it’s maddening how much they’re underperforming. The concerns I have had about the attack are slowly going away, and the same goes for the defense. But they have to put it all together soon before it’s too late. The Western Conference is begging for another team to join the upper echelon. The Timbers are behaving like that team going forward, but still look like a Spoon contender at the back. Tonight, the Timbers had a chance to get a 9-point week. The locker room was full of disappointment that they weren’t able to do it. But a couple days of rest and then more time on the training ground awaits them before they head off to St. Louis. They came from behind twice tonight and could have taken all three points but unfortunately they weren’t able to. The work will continue, and some players will get opportunities next week that they haven’t had in a while. Time to see who is truly on the bus.

Two major events took place in the city of Portland yesterday: the Starlight Parade and this Timbers game. The official attendance of yesterday’s game was 21,214. That number looked low to me when I was sitting in the press box. Of course, I can’t see all the seats in the west end, but there were gaps in the North End and the new expansion seats. I understand the struggle to attend games. Ticket prices aren’t favorable (can’t wait until SeatGeek gets the Ticketmaster treatment), the match schedule might not be favorable (way too many late kickoffs), and you might still be angry at the owner. Those are all very valid reasons to not attend games. Speaking on the last point, I witnessed an interaction between the owner and a fan holding a “Sell the Team” scarf as I was exiting the stadium yesterday. The fan got the owner’s attention, and the owner responded with a childish insult: “Did your mom make that for you?” Although there are plenty of reasons not to attend games, this team needs support from the fans. The people in the stands yesterday gave the team the energy to keep pressing forward. Neville loves to say that the North End’s relentless cheering and energy “sucks the ball into the net like a vacuum.” He knows that no other group of fans can provide the same energy that the Timbers Army do on a regular basis, and it’s one of the things that makes Providence Park such a fortress. This team needs the energy from the fans, and although those contributions don’t show up on the stat sheet they’re just as important. It will be 21 days before the Portland Timbers play another game at Providence Park. Keep showing up and giving it your all in the terraces, and the team will do the exact same. 

*photo credit to Rolan Johnson/Cascadia FC*

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