Inter Miami-Portland Timbers Preview (5/17/26)
In most soccer leagues around the world, the regular season reigns supreme. In fact, the words “regular season” are a purely American construct. That’s because America has perfected the postseason.
Due to the variety of different sports that Americans participate in, the concept of a postseason has been tweaked depending on the game that is being played. You can’t have a best-of-7 series for football, but it works for basketball and hockey. Baseball has the longest regular season of any American sport, but every pitch is a heart-stopping moment during the playoffs. Collegiate athletics are held hostage by various selection committees due to the disparity between universities competing at the “same level.”
This has left Major League Soccer in a tough situation. While the champions of other international soccer leagues are the most dominant team in the regular season, the MLS championship is achieved through playoffs. The structure of those playoffs is a constantly evolving concept; going through various changes as more teams get added. America might have gotten the head start on basketball, baseball, and football, but they’re still learning how to properly do soccer.
Since Americans are still playoff-centric, the value of the MLS regular season keeps coming into question. Unless you are a diehard fan of a MLS club, you probably aren’t following every single game during the regular season. It’s a fact, not an opinion: most regular season games do not come with the same stakes offered by the postseason.
But not every regular season game exists with the same stakes. Some present opportunities for local bragging rights or a late-season chance to climb the table. However, since June 2023, there is one opponent that gets circled on everyone’s schedule. Everyone wants to put their best foot forward against this particular team, whether or not the game exists in the spring, summer, or fall.
Every sport has a few players at the pinnacle of achievement or skill. But America is usually considered to be the pinnacle of most sports. The best players come to American sports leagues to play basketball, baseball, hockey, football, and so on. However, this doesn’t apply to soccer. The United States is still catching up in that regard. So when an Argentine demigod in his late 30s decided to arrive on American soil back in 2023, it had the potential to supercharge the growth of soccer in this country.
It's 2026 now. Three full years have passed since Lionel Messi arrived in Miami, and the promise of the American soccer explosion has gone. In the face of a World Cup dedicated to squeezing every attendee for the maximum possible dollar, it's clear that the Messi experiment has failed in regards to the bigger picture of growing soccer in America.
But on the field, Messi and Inter Miami have been eye-poppingly excellent. Whenever Miami appears on the schedule, it's time to give them everything you can muster. For the first time, on a Sunday night in primetime, the Portland Timbers will get their shot at the Miami behemoth.
The Miami Report
“But Jeremy,” you're probably saying, “the Timbers visited Miami 4 years ago.” That's absolutely correct. However, I would issue you a challenge: name the Timber who scored in that game?
If you answered Bill Tuiloma, go ahead and buy yourself some form of a pastry or sweet treat. On May 28th, 2022, Miami and Portland played one of the most forgettable MLS games of all time. Phil Neville's side won 2-1 behind goals from Robert Taylor and Leo Campana. Only one player who saw the pitch in that game will be eligible to play tomorrow: Ariel Lassiter. Isn't that wild?
Miami's history since the start of 2023 has been pretty well-documented. Phil Neville was fired on June 1st, 2023 as the Herons sat at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with 15 points from 15 games. Messi's arrival was announced six days later, with Tata Martino filling the head coaching vacancy. What followed was a Leagues Cup triumph but an inability to qualify for the playoffs.
2024 was the exact opposite. Messi brought Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets with him in 2023, but one more Barcelona boy was set to arrive in the offseason. Legendary (and controversial) Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez joined and suddenly MLS had a modern superteam. The Herons won the Supporters’ Shield and set the single-season points record with 74. That was a major achievement, and they accomplished it with Messi only playing 22 league games.
However, the mission statement at Miami is to win every possible trophy. Their Leagues Cup win earned them a spot in the 2024 CONCACAF Champions’ Cup, but their run ended in the quarterfinals with 5-2 defeat to Monterrey on aggregate. A potential Leagues Cup repeat was snuffed out by Columbus in the Round of 16. The Supporters’ Shield technically counts as a trophy, but MLS’ unbalanced schedule forces the actual league champion to be decided in the playoffs. And the 2024 playoffs began with a Best-of-3 series between Miami and Martino’s former side: Atlanta.
This series has gone into the annals of MLS history, mostly because of the outcome. Miami took the series lead with a 2-1 victory in Game 1, but Xande Silva’s late winner in Game 2 forced a winner-take-all Game 3 at the Car Park (better known to y’all as DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale).
Game 3 was legendary. Matias Rojas (hi, buddy) opened the scoring in the 17th minute before two quick Jamal Thiare goals gave Atlanta a 2-1 lead in the 21st minute. Messi equalized in the 65th minute, and some “gamesmanship” (a pretty blatant Leo Campana push) caused Brad Guzan to fall backwards into his own net.
Since Miami entered the league, they’ve always toed the line between “ethical” and “competitiveness.” When they flouted the roster rules and had to play a couple of seasons without a full complement of DPs, it was championed as a “desire to win” more than, you know, trying to BREAK THE RULES. Miami’s on-field gamesmanship largely stayed ethical in 2023, but 2024 was when they truly began to take the step towards “behavior unbecoming.”
As Guzan (hilariously, I must admit) struggled to free himself from his own net, Atlanta decided that this monster needed to be vanquished. It fell to Bartosz Slisz to strike the killing blow. Tomas Aviles flopped and tried to get a whistle from referee Lukasz Szpala in the 76th minute, but the Polish official was having none of the antics. While Aviles laid on the ground, Pedro Amador sent a glorious cross to the back post for Slisz to head home. Atlanta defended for their lives and finished off the biggest upset in MLS playoff history.
One trophy in 2024 wasn’t enough. However, the Herons suddenly needed to find a new coach. Martino stepped down on November 22nd due to “personal reasons.” Four days later, Javier Mascherano (another former teammate of Messi) was hired as Martino’s replacement.
2025 became the year where Messi’s Miami reached their peak. First of all, Messi played in 28 regular season games and tallied 29g/16a. Those are otherworldly numbers. But they once again failed to win CCC (losing 5-1 on aggregate to Vancouver in the semifinal). Their hopes of a Supporters’ Shield repeat didn’t come true either, but they did finish 1 point behind Shield-winning Philadelphia.
Because FIFA likes money, Miami was gifted a spot in the 2025 Club World Cup (under the guise of winning the 2024 Shield). The Herons went unbeaten in the group stage (2 draws against Al Ahly and Palmeiras with a victory against Porto) before losing 4-0 to UCL-winning PSG in the Round of 16. Sure, fine, whatever.
Maybe a Leagues Cup repeat was on the cards? Instead, in probably the most embarrassing game of the Miami era, they lost 3-0 in Seattle and committed the cardinal sin of allowing the Sounders to win a trophy.
That game wasn’t notable for the actual play on the field either. After Seattle’s victory was confirmed and the final whistle blew, Suarez and Obed Vargas shared a couple of words. This ended with Suarez putting Vargas in a head-lock, and Yeimar intervening to separate the two quarreling players. Busquets decided to make an appearance right afterwards and sent a punch towards Vargas’ chin, which caused the Flounder to drop to the ground. Suddenly, the benches were fully cleared and chaos ensued. Busquets grabbed Seattle assistant Freddy Juarez by the head, before good old Steven Lenhart (always up for a tussle) began some pushing and shoving of his own with Suarez. Aviles tried to grab at Jackson Ragen but was thrown to the ground by Jon Bell. Suarez and Lenhart were separated by Gene Ramirez; Seattle’s head of security. In a gesture unbecoming of any moral human (much less a former superstar), Suarez stepped on Ramirez’s foot to hold him in place while taking aim at the security staffer with a fat loogie. This spit hit Ramirez on the hat and the cheek.
The spit was the climax of the brawl. Suarez was suspended for six LEAGUES CUP games (awfully light), Lenhart was suspended for five games, and Aviles and Busquets were suspended for three and two games, respectively. Suarez’s punishment was later updated to include THREE MLS league games. Not only was that incident a complete horrorshow, it allowed people to feel sympathetic for the Seattle Sounders. That’s two cardinal sins from Miami. And Suarez was let off easy with that punishment. Any sane league would have suspended him for the rest of the season, potentially with a lifetime ban. Especially considering his prior history of spitting and biting. More on that later.
Meanwhile, Suarez lost his starting spot due to the suspension and Miami entered the playoffs on fire, only losing once in their final eight regular season games. They were forced to 3 games again in the first round by Nashville, but a 4-0 destruction in Game 3 allowed them to progress to the conference semifinals. Another 4-0 blowout in Cincinnati brought Miami to their first Eastern Conference Final. NYCFC fought hard, but ultimately lost 5-1. The Herons were simply too powerful. The final MLS game at the Car Park ended up being Miami’s first MLS Cup. Vancouver, who eliminated them in CCC, faced off against the superteam but lost 3-1. Messi and Friends lifted their first MLS Cup, but were still searching for that CCC title. That was the driving force behind the majority of their offseason business.
Let’s begin with a move that seemed controversial but really wasn’t. Argentinian midfielder Rodrigo De Paul arrived in the summer of 2025 on loan with a mandatory purchase option. That allowed De Paul to be a TAM player in 2025 before becoming a DP in 2026. Alba and Busquets retired after MLS Cup, which opened two DP slots. De Paul filled one of them. The other was filled by old friend German Berterame, who nearly became a Timber in 2024. David Ayala (hi, buddy) was purchased from Portland on January 9th. He filled a vacant U22 spot opened by the departed Baltasar Rodriguez.That’s how they attacked the top of the roster. However, they literally went ham on TAM to fill other holes.
Those holes were opened by the departures of Fafa Picault, Allen Obando, Oscar Ustari, and Marcelo Weigandt. Sergio Reguilon and Facundo Mura arrived to bolster the fullback room, while former Houston Dynamo center back Micael joined on loan from Palmeiras to partner Maxi Falcon. Dayne St. Clair became their prized free agent acquisition. Rocco Rios Novo was their starting goalkeeper during the MLS Cup run, so this was viewed as largely unfair to the young Argentine. He joined on a permanent basis from Lanus after spending 2025 on loan with Miami. All of these signings seemed legitimate. Until it became time to secure the status of their chief playoff hero.
Tadeo Allende spent 2025 on loan with Miami from Spanish side Celta Vigo. He scored 9 goals in the playoffs, including a hat-trick in the Eastern Conference Final against NYCFC. It became clear that both parties wanted Allende to remain in Miami for 2026, yet Celta Vigo needed $5M in exchange for the Argentine forward. Such a fee would certainly require Allende to be a DP. The deal was completed with several eyebrows raised around the league. Did Miami just do the “4th DP” gambit again?
However, with the salary release occurring earlier this week, it became clear how Messi’s Miami is able to manipulate the salary cap. Allende signed a five-year contract, which puts his transfer fee cap hit at $1M per year. His base salary was revealed to be $625K. The combined cap hit of $1.625M does NOT surpass the max-TAM line. However, Allende’s guaranteed compensation is $1M. Because the cap only takes base salaries into account, Allende was able to be registered as a TAM player.
This offseason was largely viewed as the greatest winter window in MLS history. Miami seemingly strengthened at a number of key positions on paper. Alba and Busquets seemingly had replacements in Reguilon and Ayala. It looked like Miami was going to wipe the floor with the league again. Has that happened so far?
Kind of. Inter Miami (7-4-2, 25 points, 2E/4S) were expected to be great in 2026. They are still a very good team. But they’re loaded with flaws.
Some of those flaws were exposed in the season opener against LAFC; a game where Miami lost 3-0. After that loss, they promptly rattled off an 11-game unbeaten streak. During that run, they got knocked out of CCC in the Round of 16 by Nashville on away goals. It was the final game at the Car Park.
Suddenly, tensions were high. Mascherano masterminded the MLS Cup win by emphasizing defense from the front. However, it became clear after the CCC failure that Messi was unhappy with his former teammate. Mascherano resigned on April 14th after a 2-2 home draw with the Red Bulls, citing “personal reasons.” Martino offered the same explanation for his departure back in 2024. Interesting.
Guillermo Hoyos, one of Messi’s academy coaches, was tabbed as the interim. His record in charge is 4-1-1, but none of those wins have occurred at Miami’s new stadium (aptly named “Nu Stadium”). In fact, Miami hasn’t won any of their four matches at their sparkling new home, going 0-3-1. Those three draws were against Austin, the Red Bulls, and New England. Hardly the best teams MLS has to offer. On May 2nd, they took a 3-0 lead at home against Orlando but completely collapsed and lost 4-3. Hoyos only took one question in the post-game presser before leaving the room. Miami beat Toronto 4-2 before defeating Cincinnati 5-3 in back-to-back road games following their rivalry loss at home. They haven’t been home since, and they’re still waiting for their first win at a stadium that might be cursed.
Miami’s attack remains elite, as they lead the league with 31 goals scored. However, their goal differential is only +7, mostly due to the fact that they don’t defend from the front anymore. In many ways, they’re the most watchable team in MLS regardless of Messi. Every single one of their games is bound to result in boatloads of goals.
MIA Injury Report & Projected Starting XI
Noah Allen missed the midweek win in Cincinnati, but he’s available for selection tomorrow. Allende hasn’t played since May 2nd and likely won’t see the field until after the World Cup break.
I’d be surprised if Messi didn’t play. Same with Suarez, Berterame, and De Paul. Mateo Silvetti was crucial to Mascherano’s system, but he’s been utilized as a supersub under Hoyos. Mura can play right back or left back, and I expect him to start over Fray. The midfield remains unchanged from Cincinnati due to the extra day of rest. Gonzalo Lujan earned the start against Cincy but gave away a penalty. Although Falcon hasn’t been in great form, he’s supposed to be a Sharpied-in starter. St. Clair won Goalkeeper of the Year with Minnesota last year, but he hasn’t been at his best in 2026. I think it’s a tossup between Bright and David Ayala at the base of the midfield. However, Ayala made a very bad error in last weekend’s game against Toronto, so I don’t think it’s a guarantee for him to see the field tomorrow. This team is craving a home victory. Only two games remain before the World Cup. They should not be rotating, especially their key players.
The Timbers Report
Wednesday’s draw in Montreal was objectively a good result. The Portland Timbers (4-2-6, 14 points, 12W/21S) got consecutive positive results for the first time all season after erasing two one-goal deficits in that game. However, tomorrow’s match in Miami presents a different challenge entirely. Not only are the Timbers set to face Messi and the most loaded squad in the league, but it’s going to be a homecoming for several people within the organization.
A Familiar Place
Chief among those people is Phil Neville; the coach who was tasked with bringing Miami into MLS. As he walked over to a sizable group of reporters at the FIU campus on Friday morning, the head coach was positively beaming. However, as he touched down in Miami for the first time with his new team, he was taken aback by his own emotions. “I didn’t think I would [have any feelings]. But obviously landing here yesterday, seeing the guys [reporters] here, you know, I link it back to when I went back to Old Trafford [with Everton]. You try and shut it off, you try and close the door, you try to focus on your team. I always think in these situations that after the game is when you can say hello to everybody.”
Although the roster has undergone a severe makeover since Neville left, there are players who bridge the gap between pre-Messi and Messi. Noah Allen, David Ruiz, and Ian Fray, former Miami academy players who got their first-team debuts under Neville’s stewardship, definitely fit that description. In an inverse sense, so does David Ayala. But chief among the familiar faces is Miami minority owner David Beckham. Besides being former teammates and growing up together at Carrington, the two old friends are also co-owners of League Two side Salford City. On Monday, one day after their American teams face off, their rooting interests will align as Salford faces Notts County in the League Two Playoff Final.
Miami also offered Neville the chance to manage a club team for the first time. This offered him a chance to reflect on his tenure with the Herons. “I think about my growth as a coach. I’d say that first season was one of the biggest learnings I’ve had in my career. Because I came to a different environment, a different culture, a different country. Learning about the cap system, it was a new franchise. Within a week we’d suffered some sanctions that hit us very hard in that first year. The team, I’d say, was not the greatest constructed team in terms of the profiles, the characters, and the personalities. Then going into my second season, we got rid of 19 players and we turned around the team into a team that I felt me and Chris Henderson built ourselves. We built with characters and personalities that we really wanted. And I felt we built something really special in that second season.”
This is a pretty nice moment listening to Neville reflect on the journey that eventually brought him to Portland. That second season that he’s talking about is 2022, when Miami made the playoffs and beat the Timbers 2-1 at the Car Park.
“I got the Lionesses to the semifinal of the World Cup, but those second season results were probably one of the [biggest] highlights of my managerial career so far because it was a horrendous start to the season. I think we lost the first 6 games, it was a new team constructed, and then we galvanized a DP that was getting a lot of criticism.”
That DP was Gonzalo Higuain, and I’m wondering if Neville can perform a similar galvanization with Velde and Da Costa.
“I’d say that that second season is similar to what I want to do in Portland where we’ve got an incredible bunch of young players here. I want to build a culture and a spirit that we had in that second season in Miami……without the three owners at Inter Miami I don’t think I would’ve gotten the job in Portland.”
When Neville got the job in Portland, one of the first things he did was bring one of his Miami players to the Pacific Northwest. Kamal Miller spent only one year at Miami, but 2023 brought Messi and a Leagues Cup to South Florida. “It’s been a long time. The years have passed, so I’m a little emotionally removed from the team and Miami. But some of my former teammates are still here, and, yeah, it feels good. It feels good to be back. I’m excited to be back and just put on a good performance for my new club in Portland.”
Miller described Miami goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair as one of his “best friends,” and the Canadian center back is really excited for the opportunity to face him. “Hopefully I can score a goal on him.”
A Chat With Ariel Lassiter
The other player making a return to Miami is Ariel Lassiter. However, it isn’t his first time back in South Florida after leaving Miami in 2023. Ironically, he went to Montreal in the same trade that sent Miller to South Beach. I caught up with him after training on Friday.
As a well-traveled MLS veteran, these types of homecomings aren’t foreign to him. “It’s always nice to come back to teams that you played with before, same thing as Montreal and same thing here. I would say that I have a lot of friends and people that have gotten closer to me. So it’s always nice to come back, but, you know, we’re here for business. We have to get three points.”
Lassiter is the only player who made the match squad back in the 2022 meeting that will make the 18 tomorrow (across both teams, not just Portland). “It’s changed so much, both here in Portland and in Miami. To be a part of both is going to be something really special for the new stadium because I was there when the owners were talking about it. And, you know, they spoke to me about it personally, so it’s going to be really nice to see it and be a part of it.”
Miller also mentioned some memories about his former Miami teammates and ownership being excited about the stadium back in 2023. I think this might be a good time to give some pre-match thoughts on Miami’s new home. It’s perfectly placed next to the airport and it’s one of the first things tourists or other visitors see when they are heading to the rental car center. You can’t ask for a better billboard than that. “I’m sure the atmosphere is going to be incredible. We’re going to play against the best and hopefully I’ll be able to get minutes and perform well.”
Lassiter has been Portland’s most effective left-sided attacker this year. However, he’s only played the third-fewest minutes on the team. I asked him about the competition for the left wing spot and his general feeling about his position within the squad. “It’s very difficult. The little minutes that I get I feel like I’ve done really well with at least coming into change the game with goals and assists. It’s honestly really tough. But ideally, I just have to stay positive and continue to work hard. And you know, when my time comes my time comes. Of course I want to start. I feel like I’ve deserved at least 1 or 2 more starts since the beginning of the season. But you know, it is what it is, and I’m going to continue to work no matter what.”
PTFC Injury Report & Projected Starting XI
You really have to feel for Jose Caicedo. After aggravating his groin against Montreal, Neville said that the Colombian midfielder was “40/60” in terms of participation tomorrow. Now he won’t even make the bench. His injury isn’t expected to be a long-term issue, so he could be back for next weekend’s game in San Jose.
This is the most important lineup of the season so far. So Neville will have to put his trust in his best available performers. That includes Lassiter on the left wing, who provides the best balance of reliability and threat. Chara should slot in for the injured Caicedo. Mosquera should be making his return to the pitch in this game. If he doesn’t, I’m going to assume that something is very wrong with his knee. He’s been cleared for the last two matches, and saving him for Miami seems to be the most logical explanation for why he hasn’t gotten a single minute since coming off the injury report. Simply put, Neville should not be overthinking it.
Tactical Preview
Rest Defense
The Montreal game added another data point towards Portland’s poor rest defense. Since Miami is built to take advantage of poorly-organized defenses, protecting the backline has to be the highest priority if the Timbers are intent on bringing a result back to the Rose City. Miami’s weak defense doesn’t need to be exploited by anything more than an attacking group of five. Keep the defensive unit back, and recover like hell.
Counterattacks
Let’s begin this section with one of Neville’s quotes from Friday. “I think we’re going to have to score two or three goals to win the game, to stay in the game. It’s literally going to be a basketball game because that’s the way, you know, I want to play football.”
In order to score two or three goals, the Timbers have to properly counterattack. Running at Miami’s defense with speed is the most effective way to score goals against them. For the first time in YEARS, Portland’s counterattack is a major issue. After they win the ball, the next pass has to be forward. This isn’t the game to work on “possession” or “structure.” It’s time to finally unleash the speed and not aimlessly pass the ball around. This game is going to be won or lost in transition. If Portland’s counters are dangerous, they’ll have a chance to win.
The Crime Boss
Messi is obviously the most important player on the pitch, and it’s going to be very interesting to see how the Timbers deal with him. However, Neville isn’t focused on the Argentinian hero. “I sat with Connor [Ceballos, the head video analyst] yesterday, and I think he had 96 clips of a certain number 10 in the middle of the field. I said ‘No, I think we just need to concentrate on what we do.”
Ignore Messi at your own peril. At the very least, Timber players should be bumping him after he releases the ball. Make sure they know where he is at all times. Now, more than ever, Messi is the most important player on this team. Tackle hard (not egregiously), prevent the trademark pass-move-finish, and Portland will have a chance to win.
Intensity
Portland’s record doesn’t matter to Miami. They’re still going to go all-out to try and beat the Timbers. In fact, they don’t want to simply win. They want to humiliate. That involves playing the game at maximum intensity and utilizing the dark arts. Neville doesn’t view Miami’s well-publicized “dirty tricks” as the dark arts though. “I say it’s gamesmanship, but that’s a desire to win. It’s a desire to do everything possible to win a game of football. I think that’s a special quality. And I was a part of a football club that did that every week…We need to use our experience on Sunday not to get involved in anything apart from controlling the things that we can control.”
The Timbers can control how they react, but they cannot let their intensity levels drop for even a second. Avoid confrontations, remain calm and focused, and keep their collective energy towards winning the game and getting 3 points.
Matchday Info
Broadcast Bulletin
English: Jake Zivin & Taylor Twellman
Spanish: Sammy Sadovnik & Diego Valeri
Home Radio Broadcast from 105.1 The Fan: not available on Apple TV
Broadcast platform: Apple TV
Kickoff time: 3 PM PST
Referee Report
Drew Fischer’s 2026 stats: 9 games, 25.67 fouls/game, 0.11 penalties/game, 4.89 yellows/game, 0.11 reds/game
Last Timbers game officiated: March 22, 2026 vs. Galaxy 1-1 D
That Galaxy game featured a red card for Kamal Miller, which was initially called a yellow on the field and upgraded to a red after a VAR check. Nothing about that call seemed too harsh. Fischer’s last Miami game was MLS Cup. Per my recollection, both teams in that game were allowed to be physical with Fischer only intervening for blatant or card-worthy fouls. However, that was a cup final, and tomorrow’s game is just a regular season match. His stats seem to indicate that he won’t pull out a yellow card unless it’s a genuinely bookable offense. Like I explained earlier, the Timbers cannot put themselves in a position for him to make a decision.
Series History
Historical record: 1-0-1, 0 goal differential
Away record: 0-0-1, -1 goal differential
Current streak: 1 loss
Current road streak: 1 loss
Since I’ve already talked about the forgettable 2-1 defeat in 2022, I’d like to take y’all on a brief trip down memory lane. Before losing the following week to the Galaxy, the 2021 Timbers extended their unbeaten streak to 9 games (8 wins) after beating Miami 1-0 at Providence Park. I don’t have a ton of memories from this game (mostly Jaroslaw Niezgoda’s game-winner in the 83rd minute, congratulations to him) so I decided to go back and watch the press conferences from each coach.
I started with the victorious coach first. Giovanni Savarese began by denying any credit for Niezgoda’s goal because “substitutions only work if a player does his job.” After that, he was asked about the NWSL protests given the recent (at the time) news about Paul Riley that had surfaced. Savarese said that “the relationship between a coach and the players is sacred” to begin his answer, before stating that he had a hard time reading the reports of Riley’s severe misconduct. “I think it is important that women speak up and it’s important now to listen, to learn, and make sure that there’s a change in regards to those types of situations… We’re all in support, the coaching staff, the players, and the important thing is that we have to learn from it.”
Earlier in this presser, Savarese fielded a question about Andy Polo in conjunction with the question about substitutes. On May 23rd of that year, two team employees arrived at Polo’s residence to calm a domestic disturbance between Polo and the mother of his child. The incident, which would later fall under the umbrella of domestic violence, was not reported to MLS and two team representatives would try and persuade Polo’s partner (Genesis Alarcon) not to press charges for the assault. The Timbers picked up Polo’s contract option. None of this information was public at the time of Savarese’s presser. He did not offer a response to the question about Polo. Savarese wore a mask during this press conference which guarded his mouth. What an impossible situation to be in. Dear God. Saying that the team needed to “learn from it” in regards to Riley’s misconduct while probably being aware of the misdeeds of his own player and knowing full well that they didn’t. Christ.
Meanwhile, the losing coach was upset about a refereeing decision. In the 85th minute, Julian Carranza put the ball in the back of Portland’s net but the goal was disallowed after Carranza pushed Dario Zuparic to the ground in order to gain a height advantage. I’ll let Miami’s head coach take it from here:
“I think we’ll cut straight to the chase. I thought we were absolutely robbed. Robbed from poor refereeing decisions too many times. I try to give the benefits of the doubt, but I don’t know what these referees are doing during the week. Clearly a goal by Julian Carranza. I accepted the decision on Wednesday night even though it could’ve gone the other way. I’m not accepting that today. I’m not accepting that because of the efforts of the team. I’m not accepting that because it’s a professional league that’s one of the toughest leagues to win and we’ve got officials that are making such poor decisions like that and ultimately I’ve got to stand up and fight for my team and for my football club. Ultimately we were robbed of points tonight because of a poor refereeing decision that isn’t just a one-off. I’m seeing it time and time again. I’m frustrated, a little bit emotional, I’m sure. I’ve seen it three or four times, maybe five or six times, and not once did I think it was a foul. We probably spend millions of pounds on VAR to check decisions like that and I don’t know what they’re thinking of not giving the foul so ultimately my thoughts on the game are totally clouded by what was probably the worst decision we’ve had all season. And we’ve had some bad ones. I’ve sat here and tried to defend referees and I know Howard Webb really well and I’ve got a lot of respect for Howard Webb but I don’t know what they’re doing. I don’t know what they’re doing with these officials at this moment in time in terms of making poor decisions like that and then they’re reviewing them and not overturning them. Like I say, I can only talk the truth. And that is my feeling coming out of this game in a game where I thought we produced a really good away performance. We lacked that finishing ruthlessness that we spoke about the other day in the final third where we need our big players to stand up and start taking opportunities and start scoring goals, that’s what they’re paid to do, that’s what we bring them into this football club for. So there’s no excuses. We switch off for the set play which was so disappointing in terms of the focus that has been on that area in the last couple of weeks and the determination. And we get punished for one mistake. So that’s my feelings. I always thought as a manager I would tell the truth and that’s how I feel in this moment in time. I feel totally in a place where we didn’t get what we fully deserved and I have to protect my players who worked so hard. I have to protect the football club for what was a poor decision against our football club.”
Admit it, you read it in his voice. That entire statement took two and a half minutes, simply prompted from a communications staffer asking him to give his thoughts on the game. Later on, he offered this quote: “We congratulate Portland because they’re a good team and they get the three points and we’ve got to be humble in our defeat but it’s still difficult.”
Now you’re flooded with memories about a 1-0 win back featuring an allegedly bad call and some dark context in hindsight. What do you do with that info? I don’t know. But those 2021 Portland Timbers were in the midst of some serious momentum right before an international break. Their opponent was 8 points back of a playoff spot with 7 games left in the season. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
Table Time
A win could propel the Timbers above the playoff line for the first time since the opening week of the season. A loss combined with other results could see them drop to 14th. One third of the 34 league games have been played already. And tomorrow’s is the biggest non-derby game of the season.
Final Whistle
So much has been written and spoken about Miami in the past few years. I’m sure all of you have Miami fatigue like myself. However, I think there’s one last thing I need to say on the topic while I can give myself an excuse to do so: MLS’ effort to bring Messi stateside hasn’t paid off and it has actually worked to the detriment of the league, instead of enhancing it.
I have to admit something before I continue. Unfortunately, I am prone to fits of naivety. Back in 2023, I wrote a short column about Messi’s arrival. It’s very short, kind of dumb, and relentlessly hopeful. I stupidly thought that the league would actually capitalize on the excitement and enthusiasm that having the world’s greatest ever player would generate. Instead, it has shown that Messi can pretty much do whatever he wants and the rest of the league just has to deal with it.
Sacrificing your position as the ultimate authority in order to reach for the literal stars might have been something that MLS’ chief decision-makers would be willing to do in order to maximize the revenue generated by one small Argentine with a wand of a left foot. Instead, they made themselves look like a joke and ultimately proved that there’s a bigger entity than themselves. MLS never needed to sign global superstars to achieve international relevance. However, like the Galaxy’s acquisition of Beckham, those opportunities present a way for the league to grow. Particularly when it comes to roster rules and other innovations that make the product on the field better. The floodgates for roster improvements should have arrived by now. Instead, the Messi era has been marked by a referee strike, a cash-grab international tournament that directly competes with the only true continental competition in the region, devaluing America’s oldest soccer competition, and the enshittification of MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
There’s no question that MLS’ growth trajectory has declined since Messi arrived. He enters referee changing rooms with impunity. His influence within Inter Miami is directly responsible for denying the press their 1st Amendment right to do their jobs. The league won’t dare say anything about it because he is bigger than them and they need him to keep the revenue streams flowing. At the end of games, he feeds his younger teammates to reporters while he and his best friends shirk their mandated responsibility to speak with the press. What visible improvements will he leave when he goes? What changes have been made to MLS that will leave MLS in a better state than when he arrived? Nothing. It’s just his league now. Are the social media impressions and jersey sales worth it compared to one player taking over an entire league? Is MLS just in its Saudi era?
I’m not surprised at how the Messi experiment has turned out. But Inter Miami are able to compete on a different scale because of the gravity that Messi brings. That’s fine. I’m not against MLS teams having global superstars. But it’s blatantly clear that the executives at some brand new offices in New York are perfectly fine with the current state of affairs. However, those people do not know what’s coming when he leaves. Messi and the MLS executives haven’t done their part to implement the improvements that this league desperately needs. Prioritizing the short-term gains without thinking about the long-term effects. It’s just a mountain of idiocy with a little man in pink sitting at the top who just wants to play soccer and have his version of the truth be the nationally accepted fact.
I had to get that off my chest. No, I’m not apologizing. This is my website and I can say what I want. Now it’s time to turn our focus back to the protagonists. The Portland Timbers are about to play a playoff game in mid-May. In two years, playoff games will be played at this time of the year due to the calendar switch. There’s only one thing that can happen when you’re in the playoffs: achieve victory.
That’s what the Timbers are trying to do tomorrow. Neville’s intentions are clear: “I’m here to make this a 7-point week. I’m here to win a game of football with a club that I’ve fallen in love with.” In order to accomplish that, he’s going to need every single of the squad to raise their level in addition to solving for some of the structural and tactical errors that Miami is bound to exploit.
The Timbers will face Messi without a single Argentinian international on the roster. It’s the first time since 2013 that Portland doesn’t have an Albiceleste to count on. However, they do have the ultimate Timber: Diego Chara. “And I’m lucky that I’ve got a 40-year-old on that pitch that has the same desire. Not the same skill as the number 10 for Inter Miami, but has the same hunger and desire to go out there and perform.”
Is that Neville’s version of Brian Schmetzer’s famous “We have Paul Rothrock” quip? When the Seattle Sounders were faced with the Miami behemoth in last year’s Leagues Cup Final, they were able to triumph because of the strength of the squad, not the strength of their DPs. Can the Portland Timbers put Miami in a position to beat themselves like the Sounders did? It’s a tall task. The publicity that comes from playing Messi means that a ton of extra eyeballs will be on this game. I asked Neville if the additional global audience would compound the players’ ability to remain focused on the task at hand.
“I think you can help them prepare for that, but until they set on that field or in that tunnel, and they’re next to and playing a team like this, you just don’t know how people are going to react. The composure, the temperament comes out in that game. And I think that for me is what I’m most excited about, to see how our young players compete against the best. And I think this is going to be a real big, big challenge and excitement for our boys…I think you can prepare for an exam, yeah? And when you go into that exam, you can be fully prepared. But until you turn that paper over, you never know quite what the questions are going to be. You never know how your mind’s going to react. That’s no different than a football game.”
The Portland Timbers believe that they can win tomorrow’s game. They want to entertain, astound, and leave Florida with three crucial points. There’s every right to believe that the squad is united around that goal. Neville said so himself.
“We’ve got to go to Miami and win. I’m not going there to wave at friends in the stadium. We’re going there to fight. We’re going there to be competitive. I’m going there to win a game of football, which is a massive game for my football club. I think when you go back to your football club you want to put on a show.”
The storylines surrounding this game are immense. Players facing old friends, old Herons and Timbers getting their chance against their former team. But ultimately, tomorrow’s game is the ballad of Phil Neville. Although his record in Miami wasn’t astounding, he helped lay the foundations for the Herons to become what they are today. He was not going to be around for this era of Miami soccer regardless of the Herons’ league position happened to be when Messi arrived. This game is going to tell us a lot about the Timbers. While they aren’t in a playoff spot right now, they’re going to have to win games like this if they have any hope of acquiring silverware. The lessons that can be learned from tomorrow’s game will be huge. The greatest player in MLS history will face the greatest defensive midfielder in MLS history. Every aspect of this game is juicy. And tomorrow, the Timbers will dig in. All eyes are on Sunday Night Soccer. You know how it goes. Cue the Carrie Underwood. The climb continues.
-By Jeremy Peterman
