It's Coming Home

The Portland Timbers drew 1-1 with the Seattle Sounders at Lumen Field. Their unbeaten streak at the home of their biggest rival has increased to 11 games. For the first time in the MLS era, they won the Cascadia Cup in Seattle. 

The Timbers have played many first halves this year. Some of them have been good, some have been average, and some of them have been bad. Before Yeimar Gomez Andrade found the back of the net on a corner kick in the 37th minute, I would have called the half “disappointing.” Portland’s defense, led by Dario Zuparic and debutante Finn Surman, was playing pretty well. However, the same issues that continue to plague this team (ball retention, heavy first touches, poor turnovers, an attack full of players not on the same page) were on full display. The first half ended with 1 Timbers shot: a blocked effort by Claudio Bravo from outside the box. It traveled a total of 1 foot. Seattle entered the break with a 1-0 lead against a Timbers team that looked like a sloppy mess.

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Before the second half began, I met with my colleague Michael Martinez (you might know him, he writes for this website too) to discuss our thoughts on the first half. All I had to do was tell him one thing: “You’re going to hate the second half.”

After a good spell of buildup ended with Jonathan Rodriguez crossing the ball over the box leading to a Timbers throw-in, the game reverted back to the pattern of play from half number 1. More chippiness and Sounders chances followed, but all Portland needed was one moment. Substitute Eryk Williamson won the ball from Pedro de la Vega, passed it to Rodriguez, and the Uruguayan passed it forward to Evander. The Brazilian star found Antony on the left, who promptly beat Nouhou and Jackson Ragen before finding the bottom left corner for the equalizer in the 67th minute. It was Portland’s second shot of the game, and their first on target. Of course. The second key moment of the second half occurred two minutes after Antony’s equalizer. Two minutes before Antony scored, Obed Vargas delayed a restart and was shown a yellow card. Then, right after the kickoff, Pedro de la Vega charged forward. He forced a save from James Pantemis. Dario Zuparic and Vargas battled for the loose ball in the box, but the newly capped Mexican international pushed the Croatian defender to the ground. A foul was called, and Vargas wasn’t happy about it. He verbally dissented, and was shown his second yellow card in the span of four minutes.

The Seattle Sounders can never stop pushing the boundaries of what can be done on a soccer field. Two years ago, Jackson Ragen was shown a yellow card right before the halftime whistle. During the first minute of the second half, he received a second yellow card for a hard tackle. The Sounders, down 1-0, were forced to finish the game with 10 men. They lost 3-0 at home to the Portland Timbers. Last year, Leo Chu was cautioned in the 31st minute after removing his shirt for a goal celebration. In the 53rd minute, Chu got a second yellow for a hard challenge on Zac McGraw. The Sounders, up 2-0, were forced to finish the game with 10 men. They drew 2-2 at home to the Portland Timbers. After the game, I criticized Chu for his lack of creativity. Ragen’s double booking the previous season was an innovation of the highest quality. When Chu attempted the same feat one year later, it seemed like an homage to his teammate. I was willing to forgive it. Tonight, Obed Vargas did it again. His second yellow for dissent, four minutes after his first booking, has finally opened my eyes to the immense gravity of the situation: the Seattle Sounders have stopped innovating. Their relentless drive to test their own limits is completely stuck. They have become boring, predictable, and sad. It pains me to report this, but it has to be said. My spirit has been crushed. I expect the Sounders to keep up the relentless drive to innovate and now I’m disappointed with their predictability. Gonna stick a pin in this tangent for now and come back to it later. It’s time to get back to the game.

It was time for Jordan Morris to take center stage. He was sent through on goal in the 71st minute and tried to chip Pantemis, who had come off his line. However, the Canadian goalkeeper palmed it down to himself. The ball went outside the box, so Pantemis became a field player. After a neat header controlled the ball, he passed it to Portland’s bench. During the entire match, Morris had three shots. Two were on target and saved by Pantemis, while the third was dragged wide to the left. Since it is October, Morris has evolved beyond his normal form as a common pumpkin. Linus Van Pelt is waiting in a pumpkin patch for Morris’ arrival on Halloween night.

Brilliant work, as always. He just can’t help himself. On August 28, 2016, Jordan Morris scored a goal against the Portland Timbers. It was Seattle’s second, but the Timbers already had 4 goals in the first half. Sia’s smash hit Cheap Thrills was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Two days earlier, Colin Kaepernick kneeled for the National Anthem during a NFL preseason game. Jordan Morris has not scored against the Portland Timbers since that day. Barack Obama was President when Morris last found the net against the Sounders’ biggest rival. That’s a span of 2,974 days. If you wanted to drive from Portland International Airport to Washington Dulles International Airport, your route would be 2,974 miles long. Incredible. 

Evander hit the post in the 76th minute, but Seattle kept pushing forward even though they were down a man. However, Portland’s defense held on. The final whistle blew, and Seattle’s winless streak against their biggest rivals AT THEIR OWN STADIUM increased to 2,703 days. The distance to the center of the earth is 7,926 miles. If the Sounders dug one mile for every day that they failed to beat the Timbers at home, they would be 34% of the way there. Impressive stuff. I guess they have to keep digging. They’ll have a long offseason to continue their exploration. Maybe they can find some new ways to innovate on their journey.

Leo Chu’s second yellow card was an homage to Jackson Ragen. However, one other key event from this match also pays tribute to a Portland-Seattle game from recent memory. Back in 2022, Yeimar Gomez Andrade rose high above Portland’s backline to give the Sounders the lead 8 minutes into their August 26th contest. However, the Timbers turned it around, won the game, and lifted the Cascadia Cup. TONIGHT, Yeimar opened the scoring AGAIN, and the night ended with the Timbers lifting the Cascadia Cup. Are they resorting to ChatGPT for ideas? Shameful. I expected better of them. Well, actually, I didn’t, but it’s still disappointing. 

The Breakdown

The Cascadia Cup is back in Portland’s hands after a one-year loan to the Vancouver Whitecaps (they did absolutely nothing with it except harness its power to host a playoff game on the road). There was no way for Vancouver to retain it after losing 3-0 to Seattle on October 2nd. Now the question must be asked: did the Portland Timbers deserve to win the trophy? All they had to do was win or draw. Did they do enough on paper?

Games aren’t won or lost on paper; they must be played on the field. So my initial question is complete nonsense. Much like the 50 years of the Sounders’ existence. These games are always so odd. Current form gets tossed out the window. And yet, both teams played exactly like their recent performances against different teams. But the Timbers were able to accomplish something that the Sounders hadn’t allowed in MLS play since June 8th: force Seattle to drop points after scoring the first goal.

This looked impossible during the first half. The combination of Cristhian Paredes and Diego Chara were unable to hold the ball in midfield, which led to bad turnovers and misplaced passes. More on that later. But the Timbers stayed strong defensively, largely locked the Sounders down during open play, and conceded a set piece goal that found the back of the net due to the quality of the opponent. I’ve rewatched Yeimar’s opening goal several times, and I can’t think of a way for the Timbers to defend that any better. It looks like Albert Rusnak is going to deliver that ball towards the six-yard box. That’s where Yeimar is pointing for the ball to go. But Rusnak’s delivery loops wide towards the penalty area. Finn Surman, who is marking Yeimar, is between him and the goal. When Yeimar is going to meet the ball, he is backing away from the goal and manages to find the back of the net due to a truly excellent piece of heading. I can’t really find a fault with that. It’s very annoying, sure, but Portland’s marking was fine. They just couldn’t beat one of the best corner takers and one of the best aerial threats in the league. These things happen sometimes. It wasn’t sloppy or a mental error. Just some good soccer. 

However, for the fifth game in a row, the attack was unable to consistently challenge Seattle’s backline. This might be controversial, but the RSL game wasn’t an outpouring of great attacking soccer. Portland scored three goals: a corner kick, free kick, and a counterattack composed of a long ball, backwards pass and a cross. Portland’s directness has been severely lacking in their recent games. Against Vancouver, Evander’s absence left the attack looking disjointed but dangerous during certain moments. When Austin came to town, the Timbers’ sloppiness and desperation around the box kept them off the scoresheet despite a front-footed performance. Dallas was a story of good goalkeeping and poor finishing. Tonight, against Seattle, their top attackers went missing for large chunks of time. And, somehow, it was Antony’s brief moment of brilliance that tied the game. There is quality in this attack. It is buoyed by a strong midfield that can keep the ball. The cohesion from their rampant 4-2 victory against the LA Galaxy has almost evaporated. That’s concerning, but fixable. Even when the Sounders went down to 10 men, they maintained control of the game. 

Complaining about officiating is a tiresome task, but there are serious issues with center referee Ismir Pekmic’s performance. After the high tide experienced on May 12th, when an offside goal by Cristian Roldan tied the game, the Portland Timbers saw many key calls go in their favor. Obed Vargas’ second yellow card was the biggest one, but it didn’t end up affecting the match as much as it could have. Pekmic was a busy boy, calling a total of 30 fouls tonight. 16 of those calls went against the Timbers. However, the Sounders picked up four yellow cards (counting Vargas’ second) to one Timber yellow. Portland’s yellow happened in the 4th minute of second half stoppage time, and it was a caution to Jonathan Rodriguez for dissent. The Uruguayan was frustrated with the officiating all night, and had been dissenting for most of the match since a 9th-minute whistle went against him. But Pekmic’s true masterpieces came during advantage situations. In the 53rd minute, a late whistle on Cristhian Paredes stopped a Seattle breakaway. No card was shown. In most circumstances, an advantage is played to see how the play progresses. Sometimes, if the foul is a yellow card offense, the play will continue and the offending player will be shown a yellow card at the next stoppage in play. Paredes was not booked for this challenge on Cristian Roldan. It was a mind-boggling whistle, and I would be furious if it went against the Timbers. As someone who wants this league to be the best that it can be, these types of calls frustrate me no matter who they go against. PRO’s inconsistency drives me up a wall, and these types of calls had more of an impact on the game than Vargas’ silly second yellow. He’s a young player but he just made his Mexico debut last week against the USMNT. The 19 year old Vargas should simply know better. Don’t dissent, especially after an obvious foul. For the record, since Portland wasn’t cautioned for any of their frustrations with fouls, Vargas should not have been sent off for one outburst. Yeah, it was really funny, but it wasn’t the right call. Nouhou’s initial yellow card was for a tough foul, but given the balance of play it wasn’t worthy of a booking. Getting these calls right really affects the flow of the game. I don’t blame Sounders fans for their anger at tonight’s referee. But they did create the chances to win the game, and I would be directing a lot more anger at the Great Pumpkin rather than using the refs as an excuse. 

Player Ratings

James Pantemis: 9

Yeah, a 9 seems about right. 6 saves, including a key stop in the 57th minute to deny an on-rushing Great Pumpkin. Pantemis continued to show his excellent command over the backline and his fantastic pure shot-stopping ability. I’m not getting into the Crepeau/Pantemis debate right now. His number was called tonight, and he rose to the occasion.

Juan Mosquera: 7.5

He was able to do more in the attack as the night went on, and it was another solid defensive showing from the Colombian. I didn’t think he was absolutely spectacular, but he showed the right level of intensity and did his job. Mosquera had 10 recoveries; the most of any Timbers field player. It’s been a good year for him. He started all 34 regular-season games. Availability is the best ability, and his durability has been outstanding since he arrived in Portland. I know he wanted to contribute more during this game, but from my perspective he did a good job.

Finn Surman: 8.5

With Portland’s list of available center backs down to two, the summer arrival made his Timbers debut in Seattle. Boy, did he rise to the occasion. His 19th minute block of Pedro de la Vega set the bar high, and he kept up his excellent defensive work throughout the entire game. However, he needs to keep working on his passing. In terms of a first impression, Surman’s debut was outstanding. “When I get a chance, I’ll play as well as I can,” Surman said in his post-game press conference. That’s a great way to begin your Timbers career.

Dario Zuparic: 9

Zuparic’s defensive contributions were on par with Surman’s, but his passing was a little bit better. Rather than go into Zuparic’s stats, I think his post-game press conference is much more interesting. For the second time, Zuparic has won the Cascadia Cup. “It’s for our fans, our supporters, who supported us when we didn’t look good on the field. In tough times, they stayed with us. This is for them.” Due to a scheduling mishap, the Timbers will be hosting the Whitecaps as the 9 seed next Wednesday. I wonder what Zuparic thinks of that. “I feel like we did not deserve a home game, to be honest, because there were a lot of times when we didn’t play as a team.” That last sentence is painfully true. The Timbers, as a whole, didn’t play like a team tonight, but they still earned a draw. Zuparic’s performance was key to that.

Claudio Bravo: 7.5

Bravo and Mosquera’s ratings are the same, but I thought Bravo had a tougher assignment. Pedro de la Vega actually looked like a DP tonight. He put Bravo on skates multiple times, but the Argentine was always able to recover. He won 4 tackles but his long passing was a bit awry. Still, it’s another good outing for Portland’s first-choice left back. 

Diego Chara: 7

Chara wasn’t outstanding, but he wasn’t bad either. I don’t think he’s a 90-minute player anymore, especially on a short week. But when he was on the field, he was fine. His appearance set the table for his eventual successor.

David Ayala: 7

Ayala entered into a bitterly contested game and performed admirably. With the Wild Card Game just around the corner, it makes sense that Ayala was utilized as a substitute rather than a starter tonight. When he came in, his long range passing and general doggedness further proved how important he is to this team. 

Cristhian Paredes: 4

Man, this one hurts. Paredes’ defensive contributions weren’t awful, but he needed to fill Ayala’s role in the midfield. That didn’t happen in the slightest. His passing was awry, his first touch wasn’t controlled, and he was a big reason that the Timbers were so ineffective going forward in the first half. When he played in Giovanni Savarese’s controlled, counter-attacking system, his deficiencies with the ball at his feet weren’t as important because of his defensive tenacity. Since Neville took over, Paredes’ poor technique has been broadcast for the entire season. He works much better as a key substitute with his energy and freshness off the bench putting him in a better position to impact the game. 

Eryk Williamson: 8

Taking Paredes’ place in the 63rd minute was Williamson, who had a stellar outing in Seattle. Antony’s equalizing goal began with a key tackle from the American, and his decision-making throughout his time on the pitch was excellent. He tried to play a one-two with Jonathan Rodriguez, but the return pass was poorly executed and intercepted. There is a world where Ayala and Williamson enter next season as the first choice midfield pairing. I would not be opposed to that idea. Their skill sets complement each other very well. Paredes and Chara combined for 80.6% pass accuracy. Ayala and Williamson combined for 90.1%. Now, the man advantage can account for some of that, but Seattle’s intensity didn’t decrease after the dismissal. Both players retain the ball well under pressure and have the creativity to combine or play dangerous long passes. In order for the Timbers’ attack to be effective, their midfield has to be good with the ball. I think Ayala/Williamson fits that description. 

ANTONY!: 8

Good Lord. That piece of dribbling and the finish on his goal was some of the best technical skill I’ve seen from him in a Timbers uniform.

“Billy, this is Antony. He’s the fastest player the Timbers have ever had and he can do astounding things with the ball. His defect is that his decision-making isn’t at a great level and he only performs outstanding bits of skill in 1 out of every 20 dribble attempts.”

If Antony could pump up those numbers to 5 out of 10 or even 7 out of 10, he’d be almost unstoppable. The decision-making will come with time and more experience, but there is an elite MLS player ready to break out. He beat Nouhou (one of the best defensive fullbacks in the league) not once, but twice on that goal. His work rate is excellent. He isn’t afraid to put in a good challenge to win the ball back. I see the vision. If he can perform at a consistent level the sky is truly the limit. Outside of his goal, he was inconsistent. But the goal was so special that he deserves an 8. Thanks to that goal, the Cascadia Cup is back in Portland. Antony’s assessment of the game was rather blunt but effective: “We didn’t win but we also didn’t lose.” I wholeheartedly give my stamp of approval to this answer. Since tonight’s game marked the end of his first full season in Portland (and since he rarely talks to the media due to the language barrier) I wanted to hear his thoughts on this season and how he’s adapted to Portland so far. “I liked it a lot. I think we could have been better.” Another stamp of approval. I think his goal tonight is his signature moment in a Timbers uniform so far. An excellently taken goal in a big rivalry game to win a trophy. That goal takes his season total to 7g/4a in 33 appearances (20 starts). It’s only up from here.

Felipe Mora: 6.5

He missed a header in the second half that could have given the Timbers the lead, but the continued lack of service in general inhibits his ability to score goals. However, I liked a lot of what he was doing off the ball, and he was often making the right decisions. Unfortunately, his teammates weren’t on the same page. Consider this a “high” 6.5.

Evander: 7

No, he didn’t grab the game by the scruff of the neck, but it seemed like he was fighting an uphill battle every time he got on the ball. It was painfully obvious that one of the Sounders’ press triggers was when Evander received the ball, but he kept trying to work through it. In these kinds of games, Portland’s secondary creators need to be more active and able to create the space for Evander to exploit. However, when the field did tilt in Portland’s favor, he looked like his usual self. Make that 15g/19a for the Brazilian after he assisted Antony’s equalizer. Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick and added an assist in Miami’s win against New England. Now an alien who has played in 19 of 34 possible games stands alone on MLS’ total goal contributions leaderboard with 36. Second place, however, firmly belongs to Evander with 34. It has been an outstanding season for him, and his eye-watering statistical output would be the top total in the league if Messi, the greatest player ever, wasn’t in the league. Wow. 

Jonathan Rodriguez: 5

If I really wanted to be harsh, I would give Rodriguez a rating akin to Paredes. However, I may be an idiot, but I’m not stupid. During the first half, Rodriguez pulled up during a run with some obvious discomfort in his leg. I think that pain persisted throughout the match, because his usual explosiveness and off-ball movement wasn’t there after the incident. However, his insistence to argue with the referee would have been punished by a competent official. He drew zero fouls and committed three of his own. If I was a Sounders fan (who in their right mind would be) I would be furious at the lack of discipline from the referee until the game’s final seconds. He just has to put tonight’s performance behind him. In his post-game press conference, Phil Neville talked about how the DPs have to perform and how he constantly puts pressure on them to perform. Rodriguez dropped the ball tonight, but there is an opportunity to change that in a few days.

Table Time

Decision Day (still a dumb name) definitely lived up to the hype in the Western Conference. Minnesota easily took care of business against St. Louis; putting the Vancouver Whitecaps in 8th place regardless of their own result in Salt Lake (they lost 2-1 on a very funny own goal). The Timbers prevented the Sounders from earning another CONCACAF Champions’ Cup spot. Colorado shockingly lost in Austin and fell to 7th place after getting leapfrogged by Minnesota. But the biggest surprise came at the top of the table. LAFC took care of business against the San Jose Earthquakes by winning 3-1. That 3rd goal was really important. The Galaxy, meanwhile, went down 1-0 in Houston before scoring a late penalty to tie the game deep in second-half stoppage time. HOWEVER, Houston scored a VERY late winner to take all three points and cause the Galaxy to fall out of 1st place in the West. The stakes have changed for the playoffs. 

LAFC will now face the winner of Wednesday’s Wild Card Game. However, because the Timbers failed to climb into 8th place, they will now play a road playoff game in their home stadium because BC Place is being outfitted for a dirt bike race. That’s absolutely hilarious and also a serious issue with MLS, but Portland’s Wild Card Game now has a serious asterisk next to it. Somehow, they got their home playoff game. But instead of the Galaxy, they will face LAFC if they win their road playoff game at Providence Park. 

Final Whistle

Tonight’s game was about the Cascadia Cup, and the Portland Timbers delivered. They scored one goal, earned one point, and won the Cup for the first time since 2022. This is the shortest drought that the Timbers have had between Cascadia Cup wins since they joined MLS in 2011. Previously, the Timbers had 5-year droughts between their Cup wins (2012, 2017, 2022). That’s refreshing. Phil Neville spoke all year about the importance of the Cup to the fans and the team. I’m happy that he was able to deliver a Cascadia Cup in his first year as head coach. No other Portland manager has done that before. It was even more special that he did it in Seattle; which has never been done before. The Englishman brought it home. And most importantly, he kept the streak alive.

Traveling to Seattle can be a real pain in the neck. Traffic usually picks up around Tacoma, and the city is full of nonsense. It is really only worth visiting for a sporting event. Tonight, Lumen Field hosted 36,341 fans; Seattle’s highest attendance of the season. Those fans left pissed, angry, outraged, and without a trophy. During the past week, the Sounders were trying their hardest to build the hype for this game. A commercial featuring hard tackles on Timbers players received a lot of airtime. Billboards were put up celebrating “50 Years of Bonfires.” One problem with that. The Timbers didn’t exist until 1975, so for one year the Sounders were lighting themselves on fire before Portland’s team arrived (I’m ignoring Vancouver because they aren’t hosting a playoff game due to a BICYCLE RACE and are therefore an unserious club). Tonight, while they were celebrating their 50th year of existence, they finally paid homage to the 1974 Sounders who couldn’t stop burning themselves. First there was the infamous patch offered in the team store. If you bought a hat, you could get this neat little patch sewn onto it.

The designers of this patch were not using the full power of their brain, because they put their own logo in the fire! Fantastic work. During the pregame, club legend Roger Levesque was honored. The former Fish once celebrated a goal by pretending to be a tree getting cut down by a teammate. Once again, they can’t stop burning themselves. One of the key facets of Timbers culture is the Victory Log, which gets slices sawed off of it throughout the season and gifted to players who either score goals or keep a clean sheet at home. Timbers fans actively root for the Victory Log to get chopped down. The celebration doesn’t carry the same weight as many Sounders fans think that it does. Levesque openly hoped for a bonfire tonight. Commercials were shown on the video boards of Levesque, wearing the 2016 kits, throwing logs into a woodchipper. Once again, the Timbers encourage the destruction of a tree. During tonight’s match, the Sounders desperately tried to get their first home win against Portland since May 27th, 2017. They pulled out all the stops. And once again, they failed. The Timbers’ unbeaten streak has increased to 11 games.

Their stadium is a monument to the NFL team that allows the Sounders to share their space. The Sounders spent their time on the field after the final whistle giving white carnations to their fans. That is a tradition that has lasted 50 years, and it’s honestly kind of cute. But there’s one funny thing about flowers. They die. That’s why you have to keep getting new ones. Even if they get all the water and sustenance necessary for long-term survival, they will die. You know what doesn’t die? Log slices. While the Sounders gave fans their flowers for putting up with an 11th consecutive winless home game against Portland, the Timbers were busy lifting the Cascadia Cup in the northeast corner of their rented field. Priorities. For a club that raised a tifo about trophies tonight, you’d think that they’d be pretty focused on winning one. 

Cup raised. Streak kept alive. Playoffs await. The quest for the second star begins.

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