Number 10

It’s July 15, 2023. Diego Valeri is being honored at Providence Park in a match against the Columbus Crew. Thanks to Dairon Asprilla, the Timbers jumped out to an early 2-goal lead. However, Lucas Zelarayan scored twice to tie the game. It was the final match before the Leagues Cup break, and the Timbers were desperate to go into it on a high note. Enter Number 10.

With the trumpets blaring out “You Are My Sunshine,” a loose ball trickled through the box until it found the one foot it needed to. We didn’t know it at the time, but it would be the last goal Sebastian Blanco ever scored for the Portland Timbers. 

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Back in summer 2014, there was something special going on at West Bromwich Albion. The club had just avoided relegation, but they had no idea what the effects of that season would bring to Portland, a city 4,800 miles away. Center back Liam Ridgewell had departed the club on a free transfer, and he was about to bring glory to the Pacific Northwest of the United States. This was a big summer for the Baggies, who were trying to stay in England’s top flight for another season. And they turned their eyes to Ukraine, and a 5’6” 26-year old attacker playing for Metalist Kharkiv. All it took was 2 million Euros, and Sebastian Blanco was a Baggie.

As a West Bromwich Albion fan, I can speak about his achievements in that shirt. Blanco did not impress in limited game time, and left on loan in January to San Lorenzo. San Lorenzo made the loan permanent in July 2015, not even a year after Blanco first arrived in the West Midlands. 2014/15 saw Alan Irvine sacked and replaced by Tony Pulis, who employs a style of soccer that could be narrated by a NPR host. Blanco’s Baggies career ended with 5 appearances and 1 yellow card. I have scoured the internet looking for footage of that yellow card, but all I could find was this:

Now we fast-forward to the year 2017. The Timbers have suffered a heart-breaking Decision Day playoff miss at the hands of the Vancouver Whitecaps, and their other smelly neighbors to the north had just won MLS Cup despite registering a zero shots on target in 120 minutes (don’t worry, five years in the future it will be done to them and the league will view it as unacceptable). They were looking for another key piece to add to a team with plenty of attacking firepower. Enter a 5’6” 28-year old attacker from San Lorenzo. All it took was $4.5 million, sending $75K GAM to Seattle for his Discovery Rights, and Sebastian Blanco was a Timber.

The wild ride we have all been on since 2017 would not have been possible without West Bromwich Albion, the biggest and most important club in England. Boing boing, indeed.

That was an awful lot of preamble, and I haven’t even gotten to Seba’s illustrious Timbers career yet. There’s no better place to start than his first game in Green-and-Gold.

*skip to 1:10*

After registering his first Timbers goal involvement, he goes to hug Diego Valeri. He’d have to wait a bit before getting his first goal, but it was coming.

*skip to 1:43*

His first season ended with a Cascadia Cup triumph and a playoff exit in the Conference Semifinals. He registered 8g/4a in 33 matches; the most matches any Timber appeared in that season. But it was 2018 where he went from successful signing to club hero.

*skip to 1:03*

How the hell did this go in?! Seriously!

In 2018, the Timbers played the Seattle Sounders for the 100th time in all competitions. In order to sign Blanco from San Lorenzo, the Timbers had to send some GAM ($75K, to be exact) to Seattle for his Discovery Rights. Every amount of money made this goal worth it.

*skip to 2:51*

And this one.

*skip to 2:09*

And this one. 

*skip to 0:13 for Blanco, or just watch the whole video because it will put a smile on your face*

He had a fantastic 2018, scoring 10 times and getting 8 assists. But this is a magical man we’re dealing with. One who has the power to make even the best commentators forget how to pronounce his name.

*skip to 1:27*

We know how 2018 ended on the field, but this man wearing number 10 stole our hearts. During this season, the four members of the Timbers’ MLS Mount Rushmore were on the field, and it took a team led by a future Premier League star and the most clinical striker in MLS history to stop them. The Timbers were now led by their respected Argentinean captain, their soft-spoken Colombian stalwart whose play spoke for itself, and their mercurial Argentinean winger who knew he was better than you and would always remind you of it. 

2019 began with a trip to Colorado in the midst of a blizzard. And guess who got on the scoresheet.

*skip to 1:41*

One team that Blanco always showed up against was Real Salt Lake. The reasoning for this is unclear, but he kept turning into a God against the Monarchs. Here’s one Blanco goal against RSL.

*skip to 1:47*

Let’s take some time to appreciate this next goal. The Timbers opened 2019 with 12 straight away matches while the new expansion was being finished at Providence Park. In their road match before their return home, the Timbers destroyed Philadelphia 3-1. It was capped off by this bit of brilliance from their three attacking cornerstones.

*skip to 3:10*

$75K GAM. 

*skip to 9:51*

“You cannot give that man that kind of space.”

*skip to 0:40*

Despite their red-hot form through August and September, the Timbers still needed a victory to ensure qualification to the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs. Guess who sealed their playoff spot with a brilliant free kick.

*skip to 2:33*

In 2020, the world came to a crashing halt as the COVID-19 pandemic spread. MLS decided to host a closed-door bubble tournament in Orlando. Blanco took this opportunity and DOMINATED.

When the real world was too depressing to stomach, the Timbers gave us something we desperately needed. And it wouldn’t have happened without Sebastian Blanco. COVID Cup Champs, you’ll never sing that.

When the season resumed, the Timbers looked poised to make a run for MLS Cup. Unfortunately for Blanco, his season was cut short after he tore his ACL in Seattle. It was a long and hard road in recovery, but he was back on the field 286 days later. Just listen to this crowd.

How about this for his first goal involvement back from injury?

*skip to 3:14*

The season began to take a downturn following a certain match on August 15, 2021. Two weeks later, Blanco made his return to Seattle. No goal can ever be more cathartic than this one.

*skip to 2:13*

It also resulted in one of the best photographs in Timbers history.

Suddenly, the playoff hunt was on. Blanco kept going nuclear, but he saved his masterclass for the Wild Card round against Minnesota, where his magical right foot kept the party going in Portland.

No Timbers player played with as much sheer audacity as Sebastian Blanco. Out of anyone on that field, only he would take that shot. A hamstring injury suffered in the Thanksgiving Day victory in Colorado kept his status for the remainder of the playoffs in doubt. He returned for MLS Cup, but didn’t look 100%. Following the departure of Diego Valeri in the 2021 offseason, Blanco was the talisman of the attack entering 2022. His previous injury had taken some of his explosiveness, but he still turned up when it mattered. Sporting Kansas City came to town in May, and Blanco showed us that he could still turn back the clock and deliver masterclasses.

Just watch the whole thing, it’s such a fun game.

In a classic MLS game, the Timbers traveled to Minnesota. I hope you all were sitting on your couch in time for kickoff, otherwise you missed the fastest goal in Timbers history.

The Timbers had the opportunity to win the Cascadia Cup in 2022, and Blanco scored the goal that sealed it. Once again, $75K GAM.

*skip to 4:00*

2023 was a frustrating season for Blanco while he dealt with recurring knee problems. But everytime he got on that pitch, he gave it all for the badge. Let’s return to July 15, 2023 to finish the story of our Number 10.

What an absolute joy it has been to witness Sebastian Blanco play for these past seven years. And in case you weren’t grateful for his contributions, he would always be there to remind you.

He embraced Portland and made it his home. Coupled in with all of his on-field heroics was a fiery player who wouldn’t take any s*** from anyone. After being substituted off in his return to Seattle in 2021, he immediately began sassing Sounders fans. Truly one of us.

This man deserves a place in the Timbers’ Ring of Honor. 203 appearances, 51 goals, 46 assists, and 44 yellow cards. We don’t know where he will be next season, but he has given us seven years of excellence both on and off the pitch. Before Blanco arrived in Portland, the number 10 was worn by Danny Mwanga, Frederic Piquionne, Gaston Fernandez, and Ned Grabavoy. That number is usually reserved for the best player on every team. You have to earn the right to wear the number 10. Once Blanco arrived, he took control of that jersey number. He truly is our Number 10, and no one can ever take it away from him. Adios y gracias, Seba. It’s been a pleasure.

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