Portland returns to MLS action and plays its third game in seven days tonight as the Timbers welcome the Philadelphia Union to the House of Pane for a meeting between two of the league's most surprising clubs. Philly's known for its stout defense, while Portland's shown it can score in bunches at home, and there's a national TV crew here to see which team's strength will out-muscle the other.
The match is being televised on Fox Soccer Channel (because it's Soccer Night in America!) and you can stream it live here.
Of course, you can also follow along with me after the jump for all the action on and off the soggy pitch.
Pregame—There's a steady rain falling, and I'm seeing a lot of panchos out there. Finally, Portland weather as it should be.
Your lineups:
Portland (3-3-1)—Perkins in goal, Cooper and Perlaza up front, Alhassan, Chará, Jewsbury and Nagbe at midfield, and Wallace, Futty, Brunner and Hall on defense. Jewsbury's the captain and it looks like the white shorts are back in play.
Philadelphia (4-1-1)—Faryd Mondragon in goal, Carlos Ruiz and Danny Mwanga up front, Brian Carroll, Amobi Okugo, Justin Mapp and Sebastien Le Toux at midfield, and Michael Farfan, Gabriel Farfan and Sheanon Williams on defense. Philly wearing all blue with a gold stripe down the center of their jerseys.
1st minute—And we're underway. The early minutes of this one are going to be key for Portland, which simply can't surrender an early goal against a team that loves to get ahead and play keep-away.
3rd minute—The Farfan twins are on the field for Philly: Michael on defense and his brother, rookie midfielder Gabriel. Also, Jefferson High and Oregon State star Danny Mwanga is up front for the Union.
5th minute—Wallace picks up a foul with a slight shove to Carlos Ruiz, who flails like, well, a soccer player. Lots of "rooster tails" out there with each slide. The field is definitely saturated. Probably no need to water it at halftime.
10th minute—Perlaza earns a corner with some nifty footwork in the box. Some crisp passing so far from Portland. The corner is punched out of trouble by Mondragon.
12th minute—Nagbe with giveaway, a nice steal but then, another giveaway. He looks a bit tentative out there.
14th minute—Interesting little set-piece on a free kick where Jewsbury taps it to Wallace, who chips it into Cooper, who then one-touches it to Brunner for a shot. Defended well, but looked pretty nifty. Alhassan then goes down in the box, but no foul is called.
18th minute—Perlaza picks up a yellow kicking Gabriel Farfan in the head. Welcome to the league, kid. Ensuing free kick is blasted in and may have caught Perkins off-guard, but it goes wide right.
20th minute—Perkins forced out of the box to clear one out when Wallace gets caught in no-man's land. Timbers no longer owning possession as they were earlier in this one.
25th minute—Mapp picks up a yellow after taking down Chará near midfield.
26th minute—Jewsbury corner kick comes bending in and Futty gets a head on it, but it goes just wide. A good, clean chance there.
29th minute—Hall lobs one nicely into the box for Jewsbury, but it's just over his head. Timbers are getting chances to work in space here.
32nd minute—Philadelphia's style is definitely on display here. They're in no real hurry, it seems and have no problem playing it back to their keeper. Not forcing anything and very methodical. Very dangerous if it's able to lull Portland to sleep.
37th minute—Hall picks Michael Farfan's pocket twice in a row and then boots a nice pass down the west sideline. Hall playing very loose and confidently. He's definitely got a spring in his step and I wouldn't be surprised if he's involved should Portland find the net before half.
39th minute—Timbers fortunate as Mwanga crosses one in and Le Toux just can't get a solid foot on it, leaving Perkins with an easy save.
41st minute—Alhassan earns a free kick after he's taken down just outside the box. Jewsbury lines it up from about 30ish yards out.
43rd minute—Mapp gets into some space, but his cross is behind the pair of teammates he has in the box. Another break for Portland.
44th minute—Cooper thrown to the turf to earn Portland a free kick. It sails into the box and Brunner's header is just over the crossbar. Best chance for Portland tonight on another set-piece.
45th minute—One minute of extra time.
And that'll do it for the first half. We're scoreless, which isn't exactly shocking considering the Union's stingy defense. Portland was the aggressor, mainly because Philly's style is about as kick-back as it gets. Nil-nil at the half: Just the kind of exciting soccer I'm sure Fox Soccer Channel was hoping for as it launches "Soccer Night in America." It's also the first 0-0 tie at the half Portland's been a part of in MLS play this season. On a personal note, my fingers are freezing. FYI.
Some first-half stats:
Portland out-shot Philly 5-1, but the Union out-fouled the Timbers 7-2. So there. Portland had a pair of corner kicks to Philly's one and the Timbers managed the game's only shot on goal. Exciting stuff.
46th minute—And away we go. No changes for either team at the half in terms of lineup. In terms of action, however, I sincerely hope that isn't the case.
48th minute—Perlaza fires one from just outside the box, but it's right up Main St. and easily saved by Mondragon.
50th minute—Chará chases one down right in front of TA, but his cross is a bit too high for Cooper, who was calling for the ball. It finds its way back to Jewsbury, who blasts one from 25 yards out that goes wide left.
55th minute—A couple of quick shots, with Nagbe's sliding past the left side of the goal. Cooper with a nice turn in the box to set it up.
55th minute—Zizzo in for Nagbe.
58th minute—Timbers Army just did the call-and-response "You can't stop us/We are the Rose City" chant with the rest of the crowd. Well executed all around, especially for the non-TA fans.
61st minute—The Colombian Connection with a nice back-and-forth run to earn a Portland corner kick. The crowd's back into it, big time.
63rd minute—Yikes. Perkins lets one slip through his hands, but Hall has his back and clears it out. Very fortunate for Portland as Philly picks up the pressure slightly.
64th minute—For Philly, Kyle Nakazawa in for Gabriel Farfan.
68th minute—Alhassan one plays one through to Perlaza, who finds a nice seam, but it's just out of his reach and Mondragon gets to it first.
70th minute—Zizzo lobs one just over the goal after it seems to deflect off a defender, but the ref doesn't notice and a goal kick is awarded. Fans not pleased.
72nd minute—Timbers GOAL! Jewsbury plays a free kick from 45 out and Futty heads it into the lower left corner of the goal AND THE CROWD JUST LOSES IT. 1-0 Timbers as Philly gives up just its third goal this season. Jewsbury with the assist, his third of the year.
78th minute—Just announced: Another sellout tonight. Count it.
79th minute—For Philly, Jack McInerney in for Okugo and Roger Torres in for Mapp. Marcelin looking like he's ready to enter for Portland.
80th minute—Zizzo touches a nice little pass wide to Chará, who crosses just in front of a cutting Perlaza. Very close, but it may have been offside if Perlaza got to it.
81st minute—Marcelin in for Alhassan.
83rd minute—Perlaza with a nice run and a running left-footer that goes just wide. They call a corner for Portland, so it must've just caught a Philly defender.
84th minute—Hall volleys in Jewsbury's corner, and Brunner has a good chance at it, but it sails on him.
85th minute—Handball on Portland. Free kick from 25 yards blocked by the Timbers wall.
86th minute—Big scrum in the goal after two huge saves by Perkins, one of those while he's laying on the ground. A bit of a shoving match breaks out as Timbers defend their keeper and it'll bring some yellows. Brunner and Philly's Williams pick up those up.
89th minute—Chará with a long run and shot, but it's blocked in front. Perlaza gets ahold of it and fires one, but it's saved by Mondragon. Philly running out of time.
90th minute—Three minutes of stoppage. Wallace gets a yellow card for ... something. Maybe wasting time to allow Timbers to sub?
Stoppage—Pore in for Perlaza. The Colombian looks pretty gassed.
Full Time—Timbers win, 1-0. That's 4/4 for Portland in MLS action this season at Jeld-Wen Field. A rather quiet first half and a rather tense second half, but the Timbers held on for yet another victory. As players shake hands at midfield, Spencer runs over in front of Timbers Army and jumps up on the platform to wave a flag. A fitting celebration after a huge clean-sheet win for Portland.
Back from the locker room, and guys can't help but start talking about Seattle. This win certainly gives the Timbers some momentum heading into next week and perhaps gives the Sounders a bit of a reason to worry. If Portland can take what they do at home on the road, the sky's the limit for this club.
