The Portland Timbers, coming off a slightly humiliating home loss last Saturday against the New York Red Bulls, enter this weekend of MLS play just one point above the red line for the last Western Conference playoff place, in search of the club's first win in over a month.
Getting that elusive win won't be an easy task. The Timbers are in Columbus on Saturday night, 4:30 PST, to play the talented young Crew. Columbus can clinch a playoff berth with a win or a draw, while the Timbers' need for a rebound performance is just as much about calming nerves as it is about gaining points.
The pressure is mounting. Portland's season now hangs ever more shakily in the balance.
The History
The Timbers don't have much history with the Crew, but the Timbers do have plenty of connections to the state of Ohio. Caleb Porter, of course, coached at the University of Akron where Darlington Nagbe, Ben Zemanski, and Michael Nanchoff played for him.
Zemanski and Nanchoff are out of the picture for different reasons, but Nagbe and Porter are still very much at the center of the Portland storm — with both recently under immense pressure. The Columbus trip is a chance for Nagbe's extended family to see him play. They came out in droves when Portland visited in 2013, as did a number of Zips fans supporting the Timbers.
The Timbers lost that 2013 match 1-0 after they went down early and Pa Modou Kah was sent off. Last season, the two clubs played to a thrilling 3-3 draw in Portland that saw the Timbers battle back multiple times after losing Futty Danso to a red card in first half stoppage time. It was that match that prompted the "heart of a lion, brain of a goldfish" quote from Timbers captain Will Johnson.
Portland has only beaten Columbus once — thanks to a 2011 Eric Brunner header — and has never won in Ohio.
The Tactics
The Timbers have a clear best XI — it does not feature Maxi Urruti no matter how few goals Fanendo Adi has scored in his last however many games — but it wasn't just the inclusion of Urruti that didn't work against New York.
Even apart from Will Johnson's stinker — he should be better this week — the Timbers were unable to move the ball effectively or get Darlington Nagbe or Diego Valeri in spots of importance consistently. Columbus is a different beast. They'll also put the Timbers under pressure with one of the best attacks in the league, but Portland will have chances to make plays against a defense that has been weak all season.
Nagbe should be fired up. It's a homecoming, and he, rightly or wrongly, has plenty to prove in the face of what has become another underwhelming season. The Timbers need to come out with intensity — if they trail at the end of the first half, they'll lose again.
The Lineup
12 - Kwarasey
2 - Powell
24 - Ridgewell
7 - Borchers
19 - Villafaña
4 - W. Johnson (C)
21 - Chara
6 - Nagbe
8 - Valeri
26 - Melano
9 - Adi
The Pick
Columbus has been good ever since the return of Wil Trapp to central midfield, and, at home, with a playoff spot in sight, they'll beat the hapless Timbers 3-1.
