As the Portland Timbers take the field today for the home opener of Jeld-Wen Field, 36 years of history will come to a head as the latest incarnation of the team follow in the footsteps of Timbers greats like Clive Charles, John Bain, and Scot Thompson.
The Timbers (0-1-1, 1 pt.) are coming into the game with high expectations being placed upon them by an home crowd expecting a result. Injuries will remain a factor for the Timbers with starting goalkeeper Troy Perkins still out with a strained ligament in his right knee. Jake Gleeson, the young New Zealand international, has started the last two games for the Timbers and is slated again to receive the call from coach John Spencer. Returning from injury is the number two pick from the MLS Super Draft, Darlington Nagbe, which will present coach Spencer greater depth in the midfield which by all accounts has been severely lacking during this year’s campaign. Nagbe is expected to receive serious minutes after seeing some action against New England. He impressed in his return against the Revolution with superb ball handling as the team got its lone result of the season.
The keys for the Timbers to get a result against the Chicago Fire (1-1-1, 4 pts.) include exploiting the wings that are typically left open due to the 3-5-2 the Fire employ. This will require the likes of Jeremy Hall, Darlington Nagbe, and Steve Purdy to really be a factor.
Portland needs to hold tight for the first half of the game and keep it competitive. The Timbers have been burned in all three of their previous games allowing opponents to score before the half hour mark. It will be in the their best interest to get on the board first with a sold out crowd expected to reopen the stadium in typical Portland fashion, plenty of rain and plenty of noise.
