At the end of the 2013 season the Portland Timbers are in the exact opposite position they were last year. Rather than sitting at the top of the Cascadia Cup race and the bottom of the conference, they’re third in the West and below both Vancouver and Seattle in cup play. Their only chance to retain the cup is by winning out and hoping that Vancouver ties or defeats Seattle next week. While they will likely lose the cup, one thing is certain: defeating the Whitecaps in Vancouver this Sunday clinches a playoff spot for Portland.
The Vancouver Whitecaps started off the season red-hot, scoring nearly at will through Camilo Sanvezzo. But as of late they have struggled, securing just one win and four losses in the last seven matches. Portland has won three of their last seven games lost just two. It’s easy to looks at this and say that the Timbers are in a better place, but with the playoffs and pride (not to mention manager Martin Rennie’s job) on the line counting out the Caps would be a huge mistake.
Roster news is limited for the Timbers this week as all players are in the same spot they were against LA. Diego Valeri is healthy and will start, but not entirely fit and may need to be subbed off in the second half. Piquionne and Horst are both back from injury, but won’t be cracking the 18 this week. One thing that could change is a swap at right back between Jack Jewsbury and Alvas Powell. Powell made the 18 last week but didn’t sub in thanks to stellar play by Jack. Even with Jack playing well I find myself to be longing for Powell’s speed on the wing and link play with Darlington Nagbe. I think those two can be deadly on the break when feeding off each others acceleration to expose the defense.
Kenny Miller may make it back to the starting 11 for vancouver this week after missing the last week with a groin injury. This is big for Portland as the Caps are always better when their attacking core of Miller, Camilo, and Russell Teibert are all healthy. The three of them combine for 60% of the team’s goals and 36% of their assists.
Game Predictions:
Maximiliano Urruti and Diego Valeri combine for a goal. The Argentine duo are on the same page, you can tell just by looking at some of the spectacular passes made between them last week against LA. It’s only a matter of time until they combine, either way, for a goal. I expect it to happen on Sunday.
Diego Chara earns a yellow. Last year I could have called this for any match he played, but in 2013 he has been far more controlled. That isn’t a bad thing either, Portland plays noticeably better with him on the pitch. Portland and Vancouver are averaging 5.5 cards per game against each other this year.
The Great Wall of Gambia shuts out Vancouver. I really think Pa Modou Kah and Futty Danso work brilliantly together. Kah brings the speed and slide tackles while Futty brings experience, positioning, and aerial defense. They stopped Keane and Donovan last week, they’ll stop Miller, Teibert, and Camilo this week.
Projected Lineups:
Portland Timbers: Donovan Ricketts; Jack Jewsbury, Futty Danso, Pa Modou Kah, Michael Harrington; Diego Valeri, Will Johnson, Diego Chara; Darlington Nagbe, Maximiliano Urruti, Rodney Wallace
Vancouver Whitecaps: David Ousted; Lee Young-Pyo, Carlyle Mitchell, Jay DeMerit, Jordan Harvey; Nigel Reo-Coker, Erik Hurtado, Gershon Koffie; Russell Teibert, Kenny Miller, Camilo Sanvezzo
