Community Discussion Post: Bad vibes in PTFC-land

The vibes around both the Timbers and the Thorns are trending downward.

Photo Credit: Portland Timbers FC

It’s rare that both the Portland Timbers and Portland Thorns find themselves in the same place vibes-wise. The Thorns are usually hitting the heights of scoring goals for fun and winning championships, while the Timbers usually… aren’t.

So that’s what makes the past few weeks around both PTFC clubs so surprising and so worrying. The Timbers are mired in a poor run of form, and they have one of their highest-profile players declining to show up for training. And the Thorns, without their contingent of World Cup stars, have lost three in row in all competitions.

Granted, the Thorns are in a much better place in the table compared to the Timbers (2nd vs 12th) and have much more clear and navigable reasons for their downturn (get their world-class stars back vs. whatever the hell is going on with the boys).

But the end result at the moment is the same for both clubs: the vibes are not great and are trending downward.

Let’s run through the reasons for the bad vibes for both clubs in a little more detail:

Timbers

• Just one win since May 13, and seven points from their last nine games (0.77 ppg)

• Just five goals scored since May 13

• Multiple 4-1 losses since May 13

• 12th place in the West, still adrift from the playoff line

• Santiago Moreno reportedly requesting a transfer due to frustration with the Timbers coaching staff and organization, and then failing to report to training on Monday

• General uninspired play on the field

• Few positive signs that a turnaround might be coming soon

Thorns

• Three losses in a row in all competitions (first three-game losing streak since 2015)

• Two losses in a row at home

• Third in their UKG NWSL Challenge Cup group, with long odds to advance to the knockout rounds

• Just one goal scored since the departure of World Cup players, and outscored by a margin of 4-1 in those three games

• Disjointed and slow attacking sequences, contributing to the prior point

Like I said, the odds that the Thorns pull out of this skid are higher than the Timbers — probably by some margin. But as a fan (and blogger) of the squads, it really is a bummer to look at the spot both teams are in at the moment, even if this all winds up being just a short-term rough patch.

But I’ll turn it over to you, dear reader. What are your thoughts on the vibes around the the clubs right now? What needs to happen for each team to pull out of their respective skids? Will both of them pull out of it, or just one of them? If so, which one will? (I might already know your answer to that one).

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We’re in a tough moment in PTFC-land. So let’s get through it the best way us Stumptown Footy people know how: together (in the comment section). Comment away!