Match Recap & Highlights: Portland Timbers 4 - 1 Seattle Sounders
Match Recap & Highlights: Portland Timbers 4 - 1 Seattle Sounders
Four goals against the Sounders? Four goals against the Sounders.
The Portland Timbers (2-2-4) demolish the Seattle Sounders (5-1-2) 4-1 at Providence Park thanks to goals from Asprilla, Fogaça, Niezgoda, and Mosquera. The win is Portland’s fourth-straight against Seattle, and presents an opportunity to kick-start their season.
Recap
The Portland Timbers rolled out what was as close to a first choice lineup as they could have hoped for with their current injury concerns. Evander started for the first time since Matchday Two, and Franck Boli got his first Timbers start up top.
A tense, yet exciting, first half ended honors even between the Timbers and Sounders despite a number of big chances. The Sounders had the best chance to open the scoring through Jordan Morris in the 39th minute, but an outstanding tackle from Claudio Bravo denied the striker a tap-in.
The second half was something I don’t think anyone saw coming. After conceding the opening goal to Ruidiaz in the 58th minute, the Timbers exploded for four unanswered goals against the hottest team in MLS. Asprilla (overhead) kicked things off with a thumping bicycle in the 71st minute and Fogaça made it 2-1 with a cool left-footed finish just five minutes later.
Niezgoda extended the Timbers’ lead in the 81st minute, and Juan Mosquera completed the rout with an absolute cracker three minutes before stoppage time.
Highlights
9’ Nicolas Lodeiro found a pocket of space inside the Timbers’ box, but hit a right-footed shot directly at Aljaž Ivačič.
19’ After Diego Chara won the ball back defensively Franck Boli launched Dairon Asprilla down the wing on a counter. Asprilla then played the ball into Evander, before the Brazilian curled a speculative shot from distance beyond the far post.
25’ Juan Mosquera received a stray arm to the face that looked like a certain yellow, but somehow Leo Chu escaped without punishment for the Sounders.
39’ Claudio Bravo made an incredible goal-saving tackle to deny Jordan Morris a certain opener for the Sounders. Lodeiro sent Leo Chu down the wing in acres of space, and the winger put the ball on a platter for Morris, but Bravo was able to get stuck in at the last second to keep Seattle at bay.
44’ YELLOW CARD Joao Paulo received a caution for fouling Evander from behind as the midfielder was shaping up to take a shot.
45’ STOPPAGE TIME One minute of stoppage time was added at the end of the first half.
HALFTIME: At the break, the score remained 0 - 0
46’ Ivačič was called into action immediately at the start of the second half, making a leaping save to deny a deflected shot from Morris.
50’ Yeimar unleashed a venomous strike following a Sounders corner that whistled inches over the crossbar, Ivačič would have had no chance had it been on-target.
54’ YELLOW CARD Roldan was put into the book for dissent after failing to bring Asprilla down despite trying to climb him like he was Everest.
58’ YELLOW CARD Diego Chara received a yellow for a foul in midfield.
58’ GOAL SOUNDERS, 1-0 Raul Ruidiaz tucked home a close-range shot following a cutback from Obed Vargas.
66’ SUBSTITIONS Nathan Fogaça and Cristhian Paredes entered the match for David Ayala and Evander.
71’ GOAL TIMBERS, 1-1 THE MAGIC MAN DAIRON ASPRILLA WENT AHEAD AND HOPPED ON HIS BIKE AGAIN. After one-way traffic from the Sounders to start the second half, Asprilla thumped an overhead kick into the back of the net to equalize.
Link to Asprilla’s goal here.
72’ SUBSTITUTION Jarosław Niezgoda replaced Franck Boli.
76’ GOAL TIMBERS, 2-1 Fogaça burns Jackson Ragen with his speed, and races through on goal before putting a left-footed strike past Stefan Frei in the Sounders goal.
Link to Nathan’s goal here.
81’ GOAL TIMBERS, 3-1 Of all people, Niezgoda comes off the bench to put the game to bed for the Timbers. Nathan was involved in the buildup again, forcing a mistake from Frei that spilled the ball back into his path, before Niezgoda bundled the ball home.
Link to Niezgoda’s goal here.
89’ GOAL TIMBERS, 4-1 Juan Mosquera absolutely thrashed home the Timbers’ fourth of the night with a thunderous strike from distance. Frei had no chance.
Link to Mosquera’s goal here.
90’ STOPPAGE TIME Five minutes of time were added to the end of the match.
90+4’ SUBSTITUTION Larrys Mabiala replaced Santiago Moreno for the Timbers.
FULL TIME Timbers FOUR - 1 Sounders
Final Thoughts
How a single week changes things, eh folks? After failing to register a single shot on target against the Whitecaps last Saturday, your Portland Timbers demolish the Seattle Sounders 4-1 at Providence Park, scoring all four goals in 16 minutes.
A genuinely unbelievable result and performance.
Nobody gave the Timbers a chance heading into the match against the red-hot Sounders, and despite that, the men on the pitch put their arch-rivals to the sword by a substantial score. Fish gutted.
UP NEXT: The Timbers are back out on the road for their next match against FC Cincinnati. Kickoff at TQL Stadium is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PT on Saturday, April 22.
That sound you hear? It's me, happily and delightedly eating every single one of my pre-match words. I don't even have any serious analysis at this point - I'm just in awe that THAT is what I just saw.
Keep it up, Timbers. That was fun.
I've always offered to all my friends to come to a Timbers game and enjoy the full North End experience. Well, a bunch of them called me on it, for THIS game. Bit of a headache staking out seven seats in 107, and tempering my companions' expectations based on the season so far, but still, they'd get to see a tifo, hear a lot of "F*** Seattle", and maybe witness a semi-competitive first half. I never promised them Tetris, or bicycle kicks, or goals going in while "Goals, Goals, Goals" was still being sung. Thanks, Timbers. If the whole rest of the season is shit, at least we had that.