Timbers vs. Whitecaps preview: The weirdest Derby Day

It's Portland vs. Vancouver under tough circumstances, in (maybe) the only competition left for the Timbers: the Cascadia Cup.

For the first time in nearly six years, the Portland Timbers will take the field without Giovanni Savarese.

And it comes in perhaps the biggest home game left in the 2023 season.

Photo Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Timbers

Portland squares off against the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday at Providence Park (7:30 p.m. PT, streaming on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+), in game which will surely feel surreal to many fans without the typically animated Savarese on the touchline.

That doesn’t mean that it won’t still have huge stakes, however. Portland’s fringe playoff hopes hinge on a run up the table that has to start as soon as possible, if it’s going to happen at all. But perhaps more importantly a win on Saturday would put Portland on the brink of claiming the Cascadia Cup in back-to-back seasons, giving fans a small high point in a season full of low moments.

Let’s dive into it what to expect:

What the Whitecaps will do:

Vancouver, a team that I once labeled as “the team that doesn’t care”, will come into Providence Park and likely proceed to do just that: not care about Portland’s current circumstances and very fresh firing of their head coach.

The ‘Caps are in a playoff spot at the moment, but they are perilously close to the red line. Depending on if Minnesota and Dallas get results, Vancouver could end the weekend in 10th. Add into that the fact that the Whitecaps are themselves still in good position to lift their first Cascadia Cup since 2016, you can bet that Vanni Sartini’s side will be laser-focused on getting three points.

If they are to do so, it will surely have to come as result of the play of their talismanic midfielder Ryan Gauld. The Scot didn’t play the first hour of Vancouver’s recent 1-0 home loss to San Jose, and lo and behold Vancouver didn’t score. I don’t think that’s a coincidence, and how well they do in Portland will probably be directly proportional to how well Gauld pulls the strings.

If it’s not him, then the difference could be in the forward line, specifically Brian White. The big striker burned the Timbers the first time these two teams faced off this year, a 1-0 defeat for Portland in BC Place. Look for White to try to occupy Portland’s centerbacks and attempt to get on the end of balls into the box from the wingbacks.

Those wingbacks won’t include the dangerous Julian Gressel, who Vancouver traded to Columbus for… some odd reason. It will however include Canadian international Richie Laryea, who Claudio Bravo will have to be prepared to defend down Portland’s left flank.

What the Timbers will do:

To be frank: I have no idea!

With the Portland Timbers announcing on Monday that long-time head coach Giovanni Savarese has been relieved of his duties, previous analysis of how this team has played kind of gets shaken up.

With Gio gone it is hard to predict how exactly this team will play. Timbers interim head coach Miles Joseph is a name the players will know from his time on Gio’s staff, and he has suggested that he isn’t going to change anything with regards to the team’s style of play. But Joseph is not Savarese, and his in-game management and substitution patterns are impossible to forecast.

Still, there are some things we do know. We know that Zac McGraw is likely to reclaim his starting spot after missing out last week. And we know that that will be a huge boost for the Timbers backline, who missed (among many other things) his physicality and presence. We also know that Diego Chara will be back in the middle of the park, and like McGraw his return will do wonders for Portland’s midfield structure and rigidity.

We also know the attacking shape will roughly look the same as it has all season. And so we also know that we will all be asking ourselves the same question we have been wondering all season: when is the offense finally going to show up? Portland’s biggest weakness all season has been their lack of goalscoring production, and you could argue that the biggest failing of Savarese in 2023 was failing to inspire the offense.

With Gio now gone, the question is who will provide that inspiration. It could be Evander, who showed signs of heating up in the Leagues Cup. It could also be from Felipe Mora, who has looked lively in substitute appearances and could in line for a start instead of Franck Boli (who has gone pretty cold as of late). It could also be from newly signed U-22 winger Antony, who will be available and will likely make his Timbers debut tonight.

Wherever it is going to come from, it’s important that it comes tonight. While making the playoffs remain a long-shot, lifting the Cascadia Cup does not. Winning their next two matches would win Portland the Cup for the second year running, and while the 2023 season will very likely not be looked back upon fondly, winning regional supremacy would make things slightly more palatable.

For as weird as tonight is going to feel, there is still something for the Timbers to play for. We’ll see if they can meet the moment, and attempt to scrape something out of this depressing season.