In the 99th all-time meeting in a rivalry that has “spanned” myriad leagues and parts of five decades, the Portland Timbers narrowly escaped the Emerald City with a 1-1 stalemate against the Seattle Sounders in front of 51,700 spectators at CenturyLink Field last weekend. Sounders' Cristian Ronald (18') and Timbers midfielder Diego Valeri (45'+) were the goalscorers. With this result, the Seattle Sounders maintained their lead on the long with forty-two points. Trailing behind them are the Portland Timbers with forty-one points.
Here's a quick look at the match:
Seattle Sounders outlook
Starting XI and individual performance points: Stefan Frei (6). Defender - Kelvin Leerdam (6), Román Torres (7), Chad Marshall (6), and Nouhou Tolo (6). Midfielder - Osvaldo Alonso (6), Cristian Roldan (8), and Nicolás Lodeiro (7). Forward - Clint Dempsey (6), Jordan Morris (6), and Will Bruin (6).
Team's strengths and weaknesses: The Seattle Sounders stole the ball often from the Timbers. They were solid at creating goal chances from set pieces and were effective at creating goal-bound chances from through balls. However, the hosts were not good at converting goal-bound chances and gave away several free kicks around their box.
Team style of play in the match: The Sounders favored through balls and favored crossing the ball from the side.
They had a high-shot frequency when in possession and had a large quantity of possessions in the Timbers' half.
Portland Timbers outlook
Starting XI and individual performance points: Goalkeeper - Jeff Attinella (6 points). Defenders - Zarek Valentin (6), Larrys Mabiala (6), Roy Miller (5), and Vytautas Andriuskevicius (5 points).
Midfielder - Diego Chara (6), Darlington Nagbe (7), Dairon Asprilla (4), Diego Valeri (7), and Sebastián Blanco (6). Forward - Darren Mattocks (6).
Team's strengths and weaknesses: Portland Timbers were effective at creating goal-bound opportunities from the both flanks, and they were good at setting up goal chances from long-shot situations.
Style of play in the match: The Timbers mostly attacked through the middle.
Man of the match
Cristian Roldan was outstanding in the central midfield role for the Sounders. Roldan attempted three shots on target and converted one. He completed a total of ninety-nine touches.
What's next for both teams?
The Portland Timbers will travel to New York to take on the New York City FC on Saturday, September 9, while the Seattle Sounders will slog it out with the LA Galaxy the following day.
