The defending
champions Portland Timbers where the biggest story in Major League Soccer nineteenth
campaign, after winning the league utmost of prizes in its MLS Cup.
Being the defending
champion tells you many things, and one of them the upcoming barrage of
challenges coming from your league foes will not be a walk in the park as you think.
Soccer enthusiasts those
are the essentials of soccer for you, one campaign you conquer the whole league
the next thing you see the next campaign is that reality check as things are
not as easy as you expected.
So far, this 2016
after starting with a high note for the Portland Timbers, suddenly their world
crumble the next week with a lesson at San Jose, exposing in what used to be
the leagues unbeatable backfield and now its seeing red.
One of the PTFC
problems is the absence in the lineup by Liam Ridgewell, much state that
Villafaña leaving the club was to haunt this club in the end, indeed it’s hitting
a sour note but that’s football and the man is now at the Mexican league.
After a not so
positive start in this campaign staring in the DL, finally Chris Klute can see
some minute’s in future matches and start generating a competition among him
and newcomers Valentin and Taylor.
In the upcoming
matches, Manager Porter needs to find the right formula and put his backfield
to put an abrupt stop in those matches that start with the opposition putting
his team in the hole with a lead of two goals or more.
Very well seeing a
revival or awakening from this squad sudden stop to its spectacular game
substituted by a sloppy and anemic one lately, seen without any motivation and
at time lacking that spark characteristic of the Timbers.
Still matches like the
one yesterday at Orlando City and so far, between these two clubs meetings, we
have seen certain dominance from the Boys of the Sunshine State and this club
having the Timbers number.
With a barrage of
four goals and three unanswered ones, the PTFC defense is in desperate need of
some leadership as Nat Borcher’s cannot perform alone as well seeing players in
Alvas Powell and Jermaine Taylor showing fatigue.
Along with Fanendo
Adi, Adam Kwarsey and Darlington Nagbe after their National squad’s call-ups
and showing jet lag wear, this squad had a disastrous performance at the Citrus
Bowl.
I hope that history does
not repeat again on the Timbers road woes, with their next match at Stub Hub
Center to face a hardened LA Galaxy and try to stop their negative skid and get
back into the winning column.
A lot of work needs to be performed to this
club in order to get back into the positive as well see them perform as the
flamboyant champion’s and defend their title with an all-around pride as the
Mighty PTFC!
Post Contents and Property of Fern
Mc Costigan © Copyright All Rights Reserved
Crest Credit and Property of Portland
Timbers Football Club and Scoot Audeto and Troy Wayrynew/ AP Photo 2016
Photos Credit and Property of ©
Copyright Major League Soccer. com 2016
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