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MLS Houston Dynamo FC

Three Points: Dynamo Visit Portland Looking to Repeat Playoff Stunner

July 27, 2018 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Houston Dynamo FC News Release


HOUSTON - The Houston Dynamo, fresh off a frustrating 3-1 home loss to the Philadelphia Union, are back in action on Saturday night in Oregon when they take on the Portland Timbers. The match will kick off at 10 p.m. CDT, two hours later than its originally scheduled time. Kickoff was pushed back earlier this week as weather forecasts called for excessive heat in the Portland area over the weekend.

Saturday night's match will be the first meeting between Houston and Portland since the 2017 Western Conference Semifinals, which Houston won 2-1 on aggregate to advance to the Conference Championship. After a scoreless draw in Houston, the Dynamo shocked Portland with a 2-1 win at Providence Park back in early November.

GAME INFORMATION:

MATCHUP: Houston Dynamo (7-7-6; 27 pts.) at Portland Timbers (8-3-7; 31 pts.)

TIME: 10:00 p.m. CDT

TV: KUBE 57 (Channel Guide)

RADIO: SportsRadio 610 (English); Univision Radio 1010 AM (Spanish)

HERE ARE THREE KEY POINTS YOU'LL NEED TO KNOW AS YOU PREPARE FOR SATURDAY'S MATCH:

1. KEEP "TIMBER MAURO" GOING - Timber Joey is Portland's mascot, a man wearing a lumberjack outfit who carries a chain saw and cuts slices from a massive log after each Timbers goal. Mauro Manotas is a 23-year-old Colombian who has made a habit of slicing through the Portland back line. Manotas has four goals in four appearances against the Timbers in regular-season play, including his first career hat trick in September 2016, and had the game-winning goal in last year's 2-1 playoff win at Providence Park. "Timber Mauro" comes into Saturday on a red-hot run of form with nine goals in his last seven appearances, including four goals in his last three games in all competitions. A goal on Saturday would be his fifth against Portland and would tie him for the most in club history against the Timbers.

2. SNAPPING PORTLAND'S STREAK - The Dynamo saw their 10-game home unbeaten run come to an end on Wednesday night when Philly rode the momentum gained from a 59th-minute red card to Tomás Martínez to knock of Houston 3-1. Saturday, it's Houston's turn to play streak spoiler. Portland comes into the contest on a run of 13 straight matches without a loss in league play. The Timbers haven't been beaten since April 8, when a 3-2 loss at Orlando dropped them to 0-3-2. All streaks come to an end; the Dynamo want to be the ones to do that for Portland.

3. CONTAIN VALERI - One of the major reasons for Portland's 13-match unbeaten run has been the brilliance of midfielder Diego Valeri. The 32-year-old Argentine was named MLS Most Valuable Player last season when he scored 21 goals and added 11 assists. This year, he's already got seven goals and eight assists to drive the Portland attack. It'll be key for Houston's holding midfielders and center backs to deny possession to Valeri and force him off the ball quickly when it does make its way to him. Their success in that endeavor was a major key to the 2-1 win last November in the playoffs.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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