MLS Portland Timbers

Timbers Weekly Update

Published on November 21, 2013 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Portland Timbers News Release


Timbers play host to Real Salt Lake in Leg 2 of Western Conference Championship Sunday at JELD-WEN Field

PORTLAND, Ore. - The Portland Timbers play host to Real Salt Lake in the return leg of the Western Conference Championship of the 2013 MLS Cup Playoffs on Sunday at JELD-WEN Field at 6 p.m. (Pacific) in a nationally televised matchup on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.

Sunday's match, which will also feature a local radio broadcast on flagship station 750 The Game, will help determine the Western Conference's representative in MLS Cup on Dec. 7, against the winner of the Eastern Conference Championship between the Houston Dynamo and Sporting Kansas City.

Real Salt Lake enters Leg 2 with a two-goal lead on the Timbers in the two-game, aggregate-goal Western Conference Championship series following Leg 1 back on Nov. 10 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.

In Leg 1, the Timbers opened the scoring with a 14th-minute goal as midfielder Will Johnson scored his second goal of the MLS Cup Playoffs, but Real Salt Lake responded with four consecutive goals to earn a 4-2 win. Forward Frederic Piquionne tallied four minutes into second-half stoppage time to pull one back for Portland in the final moments of the match. It was the Timbers' first loss in 11 games.

The Timbers now return home to JELD-WEN Field, where they are unbeaten in their last 16 games between the regular season and MLS Cup Playoffs. Portland posted the best home record in MLS during the regular season at 11-1-5 and set the league's single-season record with 11 home shutouts at JELD-WEN Field, including one against Real Salt Lake on Oct. 19. The Timbers defense has allowed just two goals at home since Aug. 21, outscoring opponents 10-2 over the past six games including the playoffs.

Twice during the regular season the Timbers overcame two-goal deficits to record results, fighting back to earn a 3-3 draw against 2013 Supporters' Shield winners New York Red Bulls and a 2-2 draw on the road against the Colorado Rapids in matches back in March. Portland has scored three or more goals in a match eight times during the regular season and playoffs, including a three-goal output against Seattle Sounders FC in Leg 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Nov. 7.

The Timbers and Real Salt Lake meet for a sixth time in 2013 across all competitions on Sunday. Of the three meetings during the regular season, the Timbers recorded draws in both matches played at JELD-WEN Field on Aug. 21 and Oct. 19. Portland held Real Salt Lake without a shot on goal in their matchup on Oct. 19, playing to a scoreless draw. The two clubs combined for 12 goals over three matches in the 2013 season series. The Timbers and Real Salt Lake also met in the semifinals of the 2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup at Rio Tinto Stadium on Aug. 7.

Real Salt Lake defeated the LA Galaxy in the Western Conference Semifinals to advance to the conference championship for a fourth time in the last six seasons. In Leg 1 of the Western Conference Championship against Portland, midfielder Javier Morales registered one goal and two assists to help Real Salt Lake to a two-goal advantage in the series. Defender Chris Schuler has scored in back-to-back postseason games, becoming the club's leading goal-scorer in the MLS Cup Playoffs. Real Salt Lake finished the regular season in second place in the Western Conference with a record of 16-10-8 (56pts) and has qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs each season since 2008.

TEAM NEWS

2013 MLS Cup Playoffs: Four teams left in quest for MLS Cup

The first legs in the Conference Championships of the 2013 MLS Cup Playoffs have set the table for a pair exciting matchups in Leg 2 this weekend. The Houston Dynamo visit Sporting Kansas City on Saturday at Sporting Park on NBC Sports Network, before the Timbers and Real Salt Lake square off on Sunday. Below is the remaining schedule for the 2013 MLS Cup Playoffs.

Conference Championships

First Leg (Home teams listed first):

Houston Dynamo 0 - 0 Sporting Kansas City - Series tied at 0-0 on aggregate

Real Salt Lake 4 - 2 Portland Timbers - RSL leads series 4-2 on aggregate

Second Leg (Home teams listed first):

Sporting KC vs. Houston Dynamo - Sat., Nov. 23, 4:30 p.m. PT (NBC SN, UDN, TSN2, RDS2)

Portland Timbers vs. Real Salt Lake - Sun., Nov. 24, 6 p.m. PT (ESPN, ESPN Deportes)

MLS Cup

Saturday, Dec. 7 (hosted by finalist with best regular season record) - 1 p.m. PT (ESPN, UniMas, TSN2, RDS)

Four Timbers named finalists for 2013 major MLS awards

Timbers head coach Caleb Porter, midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe, goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts and midfielder Diego Valeri were each named finalists for MLS year-end awards for 2013.

Porter is a finalist for MLS Coach of the Year; Ricketts is a finalist for MLS Goalkeeper of the Year; Valeri is a finalist for Newcomer of the Year and Nagbe is a finalist for the league's Individual Fair Play Award. Winners for each of the league's 12 major honors will be announced in the coming weeks, starting Monday, Nov. 25. Click here for further details on awards and an announcement timeline.

The finalists for each award earned the most votes in polling of current MLS players, MLS clubs and media members who regularly covered the 2013 season.

Round of 16 in 2013 MLS Goal of the Year voting nears end; Nagbe goal currently up for vote

Voting in the Round of 16 for the 2013 AT&T Goal of the Year is drawing to a close, and in the final group of goals currently up for vote is one from Timbers midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe. Fans can vote for his turnaround, game-winning goal on June 15 against FC Dallas in Group IV; click here to vote before the poll closes Thursday night.

Just like the last two years, the AT&T Goal of the Year competition will be decided from a field of 64 goals. The top vote-getter from each of the four groups in the Round of 16 will advance to the final round.

The Timbers had three players - Nagbe, Will Johnson, Diego Valeri - with goals in the Round of 16 of the 2013 AT&T Goal of the Year race.

KeyBank team photo giveaway offers fans tickets to Sunday's match

Fans looking for tickets to Sunday's Western Conference Championship match against Real Salt Lake can head to their local KeyBank branch to pick up a team photo until Friday at 5 p.m. (Pacific). One lucky picture will be marked with a special sticker. Find the sticker and win a pair of tickets to Sunday's match and two playoff scarves.

Nong's Khoa Man Gai to be featured food cart Sunday at JELD-WEN Field

A fan-favorite during the regular season, Nong's Khoa Man Gai is the featured Portland Timbers Food Cart Alliance (PTFCA) member for Sunday's MLS Cup Playoffs match at JELD-WEN Field. The food cart will be serving its signature chicken and rice dish with ginger/soybean chili sauce as well as fried chicken wings smothered in Nong's sweet chili glaze and their marinated deep-fried pork shoulder out of the Soccer City Grill concession stand.

For more information on the Portland Timbers Food Cart Alliance, visit www.portlandtimbers.com/PTFCA.

Powell features in both friendlies during call-up with Jamaica National Team

Timbers defender Alvas Powell started both matches for the Jamaica National Team in a pair of recent friendlies against Trinidad & Tobago. Powell played the full 90 minutes in each match, both losses for the Reggae Boyz.

The two appearances for Powell were his eighth and ninth caps with Jamaica at the senior level. The St. Thomas, Jamaica, native played in seven matches overall (6 starts) for the Reggae Boyz in 2013, including five 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Timbers, Thorns FC to open season team store at Pioneer Place in downtown Portland

Announced earlier this week, the Timbers and Portland Thorns FC of the National Women's Soccer League will open a new official team store at Pioneer Place located in downtown Portland on Friday, Nov. 29, at 8 a.m. (Pacific).

The store's Black Friday Grand Opening on Nov. 29 will feature an appearance by Timber Joey, door-busters and specials throughout the day.

Conveniently located on the third floor inside Pioneer Place at 700 SW 5th Ave., the downtown team store is scheduled to remain open through March 2014 and will offer an assortment of Timbers and Thorns FC merchandise. The downtown location will serve as a second team store in conjunction with the flagship adidas Timbers Team Store at JELD-WEN Field. Click here for more details.

TEAM MEDIA SOURCES

Television: "Timbers in 30"

This week's episode of "Timbers in 30" will air Friday at 6:30 p.m. (Pacific) on KPTV FOX 12.

Throughout the season, "Timbers in 30" will offer inside access to the inner-workings and personalities of the club and provided analysis with in-studio appearances from Timbers coaches and players. Previously aired shows and "Timbers in 30" features can be found at www.portlandtimbers.com .

Radio: "Talk Timbers"

The Timbers' weekly radio talk show, "Talk Timbers," presented by JELD-WEN Windows & Doors, airs every Tuesday evening from 6-8 p.m. (Pacific) on flagship station 750 The Game. "Talk Timbers," provides team and league news as well as interviews with Timbers coaches and players during the season, and will also feature regular updates on Portland Thorns FC.

Fans can submit questions, provide comments or simply follow the conversation on the show on Twitter with the hashtag #TalkTimbers.

Fans can tune in to the show live on 750 The Game or listen online at www.750thegame.com . Available podcasts can be downloaded at www.portlandtimbers.com/timbers-podcast-network .

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Major League Soccer Stories from November 21, 2013


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