Minnesota United fell to the Portland Timbers in tonight’s late game, ending the day on the wrong side of a 5-4 scoreline. After showing great spirit to come back from the brink of a blowout, a second-half push from the home side saw the Timbers pull just far enough away to send the Black and Blue home empty-handed.
From the very first whistle, this one was bound to be a barnburner. The Loons marched down the field to earn three consecutive corners, moving the ball with flashy aplomb and generating chance after chance. This early pressure culminated with a golden opportunity in the fifth minute of action, when a Portland goal kick became a turnover, putting Kelvin Yeboah through on goal. His strike left the crossbar shaking, and signaled the end of the Loons’ attacking dominance — for the moment.
The Timbers found their feet shortly after the near-miss, finding success down the flanks and building some pressure of their own. The pressure broke in the 10th minute, when a fantastic save from Drake Callender found its way into the middle of the box. The ensuing rush for the ball ended in a penalty being awarded to the hosts, and Vincent Janssen dispatched it coolly to give his side the lead, changing the momentum of the match firmly in Portland’s favor.
Following the goal, the hosts pressed with renewed vigor and an energy that had felt absent to that point. This frenzy of pressure saw the free-flowing shape of the Timbers cause nightmares for the typically organized Loons, leading to free space for the Portland forwards to take advantage of. That trend came to a head when Portland’s Ariel Lassiter doubled the deficit with a venomous shot from distance, bouncing off the crossbar and in.
The Loons struggled to find their footing against waves of Portland pressure, and the Timbers took advantage of the confusion in the 26th minute, adding their third goal of the match via a cross to Janssen for his second of the match. Some structural differences between the two sides were proving to be an advantage for the hosts, and the Loons needed to get into damage control mode to stop the bleeding.
With a few small tweaks to positioning and movement, the Loons adapted to their opponents, and in the 32nd minute, they found a lifeline. The Joaquín Pereyra to Marcus Caldeira connection came up clutch once again, with a slotted through ball from the Argentine midfielder releasing Caldeira to roof yet another goal home, much like his finish against San Jose for his first MLS goal.
With space to breathe and get their bearings, the Loons turned one goal into two just five minutes later, when some fantastic pressure from twin strikers Caldeira and Yeboah saw the ball pop out behind the Timbers’ defense. Yeboah turned on the burners to get to the endline, where he cut back across the box to find a pinpoint cross to the arriving feet of Anthony Markanich. The Loons’ second-leading scorer didn’t waste his opportunity, finding the upper 90 with plenty of time and cutting the deficit to just one before the half.
The second 45 started very similarly to the first, with the Timbers generating a chance within minutes of kick. The end-to-end action continued, and some clever interplay saw the Loons utilize the classic up-back-and-through to work their way to the other end of the pitch. After forcing the Timbers back into a more compact defensive shape, the Boys in Black and Blue took a few shots, to no avail. Just when the hosts thought they were in the clear, though, a mishap in the back saw Pereyra’s pressure force another dangerous turnover, as the ball popped out to the feet of an opportunistic Caldeira for the tap-in equalizer and his first MLS brace.
Chances continued to fall both ways, producing yet another truly exhilarating game between these two Western Conference rivals. While it felt that the next goal could’ve fallen either way, it was the hosts who struck next, hitting a pair of strikes in the 55th and 71st minutes to put the game out of reach for the Loons. A magnificent strike from Tomás Chancalay in the fourth minute of added time made for a nervy finish to proceedings, but the order proved too tall for the visitors in the end, who fell 5-4 in one of the most exciting back-and-forth matches you’ll ever see.
While the Loons were able to keep their impressive scoring form alive, it was a failure to respond effectively to Portland’s own attack that cost them in the end. Despite the result, a brace for Marcus Caldeira and a debut for new striker Maurice Malone stood out as positives on the night, with the attacking play of Pereyra also continuing to impress. The pieces are all there: This team has proven capable of defending at a high level, and now that they’ve shown their ability to score as well, it’s simply a matter of finding that balance between the two for the Loons to truly unlock that next gear.
