There aren’t often must-watch U.S. Open Cup games involving two MLS teams, but tonight’s clash in Los Angeles between LAFC and the Portland Timbers is going to be an exception: one featuring two of the country’s best teams, who happen to despise each other, both fully focused on securing a spot in the competition’s semifinal (7:30 p.m., TV on ESPN+).
The Opponent
It’s hard to find enough superlatives for what LAFC has done this season. They’re seven points clear in the Supporters’ Shield race and nine points clear atop the Western Conference. They’ve scored the most goals in the league and conceded the fewest. They’ve lost the fewest games and won the most, etc., etc.
In short, LAFC is on track to be the single best MLS team ever — better than Toronto FC in 2017 and Atlanta United last year. To take that crown, LAFC needs to do what no other American team has ever done: win the American domestic treble, the Shield, the U.S. Open Cup, and MLS Cup.
This game against the Timbers, then, is of the utmost importance. Win, and LAFC will face the winner of the game between Minnesota United and New Mexico United for a place in the final.
LAFC played over the weekend and have another league game on Friday in Houston, but expect Bob Bradley to start his best available team tonight — one that includes the likes of Carlos Vela and Diego Rossi, and may even feature U.S. internationals Tyler Miller and Walker Zimmerman for the first time in more than a month.
The Tactics
The Timbers appear ready to give this game everything they have as well. Giovani Savarese rested a number of key starters over the weekend, and should have his best eleven, or something very close to it, ready to go in this one.
The bad blood between these two teams, which erupted when LAFC striker Adama Diomande accused a Timbers player of racial abuse in an Open Cup quarterfinal at Banc of California Stadium last year, is a serious storyline.
The two sides clashed bitterly at the end of LAFC’s 3-2 win in Portland at the beginning of June, with Savarese and Bob Bradley jawing on the touchline after the final whistle — and if you need a reminder of how emotion between two teams can impact games, look no further than Atlanta’s frantic draw with the New York Red Bulls over the weekend.
This game is likely going to be competitive and physical. To win it, the Timbers are going to have to maintain a high level of energy and focus throughout the 90 minutes — something they didn’t do, and were punished for, in both of the previous meetings with LAFC this year.
They also need to disrupt LAFC’s skillful midfield. If they get severely out-passed and out-possessed, they’re going to lose. Unlike most teams in the league, including the version of NYCFC that the Timbers played over the weekend, LAFC is too cohesive and too talented to be given opportunity after opportunity to attack.
Going forward, the Timbers simply need their best players to clinical in front of goal. If Fernandez, Valeri, and Blanco outplay Vela, Rossi, and Christian Ramirez, they’ll be very well positioned to win.
The Lineup
12 – Clark
4 – Villafaña
18 – Cascante
33 – Mabiala
2 – Moreira
21 – Chara
22 – Paredes
10 – Blanco
8 – Valeri (C)
17 – Ebobisse
7 – Fernandez
— This is the Timbers’ first choice team; Valeri, given his age and his start on Sunday, would be the player most likely to come off the bench if Savarese wants to hold someone back for the Rapids game.
— Andy Polo’s return to the fold is imminent with the Copa America over, but he likely won’t play any part in this contest.
The Memory
The quarterfinal between these teams last season, a game that the Timbers would rather forget.
The Pick
In extra time: LAFC 3, Portland 2.
