After three consecutive draws to open the season, the Portland Timbers travel north to Canada to take on their increasingly bitter rival Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night at BC Place (5:00 PM, TV on ROOT Sports, Radio on 750 AM the Game.)
Both teams have been bruised, battered, and depleted going into this matchup—Portland because of major injuries and national team call-ups, Vancouver mostly because of thuggish and unsportsmanlike play incurring recent suspensions. In their first meeting after an incredibly acrimonious preseason match in Portland in mid-February, the winner of this first Cascadia Cup match of 2015 might be determined by which team has the toughest mentality.
The History
Increasingly, the 2015 Whitecaps are starting resemble the 2013 Seattle Sounders, in that the ‘Caps are quickly becoming the dirtiest team in MLS. They appear to have little self-control (surprisingly, there’s a former Timber in the thick of the action, Pa Modou Kah). The Timbers and Whitecaps have always had a friendly rivalry, but that appears to be dissipating. There are bad feelings lingering from the friendly in Portland last month to kick off the Simple Invitational, which saw two Timbers get sent off and Ben Zemanski tear his ACL.
Vancouver can be forgiven for having a slight inferiority complex against the Timbers—although the two clubs entered MLS together in 2011 and have had similar amounts of on- and off-field success, the Whitecaps have never beaten the Timbers at home. Meanwhile, Portland beat the ‘Caps in their first game at BC Place, won the Cascadia Cup at BC Place, and demolished by them 3-0 there last year. The ‘Caps have heard four years’ worth of “Our House In The Middle Of BC” chants, and have seen Kenny Cooper, Jack Jewsbury, and Darlington Nagbe all score wonder-goals against them.
The Timbers own Vancouver in Vancouver. That’s what the Whitecaps are trying to change on Saturday.
The Tactics
Much of the buildup to this game has been devoted to who will and will not be playing, with both teams dealing with numerous absences and trying to integrate new signings as well.
For Vancouver, Kakuta Manneh and Diego Rodriguez are suspended. Manneh for a two-footed horror tackle on Orlando City’s Aurelien Collin, while Rodriguez was banned two games for grabbing Collin’s crotch. The ‘Caps will not have frequent Maruo Rosales either, so they’ll be without two of their most important attacking players between the Argentine and Manneh.
Vancouver will be starting Pa Modou Kah—a new father, co-architect of the Great Wall of Gambia, and a certifiable loony toon on the field. No one can say for sure how he will react to his first competitive game against his former team, but there are sure to be fireworks and a lot of reckless challenges.
Portland looks to be without Jack Jewsbury, who most likely sustained a concussion against Sporting Kansas City, bringing the Timbers back into George Fochive range. Without Jewsbury, Diego Valeri, and Will Johnson, it is unclear who will take set pieces for Portland. There was also a thought that Portland would have to play Taylor Peay at right-back, but Alvas Powell’s early return from national team duty with Jamaica renders that concern mute. The Timbers also made official the signing of Ghanian wing Ishmael Yartey this week, but while he will challenge Dairon Asprilla for minutes eventually, he won’t be available against Vancouver.
Both the Timbers and Whitecaps have been involved in plenty of close games this year. Vancouver’s last two wins were both 1-0, with goals scored in the 86th and 95th minutes. Portland, of course, has yet to win or lose this season.
The Timbers Lineup
12 – Kwarasey
19 – Villafaña
7 – Borchers
24 – Ridgewell (C)
2 – Powell
26 – Fochive
21 – Chara
22 – Wallace
6 – Nagbe
11 – Asprilla
9 – Adi
The Pick
It’s anyone’s guess what will happen in this game, but I wouldn’t expect the snooze-fest we saw last weekend in Kansas City. Neither team is at full-strength, but both will be desperate to win—don’t discount how satisfied Caleb Porter will be to finally win in March and put that narrative to rest. But with all the mitigating circumstances in this game, a 1-1 draw seems to be the safest bet.
