A pair of Cascadia Cup rivals will clash on Sunday at Providence Park as the Portland Timbers host the Seattle Sounders for the first time in the 2024 MLS campaign.
Both sides are equal on points so far this season (10), with Portland losing 2-0 to Charlotte FC last weekend, while the Rave Green played to a 0-0 draw with the Los Angeles Galaxy.
Match preview
A season that began with such promise in Portland has turned into a series of frustrations, with the Timbers on an eight-match winless run in MLS.
Phil Neville had won two of his first three domestic contests in charge before that slide, going unbeaten in three successive league fixtures, but now they are on the verge of setting a new club record for the longest winless run in the regular season should they fail to claim maximum points on Sunday.
Three of their next four league fixtures will take place at Providence Park, where the Timbers have claimed five points this season.
The Timbers have struggled to find that killer instinct and put their domestic matches to bed in 2024, squandering six points in this competition when leading at the half.
On the opposite side, though, they have claimed four points in MLS this season when faced with a second-half deficit, nearly half of their total to this stage of the campaign.
Neville has brought an up-tempo, entertaining brand of football to Portland, leading the Western Conference in goals scored (20), but they have also been extremely susceptible defensively, conceding the second-most times in MLS (23).
In what was a defensive struggle at home to the Galaxy last week, the Sounders managed to extend their unbeaten run in this competition to two matches, showing plenty of poise behind the ball against the highest-scoring side in the Western Conference.
Brian Schmetzer's men have not been quite so tidy on the back end away from home however, with 10 of their 13 goals conceded in the regular season occurring outside of Lumen Field.
The Rave Green have already suffered four defeats away from home in MLS this year, just one fewer than they had in the entire 2023 regular season.
A victory this weekend, however, would mark their first two-match winning run as the visitors in this competition since March-April of last season.
Seattle have not suffered a regular-season defeat when leading after 45 minutes since August 2022, when Orlando City erased a 1-0 deficit at the interval, winning 3-2.
The Sounders are winless in their last six MLS encounters versus the Timbers and have not beaten them at Providence Park since August 2021 (6-2).
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Team News
Eric Miller was on the bench for the Timbers in their previous contest because of an illness, while Marvin Loria will not be available after previously undergoing knee surgery.
Evander sat out of their match with Charlotte, though he should be ready to go on Sunday, and Diego Chara is eligible to return from suspension.
Maxime Crepeau wore the captain's armband for the first time in his Timbers career last weekend, while Cristhian Paredes led the team in duels won (seven), successful dribbles (three) and shots on target (two).
Nathan missed the Sounders clash versus LA with a quad injury, Pedro de la Vega sat out once again due to a hamstring strain and Braudilio Rodrigues did not feature because of a sore right hamstring.
Alex Roldan is eligible to return from his suspension, Danny Musovski came on as a substitute despite a minor problem in his hip, while Reed Baker-Whiting was back on the field for the first time since sustaining a hamstring injury.
Stefan Frei was back between the sticks last weekend, collecting his 108th career MLS clean sheet, four fewer than Kevin Hartman for second all-time in league history, while Georgi Minoungou picked up his first career MLS cap, replacing Jordan Morris for the final five minutes plus stoppage time.
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Crepeau; Mosquera, K. Miller, McGraw, Bravo; Paredes, Ayala; Moreno, Williamson, Evander; Antony
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Frei; C. Roldan, Gomez-Andrade, Ragen, Tolo; Paulo, Atencio; Vargas, Rusnak, Morris; Ruidiaz
We say: Portland Timbers 2-0 Seattle Sounders
The Timbers always seem to bring a higher intensity when playing Seattle, and we expect to see their energy level ramped up against a Sounders team that are creating plenty of chances but lacking quality in the attacking third.
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