MATCH INFORMATION
Date: Oct. 28, 2020
Kickoff: 7 p.m. (Pacific)
Location: Providence Park (Portland, Ore.)
Forecast: Clear, 51 degrees
Referee: Drew Fischer
Assistant Referees: Kathryn Nesbitt, Mike Rottersman
Fourth Official: Marcos Deoliveira
VAR: Allen Chapman
National TV: ESPN
Talent: Jon Champion (play-by-play), Taylor Twellman (analyst)
English Radio: 750 The Game
Talent: Jake Zivin (play-by-play), Nat Borchers (analyst)
Spanish Radio: La GranD (KGGD 93.5 FM, 1150 AM)
LAST TIME OUT
The Portland Timbers were unable to overcome a stoppage-time equalizer, playing to a 1-1 draw on the road against Seattle Sounders FC at CenturyLink Field on Oct. 22. In his first appearance of the 2020 regular-season campaign, Andrés Flores tallied a goal, as the Timbers improved to 3-0-2 in their last five regular-season meetings on the road at Seattle.
SCOUTING LA GALAXY
Entering Wednesday’s regular-season match against Portland, the LA Galaxy (5- 10-3, 18pts) are coming off a 2-0 loss on the road to LAFC on Oct. 25. In their last eight matches played dating back to a 2-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids on Sept. 19, the Galaxy hold a record of 1-7-0. In 18 appearances for the Galaxy during the 2020 campaign, Cristian Pavón has tallied a team-leading seven goals and seven assists. Sebastian Lletget ranks second on the team with six goals, while goalkeeper Jonathan Klinsmann has tallied one shutout in three appearances this season.
ALL-TIME SERIES NOTES
Wednesday’s match marks the 26th regular-season meeting, and the 29th meeting across all competitions between the Timbers and the LA Galaxy since Portland joined MLS in 2011, with the series 11-11-6 across all competitions. Dating back to March 12, 2017, Portland has a record of 7-3-1 against the Galaxy across all competitions, outscoring LA 26-13 during that span. Diego Valeri has registered eight goals and eight assists in 19 regular-season matches against the Galaxy.
In the last meeting between the two teams, the Timbers tied a club record by tallying six goals in a 6-3 win over the Galaxy at Dignity Health Sports Park on Oct. 7, 2020. Felipe Mora tallied a brace in the win over the Galaxy on Oct. 7. In three meetings between the two clubs in 2020, Portland leads the season series 2-1-0.
TIMBERS RUN OF FORM
In their last 11 matches played dating back to a 2-1 win on the road over Seattle Sounders FC on Sept. 6, Portland holds a record of 6-2-3. During that stretch, the Timbers rank second in MLS in goals scored (25), rank tied for third in the league in games won (6) and rank second behind only Philadelphia (+19) in goal differential (+11). Notably, the Timbers have had five different players score three or more goals (Yimmi Chara, Jeremy Ebobisse, Felipe Mora, Jaroslaw Niezgoda, Diego Valeri) dating back to Sept. 6; the only team in MLS with that figure. Notably, Portland has had nine players named to the MLS Team of the Week, dating back to Sept. 6.
VALERI INCHING TOWARDS 100 GOALS AND 100 ASSISTS
Diego Valeri tallied his sixth assist in league play this season in a 2-1 loss to Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto Stadium on Oct. 14. With his performance against the RSL, Valeri now sits at 83 goals and 87 assists in 229 appearances (217 starts) in league play since joining the Timbers in 2013. The Argentine mid- fielder ranks tied for 13th in MLS regular-season history in game-winning goals (25) with Clint Dempsey and Carlos Ruiz. Notably, Valeri has tallied 95 goals and 98 assists in 268 appearances (247 starts) across all competitions for the Timbers.
TIMBERS’ POTENT OFFENSE
In 19 regular-season matches during the 2020 campaign, the Portland Timbers rank tied for second in MLS in goals scored (39), behind only LAFC (42). As a team, Portland ranks first in the league in headed goals (10) and ranks second in assists (39). The Timbers are the only team in MLS with four players with five or more goals (Jaroslaw Niezgoda, Felipe Mora, Jeremy Ebobisse, Diego Valeri) and the only team in MLS with three players with seven or more goals (Mora, Ebobisse, Valeri).
DEPTH ON DISPLAY
Across all competitions in 2020, 28 players have appeared in at least one match for Portland, while 15 different players have scored at least one goal and 14 different players have recorded at least one assist. Three different goalkeepers have played for the Timbers, with Aljaz Ivacic notably making his debut for the club and tallying three saves in a 6-1 win against the San Jose Earthquakes on Sept. 19. In total 19 players featured across seven games in the MLS is Back Tournament for the Timbers, and 15 of those 19 players appeared in at least three games during the tournament.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
Six different Timbers players have three or more goals scored this season across all competitions. Jeremy Ebobisse leads the team with nine goals scored, while Diego Valeri (8) ranks second and Felipe Mora (7) ranks third on the club. Jaroslaw Niezgoda (6) ranks fourth on the team in goals. In addition, nine different players have tallied two or more assists. Valeri leads the team in assists (9), while Eryk Williamson and Diego Chara rank tied for third on the team with six assists. Additionally, Yimmi Chara ranks fifth in assists (4).
