Portland Timbers Quotes
Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter
On the difference between halves:
“We weren't good in the first half, but I liked our response and after halftime until they scored the second goal I thought we were as good they were. It was a back-and-forth half up until that point. We had two or three chances that didn’t fall for us before they went 2-1. One play where Kalif [Alhassan] got taken down that didn’t fall for us. We had another clear chance he had that didn’t fall for us. I thought that in the start of the second half that was the way we needed to be the entire game. For me, that was the positive – the start of the second half – but ultimately I thought the first half was what cost us even though we gave up a couple of goals in the second half. After we got the first goal, we stopped playing. We played very reactionary. It was as if we tried to ride out the 1-0 result and that is just not like us. LA was the better team in that period and I thought they were the better team at the end, obviously. They deserve the win.”
On the match:
“We seemed, for whatever reason, a step late, a step slow today. I don’t know if it was being uncomfortable with the field. I don’t know if it was the heat, but I thought LA just managed those elements and those conditions a lot better than we did today. We knew that those things were going to be factors, but I thought we looked tentative when we got the goal and maybe it’s because we haven’t been in that position a lot this year. So, we finally found the first goal, but then we stop playing the way we are accustomed to playing and in the end things were not going our way the rest of the half. It’s disappointing to give up the late first-half goal because at the very least when things are not going your way and you are absorbing a bit and you are struggling, you have to find a way to get to the dressing room up 1-0 then you circle the wagons and we could make adjustments, which we did at halftime, but then it is 1-1. It just wasn’t our day. I thought we didn’t do enough to win for whatever reason. We played not to lose after the goal. Obviously, the PK was a PK and maybe we deserved one earlier too, but there is no excuse from me there. No excuse from me as far as the field because they dealt with it as well. No excuse from me as far as the heat. At the end of the day, they were better today and they deserved to win.”
Portland Timbers goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts
On the game:
“After the goal I think we stopped playing. We gave them possession and they grew in confidence in the game and they were able to make passes and find the outside man and get crosses in the box and we didn’t handle the crosses well and we were punished.”
On giving up the goal late in the first half.
“We were still pretty confident, but it gave them a big lift going into the half knowing that they were going to be even. They didn’t have to chase the game in the second half. For them the momentum was going into the second half and we were trying to sort out what we did wrong to concede a goal that late.”
Portland Timbers defender Jack Jewsbury
On the result:
“We were disappointed. Felt good to get the first goal, but disappointed for the next 30-35 minutes on how we approached it. I felt we kind of got on our heels a little bit and let them bring the game to us. We tried to get into halftime with the lead, but unfortunately they got one late on us.”
On giving up the late goal in the first half:
“Obviously, we were disappointed to give it up, especially that late. They had quite a few chances, so we thought we had weathered the storm. So disappointed coming into half time and knew it wasn’t our best first half, even though we did get in even. We created a few chances to go a goal up [in the second half]. There was a call that could have been made going for us for a PK. I felt the game was pretty even at that point in the second half. They get that second goal, which was tough for us and then that PK.”
On only having one shot on goal:
“I think some of our best chances didn’t hit the frame. Sometimes stats don’t tell the full truth. In those moments, especially on the road, you have to be better with your chances. We did that last week with Montreal. Especially with a team like LA, if you get a few chances you need to capitalize on them and we didn’t do that tonight.”
LA Galaxy Quotes
LA Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena
On the team’s performance:
“It wasn’t similar to the other day. We fell behind a goal. It’s good for our team to be in a hard game against a good team. We prevailed, obviously. The goal at the end of the first half was big. Second half, they came at us with a little bit more energy and created a couple of chances. Obviously, the Keane goal was the difference. But I thought overall it was a good 90 minutes for our team. We were sloppy at times in the first half. We could have been a little bit cleaner. Technically, in and around the goal area, we could have created another goal or two, but overall it was a good performance. We are on a good run, and hopefully we keep getting better.”
LA Galaxy forward Robbie Keane
On finding width against Portland’s defense:
“I knew there was going to be width because they play a bit narrow, so it’s certainly obvious with the fullbacks we have. Landon can do both, he could play wide and come in and so can [Stefan] Ishizaki. So that gives the fullbacks a chance to overlap. In the first half certainly, but in the second half with Robbie [Rogers] at times, it was fantastic. The last 20 minutes, he was playing like a left winger, so it just goes to show how much energy he has and how much space was out there.”
LA Galaxy midfielder Landon Donovan
On the team’s performance:
“We played well. Almost the entire day, we gave away one bad pass that led to a questionable foul. Give Diego Valeri credit, he scored a great goal. But, other than that, we were excellent. Fully deserving of the win, another good performance and we are moving forward.”
On the win:
“It gives us confidence. It gives us six points most importantly. We know August is going to be very hectic, and we have another game next week against San Jose, and then we go on the road for a little bit, so we need to make sure that we keep getting points. It feels good to play well, but the most important thing is we are getting results, we are scoring goals when we get the chances, and we are limiting the chances the other way.”
Notes:
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Midfielder Diego Valeri has tallied a goal in three consecutive matches, tying a Timbers MLS record streak. Additionally, the midfielder has scored in four of the last five games and is now one goal shy of tying the Timbers MLS career record in goal scoring currently held by midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe (17).
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Valeri has tallied a goal in each of the team’s three matches against the Galaxy this season.
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Valeri has registered at least one point in seven of the team’s last 10 regular-season matches.
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Portland’s opening goal in the 14th minute marked the team’s seventh goal scored in the opening 15 minutes of a match this season, which is tied for the league lead.
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Playing 65 minutes as a substitute on Saturday, midfielder Kalif Alhassan surpassed 5,000 minutes played in his Timbers MLS career. Saturday marked Alhassan’s 91st career MLS appearance.
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Saturday’s result marked only the second time since the start of the 2013 season that the Timbers have lost when scoring first in a match (14-2-8).
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The Timbers have now lost just twice in their last eight regular-season road matches (4-2-2), dating back to April 27.
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Saturday’s loss snapped a five-match unbeaten streak against the Galaxy, dating back to July 2012.
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Midfielder Rodney Wallace played the full 90 minutes for the first time this season. Wallace made his first appearance of the season on June 27 after recovering from offseason knee surgery.
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The Timbers have earned at least one point in 11 of the last 15 regular-season matches and remain just three points off fifth place in the Western Conference standings.
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Following Saturday’s match, the Timbers lead the league with 36 goals scored in 22 matches.
- Midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe missed his first match due to injury on Saturday since the end of the 2011 regular-season.
