FRISCO, Texas – The Portland Timbers and Diego Valeri had been here late in the season before.
In the final MLS regular season game of 2014, the Timbers went into Frisco and beat FC Dallas 2-0 behind goals from Darlington Nagbe and Maxi Urruti. The win kept Portland in the race for the MLS Cup Playoffs but only temporarily as Vancouver Whitecaps FC snatched the last playoff spot later that same night.
But the game in Frisco had another cost as well. Valeri suffered a knee injury that knocked him out of the game, required offseason surgery followed by a long road back of rehab before finally returning to the Timbers lineup in May of 2015.
On Sunday night, Valeri was on this same pitch again, wearing the captain’s armband, and assisting on both of the Timbers goals in their 2-2 draw with Dallas that saw them win the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs Western Conference Championship and earn the club a trip to the 2015 MLS Cup against Columbus Crew SC on Dec. 6 (1pm PT, ESPN).
“It’s great. It’s special for me,” said Valeri in a celebratory Timbers locker room after the game. “Because a year ago, I suffered a big injury—the second in my career—in this same place so to get this trophy for this club is special for me.”
With the Timbers under pressure from a feisty Dallas side who were looking to make up a two-goal aggregate deficit coming into the game, Valeri was magnificent. He was credited with four chances in the attack and in the 54th minute, helped unlock the Dallas defense. Taking a pass from Dairon Asprilla, Valeri carried to the endline, shedding defenders, and then cut back a ball to forward Fanendo Adi. Adi spun and fired in the team’s first goal.
“[Dallas] put pressure on us,” said Valeri. “They played really well in the second half but we knew that we could score on the counter and we did it. I think they played well to force us to play a little deep but we kept calm.”
In the fifth minute of second half stoppage time, Portland and Valeri found a second goal.
With Valeri again on the ball, he dribbled towards the right corner flag in a moment that looked like he was going to try to kill off the clock. Instead, Valeri backheeled a wicked ball to midfielder Lucas Melano—who had only come into the game a minute before—who then feinted one way, beat his defender and rounded the keeper before tapping in a hard-angled shot that iced the game.
It was a moment of typical creative brilliance from Valeri (and Melano) that also exemplified the team’s resiliency of a long campaign.
“We always trust in this team, the quality of this team and the unity of the work and the sacrifice of this locker room of players here,” he said. “This [win] is for the people, for the fans. They have to enjoy it. We will rest well today and tomorrow to start thinking of the next game.”
That next game being the club’s first-ever MLS Cup.
But for this night, on a field that held difficult memories for Valeri and the club, a new chapter was written. Given the captain's armband for this game, Valeri was able to lift the MLS Western Conference Championship trophy alongside his cheering teammates. Always humble, Valeri deflected praise for his role as captain.
“It’s a big honor for me to be the captain today,” he said. “We have a couple captains here with Will [Johnson], Liam [Ridgewell], Nat [Borchers], Jack [Jewsbury] and [today], I had the honor but it was special for me today. A year ago, I got an injury here at the same stadium but they gave me this [trophy] so it’s a lot for me. I know that it is special for the team too so it’s complete.”
