2013. That’s the last time the Portland Timbers made it to the semifinals of a U.S. Open Cup tournament, and in recent years, the team hasn’t gotten particularly close. Although Portland returned to the quarterfinal stage a year later, subsequent tournaments have seen poor timing and unfavorable draws push the competition down the club’s priority list. In recent years, it just hasn’t made much sense to put too many eggs in the Open Cup basket.
Not so this season. Two games at home to start the competition. A new, favorably deep roster. A quarterfinal game in the same timezone, (Wednesday, 7:30pm PT, Webstream at Timbers.com), having already traveled to the location four days before. The Timbers have had to face only MLS competition during their quarterfinal run, but around that draw? Portland has had other reasons to be invested this year’s tournament.
Now it’s time for that investment to pay off. Facing the same team they drew on Sunday – a team that Portland beat earlier this season – the Timbers have a chance to match their best-ever mark in Open Cup. And with some distinct advantages compared to Los Angeles FC in managing this short turnaround, Portland fans have reason to be optimistic about a longer run.
Here is this match’s Key Bank Scouting Report – three areas of focus ahead of Wednesday’s quarterfinal.
1. Quick turnaround against a familiar foe
Even before the schedule was confirmed for this round of the Open Cup, Portland looked destined for a date at Banc of California park, should they beat the LA Galaxy at home in the fifth round. And given the team’s commitments in Major League Soccer, that would mean back-to-back matchups against LAFC, with the league and Cup games only three days apart.
As of Sunday, "leg one" is in the books, with the Timbers becoming the first visitor to keep a clean sheet at LAFC’s home ground. And while, on one hand, that game would seem to provide a preview of Wednesday night’s tilt, there is a feel the return engagement could offer an entirely different plot.
The second game will be in a knockout round competition where no repeat of Sunday’s draw is possible. With so little time between games, both sides are going to have to rotate their teams. And with those changes, we could see completely new tactical approaches.
Given the newness of LAFC, as well as the entertainment value the first two games have offered, we’ve yet to reach a saturation point with this matchup. There’s more to offer, here, than a mere mid-week rerun of what we just saw.
2. Leveraging a key advantage: Depth
“Ah, yes, more analysis of depth,” you may be sardonically asking yourself. After all, it’s been one of the key (an reoccurring) parts of our coverage, this season. But given how important the depth of Portland’s squad will be this week, it would be irresponsible to ignore it now. If anything, we should be apologizing for beating the drum too hard before.
So, let’s dispense with all the platitudes about the inherent virtues of depth and speak in more concrete terms. What depth is likely to be used? Well, the first place you should look is at the players who saw major minutes on Sunday who, because of their fitness, age, or other factors, would be overexposed if they were pressed into action too soon. Then look at the bench from Sunday’s game, as well as those left out of Sunday’s 18, and ask which players both need minutes to stay sharp and can also meet expectations that the team win and advance to the semifinals.
Luckily for the Timbers, there are a number of players who can slide into the starting XI who can perform that level. Will they perform the same roles, in the same way? No. That might be too much to expect. But given the flexibility we’ve seen under Giovanni Savarese, it’s not too much to think Portland can pick a setup that best fits its changed personnel.
Will LAFC be able to say the same? Perhaps, but as an expansion team, their depth is not as developed. Even if Bob Bradley’s wasn’t a first-year squad, it would be unreasonable to expect a team that hasn’t made sacrifices for their depth (as the Timbers did in the Darlington Nagbe deal) to have as many options.
Thanks to the quick turnaround, Portland may be able to lean into one of their strengths. And, as an expansion team, Los Angeles may be a year or two away from having the options they might, ideally, want.
3. The stakes
The farthest the Portland Timbers have ever gotten in U.S. Open Cup: the semifinals.
Where the Portland Timbers will be if they win on Wednesday: the semifinals.
It’s understandable that some, if the team does make big changes to their XI for this match, will say Portland isn’t taking the competition seriously, but that won’t be true. Just because you don’t care to the exclusion of all other issues doesn’t mean you’re being flippant about a tournament. There are always more considerations than a pure “what can we do to win this game.” To some extent, you always have to worry about tomorrow. Or Saturday, as the case may be when Portland returns home to host Montréal Impact in MLS regular-season play.
No doubt, part of that tomorrow is worrying about U.S. Open Cup, and given how this year’s draw has worked out, being eliminated will feel like a big opportunity lost. That’s why the Timbers will be putting their best foot forward against LAFC, even if that foot, because of the short turnaround, may look a lot different than the one that delivered Sunday’s result.
