The Portland Timbers are moving on from Sunday night’s 1-0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC with two eyes on the future, one thought on the past.
On Monday, it was still too early to ignore what happened at the end of Sunday’s win, when forward Jaroslaw Niezgoda was stretchered from Providence Park’s field with an apparent major knee injury. A day later, as the team turned its attention to Wednesday night’s visit from the Colorado Rapids (7pm PT, FOX 12 PLUS (KPDX)), Portland head coach Giovanni Savarese said, “we know a little bit more,” about Niezgoda’s injury, “but he's still in the care of the doctors.” The Timbers were still waiting for a precise diagnosis.
Despite that unknown, Savarese described his team’s mood as relatively normal, saying “everybody is very, very calm” as Portland approached the penultimate game of their regular season.
“Everybody is very clear in their minds that we need to come here, work, get the proper rest, recovery,” Savarese said. “Those that didn't see minutes [against the Whitecaps] worked hard today to make sure they stay on the level that we need ….
“We know that we have to stay with our feet on the ground regardless of the fact we achieved something important yesterday. We still have two more matches ...”
That achievement was not only Portland’s win but his team’s new standing in their conference. Now up to 38 points in 21 games, Portland sits first in the West, 0.01 points-per-game ahead of second-place Sporting Kansas City. With wins in their last two games, the Timbers will claim the conference’s top spot and, should they keep winning in the postseason, the three home games that come along with it.
First comes the home finale against Colorado. In prior years, this matchup wouldn’t have been as dangerous, with the Rapids finishing no higher than ninth in the West since 2016. That ninth-place finish, though, came last season, it came largely because of a late-season surge under Colorado’s new coach.
On August 25, 2019, Robin Fraser took the reins of his second MLS team, having previously coached Chivas USA. Since then, the Rapids are 11-8-4, averaging 1.61 points-per-game. In the two-plus seasons before Fraser was hired – a span of 95 games – the Rapids averaged 0.96 points-per-match.
“I think their ideas are a lot clearer,” Savarese said, when asked about the Rapids before and under Fraser. “I believe they are all on the same page. As a group, the team looks united in a common ground to try to do the same thing.”
Because of a series of cases of COVID-19 within their team, Colorado recently went a month without playing a game, returning to the field against Sporting Kansas City on October 24 after not seeing action since September 23. To Savarese, that absence could have an impact on Colorado’s mindset, providing Portland with a more energized opponent.
“When you're away for so many days and all the struggles that they went through, now that they have the opportunity to play again, they are very excited,” Savarese explained, pointing to the Rapids’ 3-1, Sunday win over Seattle Sounders FC. “It's always dangerous when you play a team that is excited. They're full of energy, and now with full confidence after their result against Seattle.
“I think Robin has done a great job to manage the team, and we need to be prepared. We have seen some things already from the team. We see that there are some interesting things that they do that we need to be aware of, and we need to prepare well …”
This will be the first time this season that Portland has faced Colorado, but given how the Western Conference is playing out, it may not be the last. The Timbers are currently fighting for first at the top of the playoff picture, while the Rapids look poised to claim one of the conference’s final two playoff spots. Depending on how the next week plays out, Wednesday night might preview a Western Conference quarterfinal.
