More Thoughts on the Timbers’ Debut

With thirty-six hours to mull over the positives and negatives from the Portland Timbers’ opener, and after rushing to publish the original post from the press box at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, here are several thoughts. These should be prefaced with the idea that of course one game, particularly away against the Cup holders, can define any players’ season. But with the pre-season as background and the stunning failures against Colorado at the fore, there are some points that can be made:

1. Adin Brown is too easily scapegoated – It’s true that the old, oft-injured goalkeeper was unable to prevent the Timbers from falling behind 3-0 in the first thirty minutes. It’s also true that he had opportunities to grab the ball on each of the first two goals and failed to do so, directly resulting in rebound goals for the Rapids. The flip side is that he made fantastic saves in the second half to keep the score moderately respectable and could do nothing to stop Jamie Smith’s top class goal. Ultimately, Brown’s back line failed him time and again, particularly in the first half. He could have done better, but the blame lies in defensive ineptitude.

2. Defensive ineptitude – The left side of defense in the first half was as poor as any Timbers group this space can recall. Rodney Wallace was especially offensive and Kevin Goldthwaite looked slow and incapable of sound judgement. The pair combined for the most pathetic display of the game, allowing Omar Cummings to get out of the corner and create the chance for Colorado’s first goal. Goldthwaite was lucky later when he completely misplayed a header, allowing Cummings to again get to the back line before Conor Casey narrowly missed a shot. The pair were again responsible when Kosuke Kimura nearly made the score 4-0 when he hit the side netting from the left side. John Spencer remedied the situation in the second half by removing Goldthwaite at half-time and finally relieved Wallace just after the hour. But no changes could walk back how poor those two were. Also disappointing was the supposed chemistry between Wallace and college teammate Jeremy Hall. The two shouted at each other and rarely combined for anything other than putting the ball out of bounds. Though circumstances were certainly different, the entire left side of the field looked more comfortable when Hall moved to left back and Ryan Pore moved into left midfield.

3. Pore should never have been on the right – Spencer noted after the game that he wanted to use Hall on the left to help corral Colorado’s marauding right back Kimura. That reasoning makes sense in a vacuum but the reality is that Kimura is not enough of a threat to push Pore to the right where he was unable to combine with Steve Purdy. Likewise, the total failure of Wallace and Hall to work together on the left resulted in the backs simply booting the ball upfield, ignoring the midfield and hoping for a miracle. The fast surface surely contributed as several key through balls ran a little too fast and too far for the likes of Pore, Jorge Perlaza or Hall to catch up. But this space is of the opinion that Pore should have started on the left where he is much more comfortable. When Wallace was mercifully substituted just after the hour, Hall moved to left back, Pore moved to left midfield and Khalif Alhassan took over the right midfield. This combination worked infinitely better for the short period left in the game. Hall should be considered the favorite for starting left back going forward if Wallace continues to struggle with form and/or fitness. Pore worked hard throughout the match but could not get much going on the right. His comfort on the left should translate into more and better possession on that half of the field, especially when either Sal Zizzo or Darlington Nagbe return to take back the right midfield slot.

4. David Horst is a starter – Again, the circumstances of the second half were quite different from the first. But Horst was very impressive in his forty-five minutes, in particular his ability to win headers. Horst is also comfortable on the ball and several times showed that he can bring the ball forward himself. Late on his through ball was only slightly too far for Jorge Perlaza. It’s true that not every team is going to have big, strong forwards like Colorado, but the bulky Horst can serve as an intimidating presence alongside the equally tall Eric Brunner (pictured). Whether it was based on a better showing in the pre-season or justification for bringing him up from the Second Division, Goldthwaite’s starting role looks to be ill-conceived.

5. Khalif Alhassan should be considered for a starting role, at least against Toronto – The most competent player on the ball against the Rapids was by far Khalif Alhassan. He likely does not yet possess skill enough to surpass either Nagbe or Zizzo for a full-time starting position, but in their absence, or for as long as the Timbers do not possess a serious attacking midfield option, Alhassan has much to contribute. He struggled mightily against Vancouver at the Cascadia Summit while on the right but excelled against Colorado in the same position. The most important thing Alhassan does is use the touches that maintain possession. He may not be looking for goal scoring himself but the quality of his passes and his vision on the ball are at the moment, unmatched in the Timbers’ central midfield. Jack Jewsbury can sit deeper and give Alhassan room to operate across the middle of the park. He can provide service to either wing or directly to the forwards in a way neither Peter Lowry nor Adam Moffat have shown an ability to do. This would be a bold move, if considered by Spencer, but given the disaster in the central midfield against Colorado, surely anything is worth trying, particularly against a weaker side like Toronto.

6. Adam Moffat is the biggest disappointment so far – Moffat was considered one of the key additions via the Expansion Draft as a midfielder with top level experience in a championship winning side in Columbus. Yet this pre-season, and indeed in Colorado his touches have been poor, his pace slow and his awareness seemingly nonexistent. In addition to losing the ball nearly every time he touched it in the midfield, Moffat’s miskick late on forced Brown into a strong save to prevent a fourth Rapids goal. His inclusion in the side came at the expense of Peter Lowry, who was substituted at half-time, but Moffat made no impact on the game to justify his position. Though obviously one match and several pre-season appearances is not enough to fully judge any player, Moffat has been a total disappointment.

7. The Expansion Draft plan is coming back to bite Spencer and Gavin Wilkinson – The utter failures of Rodney Wallace were in stark contrast to the composed play of Colorado left back Anthony Wallace, whom the Timbers drafted in the Expansion Draft and traded back for allocation money. Likewise, the holes in midfield left by the departures of Dax McCarty and Arturo Alvarez were glaring in the Timbers’ debut. Judgement needs to be withheld on this front too, but given the opportunity to select ten players, Portland kept only four. Brunner is a good defender and seems very much worthy of his inclusion in the side. Horst too appears to be ready to play in MLS. Both Moffat and Lowry created more questions than answers in their debuts. Clearly the Timbers thought they had a central midfielder already in the fold when they traded McCarty. Yet that failure has compromised the start of the season. Whatever the plan was, it surely has not worked out yet.

Category: Expansion Draft, MLS, Portland Timbers