Colorado Rapids vs. Portland Timbers | 2018 MLS Match Preview

Colorado Rapids vs. Portland Timbers
2018 MLS Regular Season – Week 13
Dick’s Sporting Goods Park — Commerce City
May 26 - 9 pm ET
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Two teams surging in opposite directions meet at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park as the Colorado Rapids will look to snap a five-match losing streak following a 4-0 thumping by New York City FC last week, while the red-hot Portland Timbers have won five in a row after knocking off LAFC, 2-1, at home last Saturday.

Colorado have only beaten Portland twice in their last nine league games (5L-2D) and have scored multiple goals in just two of the nine games.

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• Have the Timbers proved haters wrong?
• By the Numbers: Latest goal scored in MLS history
• Bradley, Savarese address heated postgame exchange

Colorado Rapids   

Anthony Hudson made two changes to the side that lost to the New York Red Bulls, 2-1, the previous week with Micheal Azira filling in for the suspended Jack Price and Dominique Badjicoming on for Yannick Boli to parter alongside Joe Mason up top.

After gifting NYCFC a David Villa goal in the 22nd minute following a poor clearance attempt by Tim Howard, the hosts poured it on in the second half, scoring three times in 25 minutes to hand Colorado (2-6-2) their most lopsided defeat of the season.

“Obviously we’ve been on quite a tough stretch now so that’s finally over and we’re back at home now,” Deklan Wynne said after the match. “We have to make that a fortress again and get some points in the next few games.”

• Suspended: None
• Suspended after next caution: F - Dominique Badji
• International duty: None
• Injury Report: OUT: D - Kortne Ford (left MCL sprain), D - Marlon Hairston (right knee surgery)

Projected Starting XI
(3-5-2, right to left)
GK: Tim Howard — Deklan Wynne, Danny Wilson, Tommy Smith — Bismark Boateng, Enzo Martinez, Jack Price, Sam Nicholson, Edgar Castillo — Joe Mason, Dominique Badji

• Notes: Colorado are one of four teams (Columbus Crew SC, LAFC, Seattle Sounders FC) who have yet to concede from a corner this year. They conceded four corner kick goals during the 2017 regular season, tied for the third fewest in the league. … Colorado have lost five straight regular season games. The last time they lost more than five league games in a row was from July 30 to September 5, 2014 (seven game streak).

Portland Timbers

Giovanni Savarese went with an unchanged lineup from the squad that defeated Seattle Sounders FC, 1-0, the previous week, but he was forced to make his first substitution when Julio Cascante replaced Liam Ridgewell, who came off with a quad injury after six minutes.

Cristhian Paredes opened the scoring in the 52nd minute and Samuel Armenteros came off the bench to score the winner after Carlos Vela leveled for the visitors as the Timbers (5-3-2) stretched their winning streak to five straight games last Saturday.

“I said from the beginning one of the things that was our priority was to build mentality and to make sure we play as a unit,” Savarese said. “We’ve been seeing weekend after weekend that that is what the guys are doing. When there’s that belief that we can work together, that we can defend together, that we can attack at some moments and be able to get that goal that can give us the three points, that belief comes with the mentality we’ve been talking about.”

• Suspended: None
• Suspended after next caution: M - Diego Chara
• International duty: None
• Injury Report: OUT: D - Roy Miller (left Achilles tendon injury), F - Jeremy Ebobisse (right thigh injury), GK - Kendall McIntosh (right thigh injury), D - Liam Ridgewell (right quad injury); QUESTIONABLE: D - Vytas (right thigh injury)

Projected Starting XI
(4-3-2-1, right to left)
GK: Jeff Attinella — Alvas Powell, Larrys Mabiala, Bill Tuiloma, Zarek Valentin — Cristhian Paredes, Diego Chara, Andy Polo — Diego Valeri, Sebastian Blanco — Fanendo Adi

• Notes: Portland managed to triumph with 40.8% of the ball against LAFC last weekend, just the eighth time they have won a home game with less than 41% possession in a game since 2010. … The Timbers have won a franchise best five games in a row. Prior to this streak, they had won four games in a row just twice in franchise MLS history.

All-Time Series

• Overall: Colorado Rapids 7 wins, 23 goals … Portland Timbers 8 wins, 22 goals … 3 ties
• At Colorado: Rapids 6 wins, 19 goals … Timbers 1 win, 8 goals … 3 ties
• Last meeting at Colorado: Colorado Rapids 2, Portland Timbers 1 (June 17, 2017)

Officials

Referee: Sorin Stoica
Assistant Referees: Jeffrey Greeson, Craig Lowry
4th Official: Fotis Bazakos
VAR: Younes Marrakchi