PORTLAND, Ore.
– The Portland Timbers face one of the English Premier League’s top clubs on Saturday as they play host to Manchester City in an international exhibition match at Merlo Field on the University of Portland campus; kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Tickets for the highly-anticipated friendly were available exclusively to season ticket holders. The match will be broadcast live on Sportsradio 95.5 The Game and in Spanish on 910AM+1390AM ESPN Deportes. A video webcast of the match will be archived and available for viewing on Sunday at www.portlandtimbers.com/live.
The Timbers continue their break from regular-season action with their fourth international exhibition in 2010. Portland defeated Mexico’s Club Deportivo Atlas in an exhibition contest at PGE Park on July 11, winning in a penalty-kick shootout after the two sides played to a 1-1 draw in regulation. The Timbers are on a four-game unbeaten streak in league play and have shutout each of their USSF Division-2 Pro League opponents in that span.
Manchester City kicked off a preseason tour of the United States with a week-long training camp in Portland. Saturday’s contest against the Timbers is Manchester City’s only appearance on the West Coast during its tour as it prepares for the upcoming season.
Founded in 1880, Manchester City is one of the most historic clubs in England and has won nine league championships and four FA Cup titles among its many accomplishments. The club finished the 2009-10 Premier League season in fifth place and earned a berth into the 2010-11 UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.
Manchester City’s travel roster for the exhibition in Portland features three players who competed in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, including defender
Kolo Toure
and midfielder
Yaya Toure
of the Ivory Coast National Team. The club’s tour roster is also highlighted by two of its top three leading scorers from last season in forwards
Craig Bellamy
and Emmanuel Adebayor, goalkeeper and Republic of Ireland National Team member Shay Given andformer French National Team captain and 1998 World Cup champion Patrick Vieira.
The Timbers have played against four English clubs since 2001, including Premier League-bound sides Sunderland in 2005 and Burnley FC last season, and has an overall 2-1-1 record in those contests. Portland is 2-1-0 in international exhibition matches this season, facing Costa Rica’s Puntarenas FC, Argentina’s Boca Juniors and Atlas of Mexico.
Portland returns to league play on Thursday, July 22, against the Vancouver Whitecaps on the road. The away contest against their Northwest rival begins a four-game stretch of road games for the Timbers.
