Timbers earn 3-1 victory against Cascadia rival Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Portland extends unbeaten streak to three and Evander records first career brace

The Portland Timbers extended their unbeaten streak to three (2-0-1) with a 3-1 victory against Cascadia rival Vancouver Whitecaps FC at Providence Park on Saturday night. Franck Boli opened Portland’s account with a goal in the second minute and Evander netted a brace for the Timbers to secure three points at home. The Timbers sit atop of the 2023 Cascadia Cup standings with six points (2-1-0).

Team Leaders
Evander notched his team-best third and fourth goals of the season, leading the team in points (10 – 3g, 2a) in just nine appearances this year. The 24-year-old Brazilian has contributed to five goals in Portland’s last three matches (3g, 2a). With two goals today and two assists against Austin FC on May 6, Evander became the first player in club history to produce a multi-goal game following a multi-assist game. Santiago Moreno tallied his team-leading fifth assist of the season. The 23-year-old Colombian has recorded an assist in three straight games for the Timbers and five assists in in their last five matches. Diego Chara made his 350^th MLS regular season appearance in the match. The 37-year-old midfielder is just the 20^th player in league history to hit that milestone, and only the fifth to play 350 matches with one club. D. Chara is the only player who has played every minute for the Timbers this season (1,080).

Portland’s Form
The Timbers are unbeaten in their last three league matches (5/13 vs. VAN, 5/6 vs. ATX, 4/29 at STL) and are unbeaten in their last four home matches (5/13 vs. VAN, 5/6 vs. ATX, 4/15 vs. SEA, 3/25 vs. LAG). It marks the first time this season the Timbers have gone unbeaten in three straight games. Portland has scored multiple goals in six of their last seven matches across all competitions, tallying 18 goals in that stretch, after only scoring multiple goals on one occasion through their first seven matches of the year.
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2023 Cascadia Cup*
Tonight’s match marked Portland’s third of the 2023 Cascadia Cup, in which they aim to defend its 2022 title. The Timbers claimed their third Cascadia Cup title in club history (2022, 2017, 2012) last year, finishing the 2022 competition with a combined record of 3-0-1 over Seattle (2-0-0) and Vancouver (1-0-1). Tonight’s win put the Timbers at the top of the Cascadia table with six points and snapped an eight-game unbeaten streak for the ‘Caps. Portland dropped its first Cascadia match of the 2023 campaign on the road against the Vancouver Whitecaps on April 8, but bounced back with a 4-1 win over Seattle Sounders FC on April 15. The Timbers have three remaining matches in the Cup this year, hosting Vancouver once more (Aug. 26), while facing Sounders FC two more times on the road (June 3, Sept. 2).

Goal-Scoring Plays

POR – Franck Boli (Claudio Bravo), 2nd minute: Claudio Bravo won the ball near midfield and slipped a pass to Franck Boli just outside the box. Boli dribbled toward goal and fired a low, hard shot inside the left post.

POR – Evander (Juan Mosquera, Santiago Moreno), 18th minute: Playing several quick passes, Santiago Moreno chipped a short pass inside the box to Juan David Mosquera, making a run to the right post. Mosquera controlled the ball and laid it off to Evander at edge of the six-yard for the finish.

VWFC – Own goal (Zac McGraw), 24th minute: Julian Gressel received a pass in behind the backline from Ryan Gauld. Gressel delivered a cross into the center of the box and Zac McGraw attempted to clear the ball but redirected the cross into his own goal.

POR – Evander (Yimmi Chara, Claudio Bravo), 54th minute: Combining just outside the box, Bravo played the ball to Yimmi Chara, who fired pass to Evander 20 yards from goal. Evander got past one Vancouver defender before unleashing a shot into the left corner of the goal.

Portland Timbers (4-5-3, 15pts) vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC (3-3-5, 14pts)
May 13, 2023 – Providence Park (Portland, Ore.)

Goals by Half                             1          2          F 
Portland Timbers                       2          1          3
Vancouver Whitecaps FC          1          0          1

Scoring Summary

POR: Boli (Bravo), 2
POR: Evander (Mosquera, Moreno), 18
VWFC: Own goal (McGraw), 24
POR: Evander (Y. Chara, Bravo), 54

Misconduct Summary

POR: McGraw (caution), 73
VWFC: Brown (caution), 74

Lineups

POR: GK Ivacic, D Bravo, D Zuparic, D McGraw, D Mosquera (Miller, 84), M D. Chara ©, M Paredes, M Moreno (Loría, 84), M Evander (Mabiala, 90+2), M Y. Chara (Asprilla, 64), F Boli (Niezgoda, 64)

Substitutes Not Used: GK Bingham, M Blanco, M Caliskan, F Fogaça

TOTAL SHOTS: 13 (Evander, 4); SHOTS ON GOAL: 7 (Boli, Evander, 2); FOULS: 14 (Asprilla, 3); OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 4; SAVES: 5

VWFC: GK Takaoka, D Veselinovic, D Blackmon, D Martins (Caicedo, 76), D Brown (Raposo, 83), M Schöpf (Ahmed, 64), M Gressel, M Cubas (Berhalter, 83), M Gauld ©, M Vite, F Córdova (Becher, 46)

Substitutes Not Used: GK Hasal, D Laborda, D Yao, M Teibert

TOTAL SHOTS: 8 (Gauld, 2); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Four players tied, 1); FOULS: 11 (Brown, 3); OFFSIDES: 3; CORNER KICKS: 7; SAVES: 4

Referee: Guido Gonzales Jr.
Assistant Referees: Ian McKay, Jeffrey Swartzel
Fourth Official: Jeffrey Greeson
VAR: Jair Marrufo
Attendance: 23,154

Weather: Sunny, 88 degrees