Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter
Overall thoughts on the match…
“I thought it was a good game. Both teams were organized, neither team was going to back down or give in. We knew it would be a little choppy at times because of their pressure. I thought at times we could’ve managed that better. I thought we were extremely organized all game, made it difficult on them. I thought we had situations, on the counter attack where we could’ve done better a few times. We allowed them to get numbers back. We didn’t capitalize at times. In the second half, I thought there were several times where we could’ve pulled the trigger or played an extra pass. We were a little unlucky as well on a few. First half, a good save by (Luis) Robles, obviously hitting the crossbar second half, and they had a few as well. Jake (Gleeson) made a good save on the one time they got behind us really all game. He came up big, so probably a fair result. Two good teams again and that’s six results for us on the road, so that’s equal to two wins and that’s seven games unbeaten. So, we’re in a good rhythm right now and that’s two clean sheets in a row. I told the guys that obviously as you reach this stage of the season it’s important that you buckle down and defend well because games get tighter and often times it’s one goal that unlocks it. We weren’t able to find that goal but neither were they, and if you can’t find the goal on the road you buckle down and get the point. So, we’ll put that in the bank. Like I said we're in a really good rhythm right now and firmly in the race.”
On Liam Ridgewell's impact in his return…
“Yeah, I mean any good coach will tell you, ‘you're only as good as your players.’ I’m a really good coach with really good players. So with (Liam) Ridgewell in we're better, and he’s missed over half of the games this season, so these things get lost in the shuffle. Darlington (Nagbe) missed six, seven games. Diego Valeri has missed four or five games. So, we’ve not had a full squad. We lose Darren (Mattocks) 30 seconds into the game. But, ever since we signed Liam Ridgewell, our overall track record defensively has been outstanding and he’s a big part of that. His ability to lead the line, communicate, and just his quality in general.”
On losing Darren Mattocks early in the game…
“A big part of our plan today was to play on the break. We felt through Mattocks and Luca (Lucas Melano) that we could find some space. So, we lose one guy that would’ve brought some of those things so it kind of changed a little bit our effectiveness. But, Lucas still found some space on the counter. I thought (Ned) Grabavoy came in and did a good job, gave us a little bit of a different look, in terms of keeping the ball and I thought when we moved him inside underneath (Fanendo) Adi and slid Darlington to the left, we really were dangerous and I thought that we’d get the goal. But, like I said you have to give New York credit. I thought they were really good at defending the counter. There have been some games that I’ve watched this season where that hasn’t been the case so really it’s a credit to their defenders for putting out those fires on the break. They did a nice job with that. I thought (Damien) Perrinelle coming into the game was a nice addition for them. He’s a smart player.”
On Nagbe’s performances since returning from the U.S. Men’s National Team…
“I think any time a player goes into the international level, they’re thrown into a new ocean. There’s new sharks that make you play a little quicker and run a little faster and think faster, and I think his game improved. He’s always been an extremely talented player, but I think going to play with the best players in our country probably opened his eyes a little bit about how good he is because no doubt he fit right in. I think coming back, he’s still getting fit again because he didn’t play. But, he’s really confident. He’s obviously a great player.”
On the progression of the back four…
“It’s all 11 guys. You defend from the front and the last two games we’ve been picking teams up more in the middle third. We've really worked a lot on pressing in that middle third. There’s basically three ways to defend. Press high, middle or low and there have been times in other games where we’ve dropped off too deep and invited pressure or where we've pressed high and been stretched and I think a happy medium for us on the road especially is to kind of squeeze in that middle third and today we wanted to defend narrow and look to trap them wide and take away their middle because they’re pretty clever, the way they play with little wall passes and combinations through the center of the park. I thought they were able to get through us a little bit but never really unlock us for that final pass to spring guys in except for the one. So, I thought we did a really good job of taking away their middle and making it a game where they had to serve, so it’s a credit to the guys with the way they played. But, it’s not just the four or the six, it’s the 11."
Portland Timbers Goalkeeper Jake Gleeson
On the pressure faced in the final minutes...
"Obviously, on the road at the end of a game, if the home team isn’t winning they always push and it’s just about absorbing that pressure and making plays when needed. I think the boys did that, [Liam Ridgewell], Nat [Borchers], the whole back line was unbelievable tonight, hats off to them."
On executing their gameplan…
"Yeah, we knew they’d come out and press us and we knew were going to be under it for parts of the game because they’re a good team and they press high. It’s just about dealing with them and making the plays when we needed to, keeping the ball when we could, trying to counter, and put balls behind them to put them under a little bit of pressure. I think we did that pretty well."
Portland Timbers Defender Liam Ridgewell
On trying to find that next gear that the team found towards the end of last season…
"Yeah, I think it’s been difficult with the injuries that we’ve had and players coming and going. It’s been a little bit of continuity that we’ve struggled with this season. Myself, I was out with an injury at the start of the year. Last year we didn’t have that. We had four or five guys at the back, the same guys, every single game."
Notes:
- With the clean sheet, the Timbers have recorded shutouts in back-to-back road matches for the third time in the team's MLS history. The other two occurrences happened between Aug. 2-Aug. 16, 2015 and between Oct. 25, 2014-March 21, 2015.
- Since 2013, Portland has recorded 38 shutouts, marking the second-most shutouts by an MLS team during that timespan, behind only Sporting Kansas City.
- The Timbers moved their unbeaten streak to seven games, which is the second-longest active undefeated streak in MLS. The streak is also the longest regular-season unbeaten run produced by Portland since a 10-game unbeaten streak between the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
- Portland won 67.9 percent of the duels in the match, winning 74 out of 109 duels. The 74 duels won is the second-most by the Timbers in an MLS match, trailing its previous mark of 77 against Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Aug. 25, 2015.
- The 74 duels won by the Timbers are the second-most by any MLS team in a match this season, behind the Colorado Rapids’ 80 duels won against D.C. United on March 20, 2016.
- Goalkeeper Jake Gleeson recorded four saves in the match, moving his season total to 59, the fifth-most in MLS in 2016.
- Midfielder Ned Grabavoy was substituted into the match in the fourth minute of the match as an injury substitution. Grabavoy's substitution marks the earliest substitution the Timbers have ever made in an MLS match.
- Defender Alvas Powell played his 60th regular-season match with the Timbers.
