Portland Timbers quotes
Portland Timbers head coach Caleb Porter
On earning a point on the road…
“It’s a good result. We came here for three points – you saw that in the first half. We didn’t come in here to sit back. We came in here to attack, we came here to win the game and I think that’s what makes it even more pleasing is we didn’t come here to get a draw. I was really pleased with that first half. I thought they were a bit better probably than us in the second half. Obviously Jeff [Attinella] came up with a couple of big saves. We had a couple little half chances. We could have kept the ball a little better. I think a lot of that had to do with fatigue. This is our third game, and we didn’t have the luxury of rotating too many guys. So a good number of guys played all three games and you could see that a little bit in the second half. But for us to come in on the road, missing a couple of guys still and playing a very talented team, a team that’s used to scoring goals late, for us to get the point I think we’ll take it.”
On what the result tells him about the team…
“What I liked most about it is that we came and we played aggressive. We pressed them. They had a tough time building out of the back in that first half. We were on the ball. We were the aggressor in that first half. That was the goal – to come in here and play on the road like we play at home. I thought we did that. We’ll continue to do that home and away and I think if we follow that formula, and the guys execute like they did, we’re going to be a tough team to beat. This is another game where we closed it out. Even though we didn’t win, we didn’t give up a late goal and that’s real pleasing from a mentality standpoint. If you’re in a double-legged playoff series, you take the draw in this leg and then you go back to Portland and you’re in good shape. So this is the type of result that you’ve got to get sometimes on the road.”
On the final stretch of the season…
“I think it’s good because we’re in a good run of form. We’ve only had a couple of losses in the last 11 [games]. In the last seven games, we only lost one. So I think we’re starting to hit our stride a little bit. We’re closing out games, we’re defending better and we’ve always been a good attacking team all year. We’ve shown that in every game, so I like the balance right now of the team, and I like the mentality in this team right now. We have a two-week break. We’ll use it to our advantage and then we’ll make that final push in the last six games.”
On the play of goalkeeper Jeff Attinella…
“Disappointing that they got in behind us a couple of times, but Jordan Morris does that. He’s quick and he makes really good runs. We needed our goalkeeper to make a couple plays and there have been games where we haven’t gotten that. He stepped up big time and preserved the point for us. If he doesn’t make those saves, obviously we’re hanging our heads and we’re feeling a little different in the match.”
On the team’s current mentality late in matches compared to earlier this season…
“I think Larrys [Mabiala] has really helped. You look at our form and it’s been in line with him coming in. He’s a big boy. He’s a man. He wins a lot of balls. And then I think it’s chemistry. We’ve been able to kind of play a little bit more of a similar group. The other thing is I think we’ve taken some pressure off ourselves defensively by playing more aggressive and keeping the ball better. Our passing game has been much improved. The best defense is to have a good offense. We didn’t really have to defend in that first half. They had one chance and that’s because we were attacking and we were on the ball. I think that’s a part of it, but the other part of it is I just think we’ve broken that pattern that we couldn’t break that we were giving up goals late. Now the guys have some confidence late in games that they can close things out.”
Portland Timbers goalkeeper Jeff Attinella
On the differences in the two halves and stopping the pressure in the second half…
“I think we did a good job responding. Obviously, the first goal was a bit soft. I think our team did a good job of kind of digging out of that hole in the first half. They kind of got on the front foot in the second half. A credit to us. It’s away at Seattle, it’s not going to be an easy game. I thought we did a great job defensively of buckling down. Our guys up top were running hard and keeping the ball for us. A game like this ‘Rivalry Game,’ on the road, it’s going to go back and forth. There's a lot of positives to take from the second half as well.”
On the positive results over the past few games…
“Well, we lost to Toronto, but we are on a decent little run. It is three straight positive results, two wins and a draw. We just have to keep it going. We have a nice little break to get healthy. I know I am going to enjoy these off days and I’m sure everyone else is too. Just get healthy and get ready for this stretch run.”
On the two saves on Jordan Morris during the match...
“Yeah, I mean he got in behind, but I just tried to stand him up and try to read what he was doing and fortunately I got a hand to both of them.”
Portland Timbers midfielder Diego Valeri
On getting a point in Seattle for the first time since 2013…
“It is a good point. We wanted to win. We play for that. I think the first half was the way we wanted to play. In the second half, they put a lot of numbers forward. They pressed a little bit better. We got a couple of chances but we couldn’t score. We will take the point but I think that…we deserve a little bit more.”
On the feel of the team after a streak of some positive results…
“It is good. We are confident. We are really pleased with the way we are playing. We are trying to dominate the game with the ball and with movement, creating chances, stepping as high as we can from the back. We are playing in a good way. We got a point, too, which is important in this part of the season.”
On responding to Seattle’s goal and the team’s mentality…
“It says a lot. They got the goal from nothing. A pinball situation and they were lucky. We kept going and kept playing in a good way with the ball, and creating chances. Mentally I think it talks a lot about this team. It is good. We are improving in that way. That is good.”
Portland Timbers forward Darren Mattocks
On getting a point on the road…
“It is a good point. It is a very good team, top of the table. I think we did really well. Especially in that first half, I think we dominated. I think it is a really good point seeing as they are on the top of the table.”
On heading into these last six games of the season…
“We need to just keep doing what we have been doing. I think we have been playing really well, keeping the ball and creating chances. Hopefully we put some more of the chances that we created in the game in the back of the net. I think we will be perfectly fine. We are definitely trying to be in first place. That should be our aim.”
Seattle Sounders FC quotes
Seattle Sounders FC head coach Brian Schmetzer
On where his head is at after the result…
“Disappointment. I’m going to go back to the Vancouver match, as well. You’re playing your two archrivals, you have chances in Vancouver to put that game away and you have chances to put Portland away and you don’t do it. I’m disappointed. I think, again, everybody in the locker room is disappointed. I’m going to comment on the game because Portland was very good in the first half, so you have to give them some credit. But then in the second half, I thought we came out and created some clean looks on goal that we should have put away, and then the last 10-12 minutes is just throwing everything and the kitchen sink at the goal, and they were able to keep it at 1-1. So, I’m disappointed.”
On what the team did differently to create more chances in the second half…
“Well, the game was an open game from the get-go. I said at halftime that it was more like a track meet than a soccer match. Jordy [Morris] got himself in twice on good through balls, he got himself in in the first half a couple of times through. It was going to happen, we were going to get our looks. I don’t think it was anything different, just a renewed sense of concentration, doing what we do best. What are Jordan’s strengths? Getting in behind. What are Will [Bruin’s] strengths? Back to goal, No. 9, and getting guys involved in the play. The guys as usual came out in the second half willing to prove that they could put on a better performance than the first half.”
On whether the team adjusted to Portland’s high press…
“I would say it wasn’t the high press, I would say it was the failings of our own club. I didn’t think that we played good soccer in that first half. Sometimes teams get into a cycle. So Portland in the first five minutes of the game kind of had some corner kicks, pinned us back and everything, and then we had to get back and defend for longer periods of time. Then we’d win possession of the ball and then we’d miss an easy pass, or we’d have to defend, defend, defend, and they had us under a little bit of pressure, and instead of having that little bit of composure, we’d just kick the ball down the field and they’d retrieve the ball and put more pressure on us. We weren’t able to break that cycle, and then guys get tired because they’re defending so much. Then their legs get heavy and their minds slow down, and they can’t make another pass. I think we fixed it halftime, so I would say it’s mostly our doing.”
On what’s been missing the last two matches…
“I can’t remember the Vancouver stats, but I remember we had a lot of shots from inside the box. Tonight we had 12 from inside the box, total of seventeen. Duels, again, we won 55 percent of the duels. Our passing was good – they out possessed us because of that first half. I can’t put my finger on it. When guys have their chance, they have to step up and have the concentration to put balls away. So that is something that we will train on, and train some more, and train some more, until we can get it right.”
Sounders FC defender Kelvin Leerdam
On the comparison to the Vancouver game…
“The Vancouver game we had a lot of chances. We were up 10 men and still we draw. This game with the atmosphere you know it’s a different game, a rivalry game. They had more control in the first half. But in the end I feel that we had bigger chances. I feel that we could of won.”
On the crowd size…
“During the game you don’t watch it. But during the end you see it. Especially when Nouhou got a red card then you hear everything. It’s nice, it’s very helpful for us when our fans are supporting. I didn’t even think we played the best soccer we can, but we had the support of the fans. By that we created some chances.”
Sounders FC midfielder Nico Lodeiro (through a translator)
On what needed to be done in the final third…
“I believe it was about being more composed and making better decisions. We were getting the last few passes wrong. We were possibly playing a little bit rushed. But even with that we were creating opportunities.”
On the crowd size…
“It’s very impressive. The way that they support, we feel that support always. We are happy to have fans like that and that’s even another reason why we want to win. I feel like we are one of the MLS teams where even if we play on the road we have fans supporting us and here at home always feeling it in the stadium so that’s very encouraging.
Notes:
- Sunday’s match was the 99th competitive game between the Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders FC since 1975.
- The Timbers currently lead the Cascadia Cup standings with eight points, two points clear of Sounders FC and four points ahead of Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
- Portland finished the match with 52 percent of the possession. In all three regular-season matches against Seattle this season, the Timbers have won the possession battle.
- The Timbers have scored in 14 consecutive matches, which is the longest active streak in MLS.
- Diego Chara became the second Timbers player to appear in 200 matches for the club. Chara joins Darlington Nagbe, who also played his 200th match against Seattle FC on June 25.
- Diego Valeri scored his 16th goal of the season, tying him for most MLS goals by a Timbers player in a single season. It is the third straight season the Timbers have had a player score 16 goals, as Fanendo Adi reached the mark in 2015 and 2016.
- Valeri is the seventh player in all eras of the club (since 1975) to score 16 or more league goals in a season (Fanendo Adi, Fadi Afash, McKinley Tennyson, Alan Gordon, Peter Withe and Byron Alvarez).
- Valeri scored in his sixth consecutive match, which is the longest streak in MLS this season. Valeri’s six games with a goal also rank as the most consecutive games with a goal in the Timbers’ MLS era.
- Valeri has scored six goals against Sounders FC in competitive matches, with four in regular-season play. Only Fanendo Adi and USL-era player Byron Alvarez have scored more goals (8) for Portland against Seattle.
- Darlington Nagbe finished the match completing 95.5 percent of his passes, connecting on 63 of his 66 attempted passes. Nagbe leads MLS this season in games (5) with at least 95 percent passing on 50 or more attempts.
- Nagbe played in his 20th regular-season match against Sounders FC. That is the most by any MLS player against a single MLS opponent since 2011.
- Jeff Attinella made five saves in the match, tying a season high.
