The Portland Timbers have a habit of making life hard on themselves, a pattern that persisted on Sunday in Kansas City, Kansas. Despite, thanks to losses by FC Dallas and the San Jose Earthquakes, the door opening to a potentially playoff-clinching performance, the Timbers gave up two goals almost directly after kickoffs, drawing a struggling Sporting KC, 2-2, and taking 2019’s postseason hopes into the final weekend of the season on MLS Decision Day.
Thanks to goals from Sebastián Blanco and Dairon Asprilla, Portland sits in sixth place in the Western Conference and can secure a third-straight postseason appearance with a win or draw next weekend against San Jose. That they weren’t able to take advantage in Kansas City, though, was an opportunity lost.
“In the second half, I don’t think we took (enough) risks …,” Blanco said, saying he “loves this field” while alluding to a second half that finished with the Timbers a man up, playing 10-on-9.
“The next game is a final, for us,” he continued. “If we play like (we did) in the start of the second half, we’re going to have problems. But if we play like we did in the last 15 minutes, I think we have (a good chance).”
Though they can still make the postseason with a draw next week, Portland’s 2019 margin of error has now evaporated, and in that sense, the playoffs have practically arrived. If all goes well, there will be five games left in the Timbers’ season. Portland can’t afford to lose any of them, and while, true, there is a scenario where they can back in the playoffs with a loss next Sunday, the team can no longer prepare assuming they’ll have a chance to make up for a sub-par performance.
Here’s What We’ll Remember from Sunday’s draw at Children’s Mercy Park.
Trading goals; trading cards
When Blanco knocked home Sunday’s opener in the 28th minute, the game briefly felt like the last time Portland visited Kansas, particularly as the Argentine attacker ran to the same corner where he celebrated his famous 2018 playoffs’ goal.
But that feeling lasted less than a minute, with Portland providing their hosts the first of two post-kickoff gifts. Officially, Blanco’s goal was in the 29th minute. This, from Krisztián Németh, was in the 30th:
