Timbers With 4-1 Win Against Cascadia Rival Sounders
Adi tallies second-half brace, Portland delivers 11 shots on goal in comprehensive performance at Providence Park
Soccer News: The Portland Timbers registered 11 shots on goal, while holding Cascadia-rival Seattle Sounders FC to just one as forward Fanendo Adi tallied a second-half brace and midfielders Darlington Nagbe and Rodney Wallace each contributed a goal and an assist in a comprehensive, 4-1 win in front of a sellout crowd of 21,144 fans at Providence Park on Sunday night.
Portland’s 11 shots on goal Sunday against Sounders FC (9-7-2, 29pts) rank as the second-most in a single match in Portland’s MLS-club history, while the Timbers’ 23 total shot attempts is tied for third-most in a match since 2011. Defensively, Portland (8-6-4, 28pts) conceded just one shot on goal during the match, which marks the second time in the last three regular-season games that the Timbers have held an opponent to one shot on frame.
The Timbers have won six of their last seven matches in all competitions, including five wins in their last six league games since May 27.
Adi tallied his third brace of the 2015 season on Sunday (and seventh of his Timbers MLS career) with a pair of goals in quick succession to give Portland a two-goal lead. Taking a pass from Nagbe near the penalty spot, Adi hit a bending, one-time effort around Seattle goalkeeper Stefan Frei in the 74th minute for what would stand as the game-winning goal. Less than two minutes later, Adi recorded a second goal after Wallace delivered a pass to Adi near the top of box, allowing the forward to take a couple touches before firing a low shot into the back of the net in the 76th minute.
Nagbe opened the scoring for the Timbers, taking a pass from midfielder Diego Valeri before firing a well-struck shot from distance in the 12th minute.
Wallace capped the scoring for Portland, finishing a pass from forward Maximiliano Urruti with a left-footed strike from near the penalty spot in the first minute of second-half stoppage time. The goals for Nagbe and Wallace each marked their first of the regular season, while Wallace also tallied his team-leading fourth assist.
With the victory, the Timbers extended their home-winning streak at Providence Park to four consecutive matches, dating back to May 27 against D.C. United. Portland saw its streak without conceding a goal at home end at 403 consecutive minutes on Sunday when Seattle’s Lamar Neagle tallied the lone goal for Sounders FC with a close-range volley off a free kick from defender Tyrone Mears in the 38th minute – sending the match into halftime tied 1-1.
Portland has earned consecutive victories against Pacific Northwest-rival Sounders FC in the last two weeks, outscoring Seattle 7-2 with a 3-1 win in the fourth round of the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup win on June 16 coupled with Sunday’s result. The win on Sunday also equaled Portland’s largest margin of victory (3 goals) against Seattle since a 3-0 win on June 11, 1977, at Civic Stadium (now Providence Park) in Portland.
Following Sunday’s game, the Timbers face a quick turnaround, traveling to play Real Salt Lake on Wednesday in a Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round of 16 match at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah; kickoff for Wednesday’s game is scheduled for 7 p.m. (Pacific). In league play, the Timbers play host to the San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday, July 5, in a nationally televised match at Providence Park; kickoff for the game against San Jose is scheduled for 2 p.m. (Pacific). The match will feature a live national broadcast on ESPN2 with a local radio broadcast on 750/102.9 The Game and in Spanish on La GranD 93.5 FM.
