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That was a good draw for the Portland Timbers and all that, on the road against the Houston Dynamo, and with the new (expensive) kid (calmly) scoring Portland’s equalizer only thickens a pot that’s already viscously boiling. The game ended in an earned 1-1.
All the same, if you’re thinking what I’m thinking (wait, are you? serious question), I think the Timbers are about to change. I have faith in the long-term project – not least because it’s necessary (and I have a lot of premature opinions on that) – but, full disclosure, what I saw from Brian Fernandez tonight…well, if it didn’t tear up the script, that fucker came back covered in red ink. Let’s dig into the guts…second hand, because I don’t know what the highlights will show for this (answer: so very little, and where are you, condensed games? a victim of corporate corner-cutting?).
First, and this may be exaggerated, I can’t remember the last time the Timbers played that many long balls looking for a runner – and getting rewarded for doing that (as they did on Fernandez’s equalizer) will keep that tactical choice going for a while. Speaking for myself, I was more excited about Fernandez’s involvement in two other plays. To take them in reverse order, after the long-ball failed a couple times, Fernandez drifted to the right to become play-maker. He spotted a lane into a space where Tomas Conechny was sprinting unobserved toward the penalty spot and he rolled the ball in; Conecnhy failed to connect but Fernandez looks like he's got good eyes. It’s an earlier play that really has me wondering about how Portland plays going forward: while I don’t remember who the short feed came from (think it was Diego Valeri) in came from Zone 14 and rolled into the box with Fernandez chasing; the ball went inside – i.e., between the defender and the goal – but Fernandez drifted to the opposite shoulder and came damn close to catching up to the ball for a clean shot. The point is, Fernandez is both versatile (e.g., he can move around in-game) and he’s a quick little fucker to boot; sort of everything as advertised on the basic attributes. He nearly beat that defender while covering 30-50% more ground. So long as he can finish, that kind of speed is…just, holy shit.
On the grounds that only fools need saviors (my school, right or wrong), I’m going to render unto Fernandez what he does for the Timbers, and render unto the rest of the team what they do for the Timbers (pretty sure I mixed a couple metaphors in there). Because I came into the game late (circa 18th minute), my version of the first half saw Portland’s heels slowly sinking into the earth as Houston forced them down. From the 30th minute forward, the Timbers backed off – a lot like they did against Vancouver in the second half of the first half last Friday. To pick on Renzo Zambrano a little, one of the first things I saw him do was receive a pass in midfield, and then smartly fight the ball sideways, looking for either a foul or a pass all the while (he got the foul! Ding! Ding! Ding!). He followed that up with getting caught, at least semi-horrifically in possession a couple times, and then becoming increasingly more like a vaguely floating presence as the half moved on. The whole team slipped into a reactive stupor right along with Zambrano, somewhere between the 30th and 35th minute. And then the same guys mostly made it right.
All the same, if you’re thinking what I’m thinking (wait, are you? serious question), I think the Timbers are about to change. I have faith in the long-term project – not least because it’s necessary (and I have a lot of premature opinions on that) – but, full disclosure, what I saw from Brian Fernandez tonight…well, if it didn’t tear up the script, that fucker came back covered in red ink. Let’s dig into the guts…second hand, because I don’t know what the highlights will show for this (answer: so very little, and where are you, condensed games? a victim of corporate corner-cutting?).
First, and this may be exaggerated, I can’t remember the last time the Timbers played that many long balls looking for a runner – and getting rewarded for doing that (as they did on Fernandez’s equalizer) will keep that tactical choice going for a while. Speaking for myself, I was more excited about Fernandez’s involvement in two other plays. To take them in reverse order, after the long-ball failed a couple times, Fernandez drifted to the right to become play-maker. He spotted a lane into a space where Tomas Conechny was sprinting unobserved toward the penalty spot and he rolled the ball in; Conecnhy failed to connect but Fernandez looks like he's got good eyes. It’s an earlier play that really has me wondering about how Portland plays going forward: while I don’t remember who the short feed came from (think it was Diego Valeri) in came from Zone 14 and rolled into the box with Fernandez chasing; the ball went inside – i.e., between the defender and the goal – but Fernandez drifted to the opposite shoulder and came damn close to catching up to the ball for a clean shot. The point is, Fernandez is both versatile (e.g., he can move around in-game) and he’s a quick little fucker to boot; sort of everything as advertised on the basic attributes. He nearly beat that defender while covering 30-50% more ground. So long as he can finish, that kind of speed is…just, holy shit.
On the grounds that only fools need saviors (my school, right or wrong), I’m going to render unto Fernandez what he does for the Timbers, and render unto the rest of the team what they do for the Timbers (pretty sure I mixed a couple metaphors in there). Because I came into the game late (circa 18th minute), my version of the first half saw Portland’s heels slowly sinking into the earth as Houston forced them down. From the 30th minute forward, the Timbers backed off – a lot like they did against Vancouver in the second half of the first half last Friday. To pick on Renzo Zambrano a little, one of the first things I saw him do was receive a pass in midfield, and then smartly fight the ball sideways, looking for either a foul or a pass all the while (he got the foul! Ding! Ding! Ding!). He followed that up with getting caught, at least semi-horrifically in possession a couple times, and then becoming increasingly more like a vaguely floating presence as the half moved on. The whole team slipped into a reactive stupor right along with Zambrano, somewhere between the 30th and 35th minute. And then the same guys mostly made it right.
For the second time in as many games, the regulars rallied, regained their discipline at the back (also, Bill Tuiloma…just, stock rising), and the midfield settled down after…wait, I forgot? Shit. To start with at the beginning, had you told me about Diego Chara’s suspension before the game (by no fault of @FWjmcg!), my pre-game tweets would have had a little more whimper in them. With Chara out, the Timbers started Zambrano alongside gradually-positively-ascending star, Cristhian Paredes, only to see Paredes limp off early. Andres Flores came on for Paredes at the 33rd minute – before Houston’s goal and, sure, it’s possible that adjustment led to Houston getting more of the game and better chances with every passing minute of the 1st half. Houston scored, and not unfairly, but the more important thing – and this is for both teams – is that it didn’t matter (as in, that’s a shot at Houston’s home prowess). The Timbers came back into the game (and it’s not like they were ever that far out of it), and with two anchoring pieces missing (that’s Chara and, today, Paredes), on the road, and against a team that’s been strong at home a few seasons running. Even with another key piece missing (Larrys Mabiala), Portland remained competitive start to finish. And, again, I can’t emphasize this enough, Houston has been solid at home, even just in 2019.
At the start of the season, I decided that getting 12 points from this long and winding (opening) road trip would constitute a low form of success for the Timbers - and that low bar’s just 1 point away! Between getting a point, the depth filling in for the missing pieces, and a new guy who already looks ready for the big kids’ table, I like the overall vibe for this group. The past five-six games and a little flash of the future leaves me wondering whether the old gang won’t get back together and, what the hell, give it one more shot, for old tyme’s sake, by jingo, see?
It gets better when you consider that, after idling for a few, Jorge Villafana outright stuffed Alberth Elis on two separate occasions. Better still, Tuiloma looks more like a real option with every start. Julio Cascante, though not perfect, was better than adequate, maybe even good (a long way of saying I didn’t notice him and that’s probably a positive). In all of the above, the signs are broadly good. I had all of one complaint tonight, something I wouldn’t even mention except I like the phrasing (“Already the good and bad of Zambrano (strong on the ball, long on the ball)”).
With that waiting in the wings, I consider a healthy number of the players on my hometown team solid MLS starters: [Jeff or Steve], Mabiala, Tuiloma, [a situational combination of our fullbacks], Chara, Paredes (really), Sebastian Blanco…and then it gets tricky for reasons I can’t quite sort out, beyond saying, I want Diego Valeri on the field, I want Jeremy Ebobisse on the field and I want Fernandez on the field. The problem is, all those guys can’t get on the field at once. And I think that’s to the good? Probably?
To open an uncomfortable question that we all know is coming, is this Valeri’s swan-song? Before you throw the paper cups, I intend the question entirely sentimentally. To euphemize that line of thinking, what does this feel like but an incredible opportunity to hit the opposition with a really novel variety of looks, and from start to finish of any given game? Why not start Blanco one game, Valeri the next, and Fernandez (or, more likely), Ebobisse the next. Try to maximize specific skill-sets, get as many players whose surnames contain the same number of letters in the line up as possible, just have fun with it! As noted from the broadcast booth tonight, the Timbers have players who can attack from different places on the field. So long as Fernandez can operate with the some kind of positional looseness, the Timbers have a permanent, rotating array of five attacking players to plug and play, for so long as they shall retain their health and enthusiasm for sports. And there are guys even below them, even if one only works in…October, or November, maybe both (Dairon Asprilla), and another guy who delivers goals on Tooth Fairy-esque patterns (Lucas Melano). Both Blanco and Valeri have real numbers in MLS (with Valeri’s being historic), Ebobisse has his steady pace and, again, Fernandez put away his first clear chance on his debut.
I’m looking forward to the rest of this season. I hope it holds up, but I also like it’s chances.
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