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| My people call it Sebastian Blanco. |
Does anyone else think that Portland Timbers fans just witnessed something parts weird, good and glorious? To take the adjectives in turn:
Weird: Did anyone else see as much walking as I did, and from both teams? That note speaks to the second half - specifically, after Sebastian Blanco slipped in his first, deciding dagger - and also covers the time when I thought Minnesota United FC would push the game, if for no better reason than they had to. Related thereto, how many Timbers counters, 1) started about 20 yards from their own goal, and 2) started with Dairon Asprilla either winning the ball or getting it at that place, looking at a wide-open field ahead of him and starting up with a look that said, “this shit again?”
Good: Because, before Blanco scored the dagger described above and the, no, please, after you, insurance goal that Minnesota gifted him, the possibility that he wouldn’t continue, never mind finish the game, looked like a real possibility. I mean, how many of you fretted to sweating about the Timbers’ post-season chances in any shape when you saw Blanco on the ground rubbing his back/ass?
Glorious: Because the Timbers overcame an early deficit against a team who has always given them trouble, pushed through a heavy dose of chippy shit (that was six cards by Minnesota, and one of them should have been red and had damn well better earn a date at Studio 54 (aka, DisCo should review that and fine or otherwise punish Franco Fragapane for that straight-up shitty lunge at Diego Chara)), and had the comfort of seeing Steve Clark cover every piece of, admittedly, weak shit that Minnesota managed to fire on goal.
I won’t lie: I had ample and frequent questions about the choices and posture of the Timbers, and on both sides of the ball, but they still ended the night 3-1 winners over perhaps their fiercest bad match-up in MLS, and looked oddly comfortable once they got back in it. Up next, the Colorado Rapids and 4,000+ more feet in elevation. First, however, let’s drink it in, shall we?
First question, how the hell did this happen?
I guess I’ll just confess to the possibility that Portland lulled Minnesota to sleep just as much as they did me. This was a game where nothing seemed to happen until the ball was in the back of the net; neither the movements nor the broader dynamics looked particularly threatening at any given moment, then you recall that Bakaye Dibassy got one thin, fortunate foot in the way of a clear goal by Asprilla, or that he rotated a shoulder into the way of a biking beauty from Larrys Mabiala. Related thereto, the Timbers seemed to sort of amble generally until the five minutes that led up to Mabiala scoring Portland’s equalizer. As one MLS in-house hack (said lovingly, btw) put it, the Timbers have discovered they have a switch to flip in 2021 and, down the stretch at least, the lights have reliably come on. If I’m not mistaken, Dibassy made his two clear saves before Dayne St. Clair made his first - and can I just quickly comment on how shitty it is to say a ‘keeper “lost four games” when losing any game in soccer almost always follows from team effort/failure? - but…I guess my argument is that Minnesota looked both fairly and deceptively composed, at least until they didn’t.
To circle back now to “Glorious,” I was at that game in July when Minnesota took an early lead and never let go and, won’t lie, that felt like the only thing on the menu immediately after the Loons scored their opener and, as it happened only goal. Moreover, there’s no getting around the collection of failures that allowed that goal to happen: to name names, Cristhian Paredes failed to show up for the second wave of the press, a slip that also left Emanuel Reynoso, aka, the last player and team who wants to win leaves open, open; next, Claudio Bravo let Robin Lod slip past an unnecessary lunge and find Roman Metanire cut the ball across the mouth of Portland’s goal where Juancarlos Van Rankin only had loose theories about what was behind and around him, whihch freed that fucking asshole Fragapane to poke the ball into a YAWNING net and give Minnesota the early, and historically insurmountable lead.
That set the game up perfectly for Minnesota to set a shape, stay organized, counter with intent, and otherwise strangle the Timbers dreams…only they didn’t. Instead, Minnesota wound up letting the game slip away one goal after the other, first with Larrys, then with another, fatal bobble to Blanco, and right where he likes it, then again for the insurance goal. If I had to note the strangest thing about this game, it would be the failure on Minnesota’s part to make the “expected” part of their xG come good; for whatever reason, they pissed away a fair number of the good chances they got - of which, and for the record, they put six on goal, and from good places. If even just one of those attempts went in, never mind made Steve Clark break a sweat, I’d have given Minnesota a good chance at rattling Portland, but Clark made all those easy shots look that way and Portland rode Blanco’s two easy-on-the-eyes goals to victory and a date in Colorado as a result.
I’ll turn to how I feel about their chances in Colorado later and after a little research, but, to close this out with talking points:
1) So Achingly Close
I wanted to see Diego Valeri stab home that late, lost 4th goal rolling on his back because I really want him to get the swan-song moment his career all but demands. As much as I believe his legend will live for decades to come, I’d hate to see a career that made the history books end in an inaudible whimper.
2) Like the Puppy I Never Had
No, Bravo is not the easiest player to watch, but he’s among the most endearing. I didn’t see the way he bites and lunges until enough people pointed it out, but if there is an entry for “high risk/high reward” in the dictionary, the editors could do worse than to put a picture of Bravo next to it. Bravo takes and spurns chances in defense with the best of ‘em, and with all the upsides and downsides that entails.
3) Team Chara
For what it’s worth, I credit their brotherly knack for finding one another with tonight’s victory as much as anything. I’ll just say the connection felt unusually wired tonight and leave it there.
4) CBs und Angst
Won’t lie, Mabiala made me anxious tonight. If I’m not mistaken, he and Dario Zuparic operated under a tacit agreement that Mabiala would chase the ball and/or passes upfield as the situation demanded, but Larrys got way the hell up there and more often than once. All that worked out tonight, and may work out in the future as well, but I couldn’t stop feeling the hole left behind every time Larrys chased a ball out of the defense. If only Minnesota was up for it…
5) A Statement on the Fragapane Incident(s)
I cannot, by my own memory, think of a time where Diego Chara seemed pissed enough to go after someone, at least not outside the run of play. That’s to say, he’s combative but only in that sphere, and I’ve never seen Chara as pissed off as he was in the game when Fragapane was accused of, in the words I’ve seen used, “directing a racial slur” at him. I’ve also never seen Mabiala lose every last bit of his shit the way he did after Fragapane’s two-footed stomp toward the top of Chara’s ankle, but I also can’t blame him given the history.
To give Fragapane an absolutely maximal benefit of the doubt, I would have been less surprised to see Chara attempt that kind of tackle on him. I don’t know what to make of Fragapane going what sure as hell looked like a ways out of his way to hurt Chara, I only know it didn’t improve my opinion of him. That's to say, if you're a French player who lacks the chops to make Ligue Un, that's no one's fault but your own and injuring others won't make you whole.
At this point, I’m more inclined to see Fragapane guilty as charged on the first incident as I was before tonight. And, so long as he suits up against the Timbers, I expect to see him targeted, quietly or otherwise.
And I guess that’s my overall take on the night. As noted in several tweets, Minnesota played a disjointed and cheap game tonight. They looked like a team who saw themselves and underdogs and, instead of playing to win, played to the worst impulses of the role. Full credit to Portland as a team, and Blanco as a player, they screened out all the chippy bullshit, buried the chances that bounced their way and (generally) played the front-foot defense that I’d argue serves them best.
For what it’s worth, this one makes me feel better about the next one. Colorado almost certainly will take the game to Portland, which opens up the space for the Timbers to take the game from them. Till then!
Weird: Did anyone else see as much walking as I did, and from both teams? That note speaks to the second half - specifically, after Sebastian Blanco slipped in his first, deciding dagger - and also covers the time when I thought Minnesota United FC would push the game, if for no better reason than they had to. Related thereto, how many Timbers counters, 1) started about 20 yards from their own goal, and 2) started with Dairon Asprilla either winning the ball or getting it at that place, looking at a wide-open field ahead of him and starting up with a look that said, “this shit again?”
Good: Because, before Blanco scored the dagger described above and the, no, please, after you, insurance goal that Minnesota gifted him, the possibility that he wouldn’t continue, never mind finish the game, looked like a real possibility. I mean, how many of you fretted to sweating about the Timbers’ post-season chances in any shape when you saw Blanco on the ground rubbing his back/ass?
Glorious: Because the Timbers overcame an early deficit against a team who has always given them trouble, pushed through a heavy dose of chippy shit (that was six cards by Minnesota, and one of them should have been red and had damn well better earn a date at Studio 54 (aka, DisCo should review that and fine or otherwise punish Franco Fragapane for that straight-up shitty lunge at Diego Chara)), and had the comfort of seeing Steve Clark cover every piece of, admittedly, weak shit that Minnesota managed to fire on goal.
I won’t lie: I had ample and frequent questions about the choices and posture of the Timbers, and on both sides of the ball, but they still ended the night 3-1 winners over perhaps their fiercest bad match-up in MLS, and looked oddly comfortable once they got back in it. Up next, the Colorado Rapids and 4,000+ more feet in elevation. First, however, let’s drink it in, shall we?
First question, how the hell did this happen?
I guess I’ll just confess to the possibility that Portland lulled Minnesota to sleep just as much as they did me. This was a game where nothing seemed to happen until the ball was in the back of the net; neither the movements nor the broader dynamics looked particularly threatening at any given moment, then you recall that Bakaye Dibassy got one thin, fortunate foot in the way of a clear goal by Asprilla, or that he rotated a shoulder into the way of a biking beauty from Larrys Mabiala. Related thereto, the Timbers seemed to sort of amble generally until the five minutes that led up to Mabiala scoring Portland’s equalizer. As one MLS in-house hack (said lovingly, btw) put it, the Timbers have discovered they have a switch to flip in 2021 and, down the stretch at least, the lights have reliably come on. If I’m not mistaken, Dibassy made his two clear saves before Dayne St. Clair made his first - and can I just quickly comment on how shitty it is to say a ‘keeper “lost four games” when losing any game in soccer almost always follows from team effort/failure? - but…I guess my argument is that Minnesota looked both fairly and deceptively composed, at least until they didn’t.
To circle back now to “Glorious,” I was at that game in July when Minnesota took an early lead and never let go and, won’t lie, that felt like the only thing on the menu immediately after the Loons scored their opener and, as it happened only goal. Moreover, there’s no getting around the collection of failures that allowed that goal to happen: to name names, Cristhian Paredes failed to show up for the second wave of the press, a slip that also left Emanuel Reynoso, aka, the last player and team who wants to win leaves open, open; next, Claudio Bravo let Robin Lod slip past an unnecessary lunge and find Roman Metanire cut the ball across the mouth of Portland’s goal where Juancarlos Van Rankin only had loose theories about what was behind and around him, whihch freed that fucking asshole Fragapane to poke the ball into a YAWNING net and give Minnesota the early, and historically insurmountable lead.
That set the game up perfectly for Minnesota to set a shape, stay organized, counter with intent, and otherwise strangle the Timbers dreams…only they didn’t. Instead, Minnesota wound up letting the game slip away one goal after the other, first with Larrys, then with another, fatal bobble to Blanco, and right where he likes it, then again for the insurance goal. If I had to note the strangest thing about this game, it would be the failure on Minnesota’s part to make the “expected” part of their xG come good; for whatever reason, they pissed away a fair number of the good chances they got - of which, and for the record, they put six on goal, and from good places. If even just one of those attempts went in, never mind made Steve Clark break a sweat, I’d have given Minnesota a good chance at rattling Portland, but Clark made all those easy shots look that way and Portland rode Blanco’s two easy-on-the-eyes goals to victory and a date in Colorado as a result.
I’ll turn to how I feel about their chances in Colorado later and after a little research, but, to close this out with talking points:
1) So Achingly Close
I wanted to see Diego Valeri stab home that late, lost 4th goal rolling on his back because I really want him to get the swan-song moment his career all but demands. As much as I believe his legend will live for decades to come, I’d hate to see a career that made the history books end in an inaudible whimper.
2) Like the Puppy I Never Had
No, Bravo is not the easiest player to watch, but he’s among the most endearing. I didn’t see the way he bites and lunges until enough people pointed it out, but if there is an entry for “high risk/high reward” in the dictionary, the editors could do worse than to put a picture of Bravo next to it. Bravo takes and spurns chances in defense with the best of ‘em, and with all the upsides and downsides that entails.
3) Team Chara
For what it’s worth, I credit their brotherly knack for finding one another with tonight’s victory as much as anything. I’ll just say the connection felt unusually wired tonight and leave it there.
4) CBs und Angst
Won’t lie, Mabiala made me anxious tonight. If I’m not mistaken, he and Dario Zuparic operated under a tacit agreement that Mabiala would chase the ball and/or passes upfield as the situation demanded, but Larrys got way the hell up there and more often than once. All that worked out tonight, and may work out in the future as well, but I couldn’t stop feeling the hole left behind every time Larrys chased a ball out of the defense. If only Minnesota was up for it…
5) A Statement on the Fragapane Incident(s)
I cannot, by my own memory, think of a time where Diego Chara seemed pissed enough to go after someone, at least not outside the run of play. That’s to say, he’s combative but only in that sphere, and I’ve never seen Chara as pissed off as he was in the game when Fragapane was accused of, in the words I’ve seen used, “directing a racial slur” at him. I’ve also never seen Mabiala lose every last bit of his shit the way he did after Fragapane’s two-footed stomp toward the top of Chara’s ankle, but I also can’t blame him given the history.
To give Fragapane an absolutely maximal benefit of the doubt, I would have been less surprised to see Chara attempt that kind of tackle on him. I don’t know what to make of Fragapane going what sure as hell looked like a ways out of his way to hurt Chara, I only know it didn’t improve my opinion of him. That's to say, if you're a French player who lacks the chops to make Ligue Un, that's no one's fault but your own and injuring others won't make you whole.
At this point, I’m more inclined to see Fragapane guilty as charged on the first incident as I was before tonight. And, so long as he suits up against the Timbers, I expect to see him targeted, quietly or otherwise.
And I guess that’s my overall take on the night. As noted in several tweets, Minnesota played a disjointed and cheap game tonight. They looked like a team who saw themselves and underdogs and, instead of playing to win, played to the worst impulses of the role. Full credit to Portland as a team, and Blanco as a player, they screened out all the chippy bullshit, buried the chances that bounced their way and (generally) played the front-foot defense that I’d argue serves them best.
For what it’s worth, this one makes me feel better about the next one. Colorado almost certainly will take the game to Portland, which opens up the space for the Timbers to take the game from them. Till then!
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