Portland Timbers 2-2 Minnesota United: A Comeback That's Less Stirring than Reassuring

Me.

With the Portland Timbers clawing back to a 2-2 draw against MLS new kids, Minnesota United FC, it feels like we’re finally getting to a place where fans and weirdos like me have a deep enough sandbox to play in. This being (my personal) first contact with Minnesota, I want to dig into them first.

Overall, though, tonight’s lessons are:

1) Minnesota has enough of a plan.

2) Portland has a better one.

3) And Portland has both (some) depth and a plan for it.

All that’s pure speculation, of course, me projecting fantasies into a Being Caleb Porter automaton that is more me than Caleb Porter, and therefore is it really Caleb Porter?

At any rate, on Minnesota United FC

Combine a little distraction (e.g., dinner and Grammys) with a more than a little unfamiliarity, I cannot tell a lie, but I’m not sure about when, if or whether Minnesota made changes on the field. All my notes are therefore, 1) general, while also being, 2) about players who stood out. All in all, Minnesota feels conservative, a team that will use solidity as a platform from which inspiration can jump that much higher, and I’m drawing that less from their roster, than from a one-game sample – tonight’s game, in fact, and that’s totally it. You’ve been warned.

The one player I kept seeing for Minnesota was their Brazilian midfielder, Ibson. And, for frame of (potentially meaningless) reference, Ibson’s more Dunga than Socrates. Based on tonight’s game, he plays more safety valve than weapon, and that’s nothing to sniff at: teams need calm and pacing and Ibson looked good in that role. It probably also helps that he's familiar to the club, a sort of anchor for the transition. He also benefitted from having a stopping block behind him in the person of Joseph Greenspan (yep, U.S. Navy kid); he’s a big kid, maybe the next Axel Sjoberg, even though Greenspan never looked as elegant. So long as Minnesota has Kevin Molino (who not so much smoked as evaporated (an admittedly stranded Zarek Valentin), Christian Ramirez’s (at-first-blush) intriguing attacking tools, and – golly! – if Bashkim Kadrii didn’t present as someone to watch this 2017: yeah, I think they have stuff to work with. I don’t expect a flawless start, but that team – the one I saw for the first and only time – looked like they’ll be competitive enough.

The Late Tackle 01 26 2017: Personnel and Strategy (and Goals) and a Red Flag on Any CV

This is once in a lifetime. Do NOT count on it.

Aiming for a quick one today…starting with the Portland Timbers, as I’m supposed to do when flow isn’t an issue…

Depth and Squad Rotation

Stumptown Footy posted something that I’m sure nearly anyone who finds this has already read so far. The article – titled something like “How Much Attacking Depth Is Too Much” (or, exactly that) – sort maps out, combines, and re-combines the personnel that the Timbers can throw at the opposition in the year ahead and that is obviously (probably?) of interest.

But what does it mean in practice?

People who know I exist/read my stuff know that I’ve been a big proponent of squad rotation in the past. Still a fan, if with a little more conscious emphasis on the rationale – e.g., it’s about timing and/or priming the team to win MLS Cup, with the Supporters’ Shield constituting either, 1) a totally (and I mean totally) separate prize; and/or 2) something that won’t always be the primary goal. To clarify #2 a bit, I see the circumstances that allow a team to win the Shield to work in the same rough way as it dawns on someone playing Hearts that things have shifted to where Shooting the Moon (or, here, winning the Shield) has become a live possibility.

If that seems like splitting hairs, well, that’s what we do here. For what it’s worth, I think the league blessed the Timbers with a favorable start to the year, one soft enough that it should reverse the team’s traditional, um, slow (crap) start. If Portland can pocket that, and land that mystery winger we keep hearing about (and also the depth pieces), playing with one eye on the Shield becomes a consideration. If/when things line up differently, hell yes, I want the Timbers rotating and frequently. That’ll keep the regulars fresh and the new guys connected.

And, to be clear, no, I’m not claiming that some ready plug-‘n’-play system exists. No matter what any team does, it’s trial, error, and a lotta crossed fingers. What I’m talking about above is the spirit and mentality behind the approach. OK, next…