Los Angeles FC can move back into second place in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer with a victory on Saturday against the Portland Timbers from Providence Park.
Last weekend, the Timbers moved to within four points of a playoff berth as they erased a two-goal deficit, earning a 2-2 draw versus the Seattle Sounders, who are a point above the Black and Gold for second after LA were beaten 3-1 by Inter Miami.
Match preview
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Portland have seven matches remaining in the regular season to try to avoid missing the playoffs in consecutive MLS campaigns for only the second time in club history (2011 and 2012).
Four of those encounters will occur at Providence Park, where six of their seven victories this year have taken place.
After losing his first match in charge against the Vancouver Whitecaps (3-2), interim manager Miles Joseph has seen his team collect four out of a possible six points from their last two fixtures.
The Timbers will enter this contest without a win in their last four meetings with LAFC, including three straight defeats, though they have beaten the reigning MLS Cup champions at home in two of their previous three matches in this competition.
Their draw against Seattle a week ago was the first time domestically all year that this team had claimed a point when trailing at half time, while they have never lost in the 2023 regular season when leading after 45 minutes.
Throughout the campaign, Portland have been getting plenty of contributions from their bench, with nine goals coming courtesy of substitutes, the third-most among MLS teams behind St Louis City (11) and Atlanta United (11).
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For the first time in over two years, Los Angeles FC were beaten at home by an Eastern Conference opponent as Lionel Messi added another team to his list of victims throughout his illustrious career, with the Argentine notching two assists for Inter Miami.
That was the second successive time LA had come away empty-handed from a domestic encounter, putting them in a logjam atop the Western Conference standings, with the Black and Gold in third, a point behind Seattle, while only three points currently separate the Vancouver Whitecaps in sixth from the Sounders.
Steve Cherundolo's men have been particularly poor away from home in MLS this year, claiming just a single point in their previous four road matches with just three victories as the visitors in 2023.
LAFC have found themselves behind after 45 minutes in five domestic road contests this season, winning just one of those encounters all year (2-1 at Sporting Kansas City).
Even with a game in hand on St Louis City, it seems unlikely the Black and Gold will be able to catch the expansion side and finish first in the Western Conference table for a second successive campaign as they currently trail them by seven points with eight matches remaining.
Los Angeles have only beaten the Timbers on two occasions at Providence Park, though the last one came in this exact fixture a season ago (2-1), while they have netted in each of their matches played in Portland.
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Team News
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Dario Zuparic will have to sit out for Portland this weekend after collecting another yellow card in their previous encounter, Eryk Williamson and Jaroslaw Niezgoda are still recovering from right knee issues, while David Ayala has a left knee injury.
Juan David Mosquera was called up to the Colombian Under-23 squad for the international window, while Miguel Araujo and Bryan Acosta will join Peru and Honduras, respectively.
Evander has a goal contribution in three successive encounters, notching his team-leading seventh of the season last Saturday, Dairon Asprilla has scored in four of his previous five matches, netting 23 seconds after entering the fray against Seattle, while David Bingham recorded a season-high five saves in that encounter to preserve a point.
Los Angeles will be without the third-leading goalscorer in MLS, Denis Bouanga, who is on international duty with Gabon, Cristian Olivera was named to the Uruguay squad, Denil Maldonado will be a part of the Honduran team and Stipe Biuk is with the Croatian Under-21 side.
Jesus Murillo and Diego Rosales returned to the LA lineup last Sunday after missing time due to pain in their lower extremities, while Diego Palacios was back on the field after previously being away for personal reasons.
Ryan Hollingshead had the only strike for the Black and Gold in their defeat versus Miami, as he is now tied with Biuk and Mateusz Bogusz for third on the team in goals domestically this season (three), while Carlos Vela collected his team-leading eighth assist, as he needs two more to reach double-digits for a fourth successive MLS campaign.
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Bingham; Mabiala, McGraw, Araujo, Bravo; Blanco, D. Chara, Evander; Moreno, Boli, Y. Chara
Los Angeles FC possible starting lineup:
McCarthy; Hollingshead, Long, Murillo, Palacios; Acosta, Sanchez, Tillman; Vela, Gonzalez, Torres
We say: Portland Timbers 2-1 Los Angeles FC
At this stage of the year, the odds of Portland making the postseason may be long, but we expect them to make it interesting down the homestretch as they have responded well since a 5-0 loss cost Giovanni Savarese his job.
The Black and Gold, meanwhile, are missing some significant pieces on defence and in the attack, while their away form has not been sharp all season.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
