St Louis City will end the month of April by welcoming the Portland Timbers to CityPark on Saturday in the second meeting of the MLS campaign between both sides.
Heading into matchday 10, St Louis are tied with the Seattle Sounders for first in the Western Conference, drawing the Colorado Rapids 1-1 last Saturday, while the Timbers lost another close one, 2-1, at FC Cincinnati.
Match preview
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Be it the high altitude of Colorado or a little overconfidence, we saw a different St Louis side in the opening half last week as they found themselves on their heels against the Rapids but were bailed out by some outstanding goalkeeping.
They looked like a different team in the second half, scoring the opener for the fifth time this year, though they conceded an equaliser in stoppage time, failing to win when going up 1-0 for the first time in their inaugural campaign.
Bradley Carnell's men still lead MLS in goals scored (21), scoring three or more times in three of their four domestic encounters at home this season, while St Louis have not conceded more than one at CityPark in 2023.
Throughout the campaign, this team have been fast starters at home, scoring seven times in the opening half, conceding only once and going into the interval ahead in all but one of their games played in St Louis.
St Louis have only been faced with one second-half deficit at home this year, and in that situation, they came out on the losing end versus Minnesota United (1-0).
They began their US Open Cup campaign in spectacular fashion, crushing Union Omaha 5-1 in that third-round clash played on Tuesday.
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Like we have seen through much of the regular season so far, the Timbers were creative and got into some dangerous areas last weekend but could not make most of their chances count, as they remain winless away from home.
With just one point after five domestic affairs on the road, it is the fewest this club have accumulated to this stage of a regular season away from home since 2019, when they claimed that same amount.
Unlike their opponents this weekend, Giovanni Savarese has rarely seen his team start a game well, with only two of their goals coming in the first half, one at home to St Louis in March when the Timbers lost 2-1.
Seven of their nine outings in 2023 have been decided by a goal or fewer, with Portland winning in only one of those instances while coming away empty-handed four times.
The Timbers have conceded at least one goal in 11 consecutive regular-season games away from home, while they have not beaten an expansion team on the road in their inaugural MLS campaign since blanking New York City FC 1-0 in 2015.
They are coming into this match somewhat on a high, however, beating Orange County SC 3-1 to advance into round four at the US Open Cup.
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Team News
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Njabulo Blom missed another game for St Louis last weekend with a groin strain, Joakim Nilsson is out with a knee issue and their leading goalscorer Klauss could be sidelined for a couple of games after suffering a leg injury in the draw with Colorado, as Tomas Ostrak replaced him after an hour.
Rasmus Alm has four goal contributions on the year, notching his second of the campaign last weekend, Akil Watts made his first career MLS start, Jake Nerwinski collected his 150th regular-season cap and Roman Burki was the star of the show against the Rapids, making a season-high 12 saves, as he was named to the MLS Team of the Matchday.
Goals from Jared Stroud and Kyle Hiebert helped them reverse a 1-0 deficit to defeat Portland earlier this season, while Aziel Jackson notched a brace in their midweek victory at the US Open Cup with the other strikes coming from Watts, Eduard Lowen and an own goal by Joe Gallardo.
The Timbers' Claudio Bravo has a right calf strain, Eryk Williamson is dealing with a right knee problem, Sebastian Blanco and Felipe Mora have issues with their left knee, David Bingham continues to recover from a sore left hamstring, while Yimmi Chara is still suffering from a sore right hamstring.
Dairon Asprilla notched the only goal for the Timbers in a losing effort versus Cincy, his second of the season, drawing even with Juan Mosquera for the team lead at two, though he is questionable for this match because of a right knee injury.
Zac McGraw had the only strike in their loss to St Louis last month, while Aljaz Ivacic is looking for his first clean sheet since a 1-0 victory in September of last season over Minnesota United.
Marvin Loria, Jaroslaw Niezgoda and Tyler Clegg each found the back of the net in their midweek victory over Orange County.
St Louis City possible starting lineup:
Burki; Nerwinski, Parker, Hiebert, Nelson; Alm, Vassilev, Lowen, Stroud; Ostrak, Gioacchini
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Ivacic; Mosquera, Mabiala, McGraw, Rasmussen; Moreno, D. Chara, Paredes; Fogaca, Boli, Evander
We say: St Louis City 1-0 Portland Timbers
The Timbers' core has been relatively intact for the most part this year, but they have become somewhat predictable and are missing that killer instinct.
Being without an impactful player like Klauss will be a challenge for the home team. However, St Louis have shown they do not need one individual to get them three points, and that depth should carry them through without their key Brazilian.
How to watch
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Joel Lefevre
