Mlssoccer.com has tfc at 1 for power ranking. Well, that's a jinx
Mlssoccer.com has tfc at 1 for power ranking. Well, that's a jinx
“Years have gone by and I’ve finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good football.
I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: ‘A pretty move, for the love of God.’
And when good football happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don’t give a damn which team or country performs it.”
-Eduardo Galeano
I think we have shown we a legit threat at least in the east. Would like to see some squad rotation but keep the shape.
Would like Jozy to knock some in tho. He is due. He is playing well tho.
It's a pleasure to see TFC at #1 on the MLS power ranking. I don't think we've ever been in that spot before? This stretch of road games has definitely been a huge success for us, even if we drop the game in Portland. Overall I think we look great, have done great, and I'm extremely optimistic for the future. It's a long season, but I think we look set to do much better this year compared to last.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/KurtLarSUN/status/725384957854662657
Possibly a start for Babouli or Chapman here at CAM if Osorio can't go.
I'm not sure either of those guys slots in well. Can't see Babouli distributing the ball fluidity and Chapman is just not showing much at this level.
I think they put Delgado up there (IIRC he played a bit of AMC last season) and Endoh comes in on the right - if Osorio is out.
Nice letter from Portland FO to travelling fans - far cry from Columbus when 2.5K fans were ushered to a swampy field with no facilities and treated like dogs ( 2008-9) with armed cops....
"The Portland Timbers are excited to have you visit the City of Roses and attend the Timbers vs Toronto match this Sunday!
To make your trip more enjoyable, I’d like to give you a heads up on what to expect when you get here.
Your seats are in the upper SW corner of the bowl in a section (Section 223/Rows S & T) that will be shared with Timbers fans sitting below you. There will be about 16 Toronto fans in your area. The rows directly behind you will be covered. There will be a buffer row—Row R—in front of you as a separation between you and the Timbers fans.
Even so, because of the families being in close proximity, in front of you as well as across the aisle, we ask that you please refrain from using profanity during the game.
Also, please be aware that we are a smoke-free facility and that there are no designated smoking areas or reentry into our facility.
If you have any questions or concerns while you are at the game, usher Renzo will be your dedicated guest attendant, and Kaleb, who will be down on the concourse level, along with Supervisor, Cheryl, are ready to help you out with whatever you need.
If you have any immediate questions or concerns just shoot me an email and I’ll do my best to answer them for you.
The most commonly asked question is, where is the closest bar? There are many, but a couple of the favorites are the Cheerful Bullpen and the Kingston Bar & Grill. The Civic Taproom and Bottle Shop has opened up on 18th Ave around the corner from the stadium. Not only do they have 22 taps, keg wines and offer Game Day deals but the walls are decorated with historical photos of the stadium. All are a half block away. A little further walk will get you to North 45, a soccer-environment bar with fabulous food and drink (517 NW 21st) and Kell’s Irish Establishment (210 NW 21st) which has proven quite popular. Of course, they will all be packed after the game!
I’m attaching a copy of our VSG Policies for more detailed information. Remember to enter through Gate 5, which is on 20th Avenue. You may enter up to 90 minutes before game time. Any flags and banners that you bring in will be checked as you enter Gate 5—please have them enter at the front of the line. Also, please note that all visitors will be “wanded” by security as well as have all bags checked before entering the stadium. As for egress, there may be a 15-minute “hold out” before you are able to exit.
Although we are experiencing a mixed bag of cool weather conditions this week, by Sunday we are expecting the weather to improve to partly sunny, with a high of 78/low of 56 degrees and a 0% chance of rain! If you are here for the weekend, Saturday will be only 65. If you’ve ever been to the Pacific NW before, you’ll know that the weather can change in a moment’s notice—so cross your fingers for nothing but sunshine! Also, please note that the stadium tends to be about 10-degrees cooler than anywhere else in the city.
See you this weekend and safe travels to you! "
Cheers,
Andrea
Nagbe is starting tonight for Portland so he will probably be available against us for this one as well. Still, we're a bit lucky in catching Portland without Powell and Kwarasey, who tore ligaments in their wrist and finger respectively. Ridgewell might return for this match also after a hamstring strain, but he didn't make the 18 for Portland today, so we'll see.
Saw a tweet yesterday also that Simonin has returned to full training now.
Osorio is undervalued by some observers. His ball movement, especially in tight spaces, has always been key to creating our offensive opportunities. His particular skill set is difficult to replace on our roster.
Expect another conservative defence first game. Even more so than Mtl game maybe.
Portland is killer on counters with speed on flanks and guys like Nagbe and Valeri pulling the strings. Push too many guys up front and any lost possession turns into a sprint on the counter.
Portland is playing at New England, so they might get gassed out around 70min mark. That's the time to hit hard if TFC is losing
“Years have gone by and I’ve finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good football.
I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: ‘A pretty move, for the love of God.’
And when good football happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don’t give a damn which team or country performs it.”
-Eduardo Galeano
Will Portland have Valeri for the weekend? I didn't catch why he didn't play tonight.
Timbers countered quite a bit up the middle, will be important for Bradley to stay disciplined in front of the back 4.
MLS site says Portland rested a few guys and Valeri was one of them. Some players are supposed to be back for the Timbers from injury for the TFC game. Not sure if Valeri was in that group. Gotta save your players to play the bigger teams....haha....yeah boy...cold medina.
I kind of have mixed emotions going into this game. I hope we get some kind of result but I also hope Seba holds off scoring another goal for one more week. It would be nice to see him cement himself as our leading scorer at home on the 7th. If that can't happen then I hope he scores 3.
Nah, I want Seba to score a hat trick in Portland, putting him at 31 goals & beating the TFC MLS goal record. Plus a nice reward for the road warriors in Portland. Then I want him to score another hat trick in the home opener, putting him at 34 goals, and beating DeRo's record of 33 goals for TFC in all competitions. That's positive thinking!
Journo's reporting Oso didn't make the trip.
Should be interesting to see what Vanney does here with both Osorio and Cheyrou out... Delgado played a bit at the top of the diamond last year, maybe he starts at the top and Endoh comes in at LM/RM. Would give us a bit less attacking punch up top but Endoh always puts in a shift defensively. Or you leave Delgado at the same spot and someone just fills in for Osorio.
This game is going to be quite the battle - not easy by any means.
Porter isn't the one trick possession is everything coach he was a few years ago. He changes systems to adapt to the opponent.
They have a very fast counter attack and a good midfield - think Leicester without the results. I think he comes out with that. Our strikers are better as is our defence but we have yet to see this back line play when massively in possession. If they give us the ball, we have to be disciplined in the midfield and not get caught going forward.
If they decide to grab possession, that plays into our strengths.
Tactics in this game and how the one on one battles play out are going to be crucial.
This is a good test of the maturity of our team.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/lauraarmy/status/726054382001868801
Hmmm....Manella as the AM in a diamond?
Uhhhhhh, I don't know if there's an error with my weather network app...but I just added Portland as one of my locations, and it says it's supposed to be 26 degrees and sunny there on Sunday?!