FC Dallas-Portland Timbers Preview (8/9)

Phase One of Leagues Cup is over, and now the calendar returns to MLS play. For the Portland Timbers, they’ve been incredibly fortunate with the scheduling quirks of Leagues Cup. After playing Club America in Austin, they don’t have to leave the state of Texas for the rest of the week (this is actually a good thing, contrary to popular belief). A short flight to Dallas and the first game against FC Dallas in 2025 awaits.

The Dallas Report

2024’s version of FC Dallas was marked by injury and turmoil. Head coach Nico Estevez was sacked on June 9th, with interim coach Peter Luccin taking over for the remainder of the season. That period ended with Los Toreros finishing 11th in the Western Conference with 41 points; 6 points behind 9th-placed Portland. However, Luccin stabilized the team and installed a system that was pretty decent to watch. He did not end up getting the permanent job, and Eric Quill was hired to fill the vacancy. Quill left USL side New Mexico United, where he had a 49% winning percentage over 1.5 seasons. He was previously an academy coach in Dallas, and was in charge of their second team (North Texas SC) for four years. 

I’ve talked about New England’s and San Jose’s wild winter transfer windows, but I’m afraid that nothing holds a candle to what happened in Frisco last offseason. 11 players were out of contract, and none of them returned to the team (most notably Omar Gonzalez, Ruan, Asier Illaramendi, and Dante Sealy). Lalas Abubakar arrived as a free agent, and a trade for Anderson Julio saw Sam Junqua go the opposite way to RSL. Then around the new year, everything went haywire. Shaq Moore arrived via trade from Nashville, and then Andre Zanotta became very familiar with Craig Waibel. The double trade of Paul Arriola and Jesus Ferreira to Seattle brought Leo Chu and a boatload of allocation money to Dallas. Patrickson Delgado’s purchase option was exercised, and Nkosi Tafari was traded to LAFC. But the biggest dominos were yet to fall. Alan Velasco, recently recovered from an ACL tear, was sold to Boca Juniors for a reported $12M. He was replaced by former MVP Luciano Acosta for a fee of $5M. Two center backs (Osaze Urhoghide and Alvaro Augusto) arrived from Amiens and Portimonense, respectively. Finally, in the first week of the regular season, 19-year-old midfielder Kaick Ferreira was bought from Gremio for a fee just north of $4M. 

There’s no way to describe Dallas’ (6-7-11, 25 points, 12W/23S) season as anything other than a complete rollercoaster. Quill has yet to settle on a tried-and-true tactic, which has led to mindnumbing personnel decisions like playing Anderson Julio as a wingback. Dallas’ roster is full of intriguing players like Ramiro, Urhoghide, Logan Farrington, Bernard Kamungo, and Nolan Norris, but Quill’s inability to find a proper system has hindered all of them. Ditto for Acosta, who has put up some decent underlying numbers but has been unable to turn them into legitimate goal contributions. Dallas’ top offseason acquisition has 5g/1a in 1,693 MLS minutes. In their past two league matches, Acosta came off the bench. Today his transfer to Fluminense for $4M was confirmed. The experiment did not work out, and now the former MVP has gotten the move that he desperately desired: a departure from MLS. 

Petar Musa is unquestionably Dallas’ best player, and 2024’s top scorer (16 MLS goals) is 75% of the way to last year’s tally in his second year in Dallas. In his last three games, the Croatian has 5g/1a. However, Dallas went 1-1-1 in those contests. 

The overall feeling of weirdness surrounding Los Toreros can be seen in their home/road splits. FC Dallas has 17 points from 12 road games compared to only 8 points from 12 home games. That’s completely abnormal in MLS, especially with a home-field advantage like Dallas has (the pure hell that is a Texas summer). Since beating Miami on April 27th, Los Toreros’ record is 2-4-8. And the summer window has continued the roster churn that began in the winter.

Former Timbers academy graduate Marco Farfan was sold to Tigres. Congratulations to him. Leo Chu’s Dallas tenure didn’t work out, and he was sold to FC Alverca before the window opened. However, two arrivals from Scandinavian clubs (Louicious Deedson from Odense and Christian Cappis from Viking) are here to boost the squad. Cappis made his debut in their last game (a 4-3 loss to NYCFC in Frisco), while Deedson hasn’t made a first-team appearance yet. But it’s very clear what Los Toreros need in this summer window: a DP attacking midfielder to replace Acosta and a starting-level center back to partner Urhoghide. They’re only 5 points back of 9th-placed Colorado with a game in hand. It’s possible for them to make the playoffs, but they need a lot of help. A consistent identity could go a long way. 

FCD Injury Report & Projected Starting XI

Paes has started all but two league games in goal for Dallas, including their last game against NYCFC. This injury is new. Pomykal hasn’t played since their Open Cup loss on penalties against the Red Bulls on May 21st.

Collodi filled in for Paes during both of his league absences, and kept a clean sheet in one of them (at RSL). The back three is pretty settled, but Ibeagha and Abubakar are the weaker links on Urhoghide’s flanks. Norris and Moore will provide width for the quietly excellent tandem of Musa and Farrington (who scored a brace against NYCFC). Ramiro and Kaick form the pivot, while Delgado gets another chance to impress in Acosta’s old position. 

The Timbers Report

On the surface, the Portland Timbers (10-7-7, 37 points, 5W/13S) are in a bit of turmoil. Don’t worry, I’ll get to that. But the strong form exhibited in recent weeks is causing some reassessment of Portland’s season goals. Let’s start there before we get into the nonsense.

The Final Hurdles

It has not been an easy summer for the Timbers, and their brief slide down the standings caused some concern. But it appears that the team is getting stronger at the right time. With two new signings on the way, Portland will have their best possible squad available for the toughest part of the season. 

This is a gauntlet. There is a missing game here as well (@Vancouver on Wednesday, September 17).  It is the hardest run-in for any MLS team. Only one of their four remaining home games is against a (current) non-playoff team. That Leagues Cup big-match experience should help this team as they enter the brutal end to the regular season.

Coward Update

Neville addressed a group of reporters for the first time about the Santiago Moreno situation on Friday. Nothing he said surprised me. “He made a decision to leave the team hotel and now he’s in the hands of MLS.” Pretty straightforward when you think about it. “As a manager, you have to think of the group and the culture.” None of this cowardice is in line with the culture that Neville has tried to install from day one. And Neville is right. The Timbers are working with the league to figure out the proper steps forward. Those steps are unclear as of right now. 

Meanwhile, Tom Bogert reported that Fluminense have “considerably upped their offer to Portland” for Moreno. No numerical details about the fee have been provided, but the ball is now in Portland’s court. 

From Moreno’s point of view, it sounds like he’s going to get what he wants. I do not care about his point of view anymore. This could end up being a big positive for Portland if they are able to get a fee that they initially wanted and get an immature coward off the roster. I think it’s a win-win, but now they have to put that money to good use and immediately reinforce the position that Moreno is vacating. And I believe that they’re thinking along those lines as well.

One More International Slot

On Thursday, the Timbers acquired another international slot. In order to do so, they sent $175K GAM to Toronto FC. That’s the second international slot that the Timbers have acquired in this window. 

Per the latest Roster Profile, the Timbers didn’t have any international slots available. It’s pretty easy to reason that both of these spots are going to be used by Kristoffer Velde and Felipe Carballo. However, there’s another interesting twist to the tale. 

Portland already had the two international slots needed for Velde and Carballo before today’s trade. Prior to his departure, Miguel Araujo was unable to secure a Green Card, so he remained on the roster but wasn’t registered. That slot was open heading into the summer. So now the Timbers have an additional international slot that can be used on a 3rd signing. I think it’s a little too early to speculate on what position a new signing could play (or what coward a new signing would be replacing) but I like the idea of pushing all the chips into the middle for this playoff run. There is a huge opportunity in the Western Conference, and Portland needs to go full steam ahead to break into the top four. 

3 Questions with Ian Smith

The re-installation of the back three has been a success, and Portland’s rookie left wing-back Ian Smith is a big reason why. After a string of standout performances, I caught up with the University of Denver graduate on a hot morning in Austin.

Q: Well, speaking of that weather, just how has it been adapting to these conditions over the week as now the MLS season resumes and you have to go play in Dallas in similar conditions?

A: Yeah, it's just staying hydrated, you know, because it's super humid here, so you're sweating way more. So you have to drink more water and get more electrolytes. Just kind of like, I guess, just sipping on fluids the entire day.

Q: You've become a fixture in this team as of late with the move to the back three, locking down that left wing back spot. You mentioned earlier in the season that you really like playing left center back, but now that you're playing a similar position to where you're playing in college, just how are you feeling about how your game has adapted to the pro level?

A: It feels good. I think I've been more defensive in this position than I was in college. I think I still need to get a bit more going forward. But overall, I think it's been good. I get to play next to some really good guys like Da Costa and Fory. So I just got to do my job and let those guys do the rest.

Q: How did you feel about starting against Club America, one of the toughest teams in the entire continent?

A: I mean, it was awesome. Like, you play with Club America on FIFA when you're a kid, you know? So to play against them was really cool and to start against them and play against the top guys in Mexico.

PTFC Injury Report & Projected Starting XI

I don’t think I need to provide a detailed explanation about these absences.

Although Antony is back, I expect the Timbers to keep the back three. He’ll be the first name off the bench, likely for Omir Fernandez, who didn’t play against Club America. Ayala missed the Club America game in a precautionary sense after picking up a knock against Queretaro. Paredes entered as a substitute so he’ll probably be one of the first names on the teamsheet based on current form. The first-choice back three of Fory, Miller, and Surman should be in from the start, with Crepeau behind them. Surman and Mosquera are the only players in this projected lineup who played the full 90 against Club America.

Tactical Preview

Adaptation

By now, the Timbers have spent 5 days in Texas. They’ve been able to train in the heat and have already played a game in the intense conditions of a Texas summer. It isn’t comparable to a team like Dallas, who live here, but it is a slight advantage compared to most other visiting teams. Especially when you take Portland’s terrible Texas record into account. “There’s no excuse from a heat point of view. We’ve trained, played, and lived down here for the last week,” Neville said on Friday.

I’m jumping ahead a little bit, but Guido Gonzalez Jr. will be the center referee for tomorrow’s game. For the second game in a row, the Timbers will have the same ref. This could also be in their favor, as they have experience with the way that he calls a game. 

Moose Patrol

Petar Musa is a tough player to game plan for. He floats all over the final third and always seems to be in the right position to score goals. He’s a true DP striker, and Portland’s main focus for this game needs to be neutralizing him at all costs. Throughout their Leagues Cup run, Portland’s defensive communication has been excellent. That trend needs to continue into the resumption of MLS play, and facing Musa is a great test.

Counterattacks

Dallas isn’t as tidy in possession as they were last season, so Portland’s counterattacks should be able to thrive. Especially against a relatively weak Dallas defense. Those counters need to show commitment, with multiple players acting as options for the ballcarrier. Think of that late counter in the Club America game, with Ortiz and Kelsy joining Antony. Yes, it didn’t work out in the end, but the Timbers should be trying to create those scenarios on the break. 

Matchday Info

Announcer Analytics

English: Evan Weston & Ricky Lopez-Espin

Spanish: Jesus Acosta & Carlos Suarez

Home radio broadcast from 750 The Game: unavailable on Apple TV

Broadcast platform: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV

Kickoff time: 5:30 PM PST

Referee Report

Guido Gonzalez Jr’s 2025 stats: 19 games, 23.47 fouls/game, 0.21 penalties/game, 4.26 yellows/game, 0.11 reds/game

Last Timbers game officiated: August 6th, 2025 at Club America 1-1 D, 3-5 PKs

Series History

Historical record: 11-12-11, -11 goal differential (make a wish)

Away record: 2-6-10, -21 goal differential (ouch)

Current streak: 2 winless

Current road streak: 5 winless

Table Time

It’s been a while. The Timbers are in 5th place with a game in hand over San Diego and Minnesota. However, LAFC (2 games in hand) and Austin (1 game in hand) are both nipping at Portland’s heels. Seattle is one point ahead of Portland with the same amount of games played. With 10 games remaining, every point matters. And tomorrow’s game is considered one of the “easier” fixtures on the schedule.

Final Whistle

Of course, the Western Conference table isn’t the only one that matters right now.

The Timbers were unable to dodge all the bullets necessary to advance to the knockout stages. Time for a Leagues Cup post-mortem.

Is this a little disappointing? Yes, but the Timbers got 3 very good results with a fair amount of extenuating circumstances, particularly in the attack. What those circumstances do not account for is the defense, which was outstanding during the tournament. Portland only conceded one goal in Leagues Cup, and it happened right after Fory got sent off against Club America. That’s the main takeaway. 

Portland’s defense was the main reason that the team remained competitive during the tournament as their top attackers were limited in their availability (for health or cowardice purposes). I’d like to think of this tournament as 3 playoff matches with high stakes. To their credit, the Timbers didn’t lose a single one in regulation. Although it is a little disappointing that Portland didn’t advance (mostly for CONCACAF purposes, if we’re being honest) most fans should be proud of the effort shown by the team during this tournament. They didn’t write it off even though it was clear that MLS games were their primary focus. 

Now those MLS games are back. In their past five games, the Timbers have been effectively practicing for the playoffs. And they haven’t lost a single one of those contests (in regulation). Dallas might not look like a playoff team, but Frisco is a brutal environment that usually brings terrible results back to Portland on the team plane. With the Timbers carrying tangible momentum, this could be a huge moment to make a statement. But the effects of the Club America game (cowardice and missed penalty kicks) could also carry over. Has the team refocused after one of the most frustrating outings of the season? That’s the big question that needs to be answered. The climb continues.