Rules For Thee, But Not For Me

Yes, the cover photo is Jimer Fory's tackle that earned him a second yellow card. Sure looks clean to me!

On a stupidly hot Texas night, the Portland Timbers lost to Club America on penalty kicks. 

Recap

It only took seven minutes for the Timbers to take the lead. Diego Chara passed it wide left to David Da Costa, and a trivela entry ball right to Ariel Lassiter allowed the Costa Rican to take a touch and chip Rodolfo Cota. The entire stadium (halfway full, with a 99% majority in yellow shirts) fell silent. That opened the doors for Club America (mostly Brian Rodriguez) to try and chase an equalizer. But the Timbers were on the doorstep four minutes later. Felipe Mora’s through ball to Ian Smith forced Cota to come way off his line and scramble the ball away from the rookie. Da Costa was right on hand to get the second ball, and his shot was cleared off the line by Ramon Juarez. A last-ditch tackle by Juarez on an onrushing Juan Mosquera sent the ball out of play. In the 44th minute, a spectacular bit of skill from Mora resulted in another through ball, but Mosquera’s first touch with no pressure around him was awful and nearly took the ball out of play. But the Colombian recovered, and his cross was collected by Cota. At halftime, Portland had the advantage on big chances, but had only one goal to show for it.

The second half immediately began poorly for Portland. Las Aguilas kept their foot on the gas and won several corner kicks in the first 10 minutes. One of those corners seemed a little iffy, and Jimer Fory thought so too. His protest to the referee earned him a yellow card in the 48th minute. Three minutes later, a diagonal ball to Dagoberto Espinoza forced the Colombian to make a risky tackle. Although he did get the ball, he also got the man. Referee Guido Gonzalez Jr. was looking right at the play, and immediately booked Fory a second time. Two yellows equals a red, so the Timbers would have to play the remainder of the second half down a man. In the 54th minute, three minutes after Fory’s ejection, Juarez found the back of the net on a glancing header from a Rodriguez corner kick. The worst possible start to the second half had occurred, and it was up to the Timbers to remain strong and force PKs while relying on those counterattacks for a potential winner. 

That potential winner was very close. Antony beat two defenders on a long counterattacking run in the 62nd minute but Juarez was there to halt his progress in the box. In the 75th minute, Portland nearly scored a set piece goal of their own but Kevin Kelsy’s header from Ian Smith’s corner kick delivery hit the post. But in the 81st minute, a well worked counter ended with Kelsy getting stonewalled by Ralph Orquin in the box. Las Aguilas nearly took the lead in the 85th minute when Israel Reyes’ header from a Rodriguez free kick hit the bottom of the far post. But the teams finished the 90 minutes (with several added on due to REASONS I will get to later) tied at 1, and penalties would decide where the extra point would go.

Nine players stepped up to take their kicks, and all of them hit the target except Kamal Miller. Each penalty kick that was on target found the back of the net, so Club America took their extra point as the already-eliminated superteam got to celebrate with their “home” fans. For the Timbers, they fought hard, but couldn’t get it done.

The Elephant That Leagues Cup Does Not Want To Address

Before Phil Neville took to the podium after the final whistle, it was already clear what tonight’s game was actually about. Many people dislike the idea of Leagues Cup even though the games are entertaining. They believe that this tournament is a cash-grab designed to get fans of Mexican teams into MLS stadiums. Those people also believe that the US Open Cup is being devalued as a result of Leagues Cup’s existence. All of those points are true, but I would classify myself as a “Leagues Cup Enjoyer.” In a perfect world, both tournaments could coexist with each MLS team participating in both. However, MLS continues to focus on the bottomline, and there’s one aspect of Leagues Cup that stands above all else: the money. “Open Cup games don’t bring in as much money as Leagues Cup,” some MLS executive probably said at some point. And they’re right. But as this tournament continues to evolve year after year, some concessions had to be made for the Mexican teams.

Year One saw brutal travel schedules for all teams, with Monterrey’s famous run saw them jumping from time zone to time zone over a period of 24 days. Last year allowed some of the Gigantes to “host” games, with some (including tonight’s opponents) being granted “hosting” privileges up to the semifinal round. This year’s biggest change had to do with the table format, but the “hosting” rules were continued. That’s how a game like tonight’s was born: two teams who do not play at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas, playing a competitive tournament match against each other. For the record, I’m in favor of the Mexican teams having home bases. Club America’s previous match took place in Houston. 

But when you pack a stadium full of Club America fans, and do it willingly, it will cost you something greater than the money you received in ticket sales.

It started in the 23rd minute, which was the first time since Portland’s opening goal that Maxime Crepeau stood over a dead ball. The chant rang through the stadium in unison, from all corners of the confined space. At this moment, the game stopped being about soccer. The word that filled the stadium was puto. To any North American soccer fans, you are familiar with it. It’s a fixture of Mexican soccer games, and is often said when a Mexican team is losing and an opposing goalkeeper is taking a free kick or goalkick. Here’s what the term means.

Although the functional meaning of the word isn’t a slur, it is always used like one. 

Let’s add a little bit more context. The press box at Q2 is enclosed in glass, so crowd noise is relatively muted. However, there is a direct line to the stadium PA system. I prefer open-air press boxes, and was a little disappointed when I realized that Austin’s is enclosed. It makes sense given the soupy humid air that fills the Texas troposphere in summer, but I’m willing to sweat or freeze if it means that the crowd is audible. Soccer games are about atmosphere, and you can’t properly get the feel for a game behind a wall of glass. But those are my preferences, and I’m sure that others feel differently.

Either way, it was right after Occurence Number 1 (abbreviated as O1 because, fellas, this will not be the only one) that the speakers within the press box began piping in commentary from the Apple broadcast duo of Keith Costigan and Maurice Edu. Seems innocuous enough, right? 10 minutes later, the Timbers had another goalkick. Prior to the restart, the popular Mexican song “La Chona” blared through the speakers. It wasn’t loud enough to drown out O2. By the way, there is a FIFA protocol in place for when the chant is bellowed: stop, suspend, abandon. I’ll get more into that later, because two more occurrences (O3 and O4) happen in the 42nd and 45+1st minute, respectively. An anti-discriminatory announcement is finally shown on the screen after O4. In the 4 remaining minutes of first-half stoppage time, Crepeau takes two more goalkicks. The chant is audibly heard on both (O5 and O6) despite more loud music and the commentary infiltrating the press box. 

With two more instances of the chant occurring directly after the in-stadium announcement, it’s clear that this will not stop. However, there is one man in the building with the power to halt proceedings: the referee.

It’s beyond clear to anyone in the building that the initial announcement has done nothing to stop the chant. Mostly because the announcement never does. O1 should have forced an announcement, but the solution was to pipe in music instead. That announcement finally comes after O4, but O5 and O6 happen in such quick succession that it practically dares the referee to invoke Step 1. However, nothing happens. O7 happens at the hour mark, which is Crepeau’s next dead ball. By this point, Las Aguilas have tied the game. But the chant continues. The next announcement is made after O9 in the 77th minute. Another announcement follows O10. 

By this point, all three steps should be used. This is the FIFA guideline. It isn’t MLS, it isn’t Leagues Cup, it isn’t CONCACAF. This is what the rules dictate. Unless you are Club America, and the accompanying fanbase, and Leagues Cup is desperately trying to get as much of your money as possible. They do not care about this chant. They want the money that accompanies it. How else can you explain a match between Portland and Club America being played in the middle of the Austin suburbs in early August? 

Step 1 is finally invoked in THE SECOND MINUTE OF SECOND HALF STOPPAGE TIME. After O11, Gonzalez Jr. finally decided to halt the match. It’s purely performative. How do I know that? O12 and O13 occur directly afterwards with no further actions taken. The last restart before the end of regular time is accompanied by O14. With no further dead balls to be taken by Maxime Crepeau, two touchdowns worth of chants have been shouted from the yellow-clad fanbase from all corners of the field. Step 1 is the farthest that Gonzalez Jr. was willing to go. 

Abandoning a game due to crowd behavior is precisely what should be done in an event such as tonight. By not following the rules outlined by FIFA (the official governing body of the sport, you know), Leagues Cup (and therefore MLS) does not give a shit about this chant. In fact, all of their reactions reinforce the feeling that they are endorsing it. Make it hard for the reporters in attendance to hear it? Sure, pipe in the broadcast that no one wants to hear. Try to drown it out by blasting music? It only gets louder! Show a message on the screen that the entire stadium collectively rolls their eyes at and encourages them to get even louder? What in the FUCK do you think will happen next?

This is the ultimate price that MLS has to pay for entering this tournament. It isn’t the devaluation of the Open Cup or the extra games being added to an already brutal schedule. It’s the constant reinforcement of something that surrounds everyday life outside of sport: we are in charge and we don’t give a shit about you. For a league that makes such a big deal about wearing pre-match pride tops (which are vastly overpriced as well, shocker) and tries their best to promote the basic (not even progressive, it’s basic human kindness to love another person regardless of their race, religion, sexual preference, or gender) values of humanity (often while standing on the backs of their fanbases to achieve that), they are waving the middle finger at everyone who does identify as homosexual, lesbian, transgender, or any other minority group that this slur directly targets. Club America fans are simply too valuable to the entire equation of this tournament to even consider abandoning this game. More valuable than the people who spend their hard-earned money on season tickets, more valuable than the people who buy overpriced concessions on a regular basis, and more valuable than those who simply want to watch a game of soccer without being inundated by slurs. This is the bed that MLS has to lay in. And they don’t give a single shit about it.

When Phil Neville took to the microphone after the game, he immediately spoke at length about the chant. It’s a soapbox moment that was desperately needed. Nothing that happened off the pitch was OK. And there were certainly moments that happened on the pitch that weren’t OK either.

Fory’s second yellow card is conflicting, but it’s very clear that it was the wrong call. However, he shouldn’t be putting himself in a position to earn a second yellow after getting booked three minutes earlier. Guido Gonzalez Jr. was in charge of the 3-3 Portland-LAFC game earlier this year, and that game is infamous for a delayed VAR review of a potential penalty kick against Diego Chara. Do you think that a Club America player on a yellow card would receive a second yellow for that tackle? With the referee looking right at him? And positioned to see him win the ball? I don’t think so. 

But it’s a yellow card, and yellows cannot be reviewed by VAR. Tough scenes. The other off-field controversy occurred in the penalty shootout when lasers were being aimed at Crepeau’s face. Neville was irate (“That’s not football for me”) while Crepeau was much more diplomatic (“That’s part of it”). I didn’t notice any lasers after America’s first PK, but it’s ridiculous that the kick was allowed to be taken in the first place with such obvious outside interference. The rules did not apply to Club America off the field, and the rules greatly benefitted them on the field. Rules for thee, but not for me. 

Heart and Spirit

The missed chances definitely hurt, but at the same time you can’t fault Portland’s performance in this game. Everyone who was on the pitch played their heart out. Because of this, no numerical ratings will be assigned today. The ultimate goal of this match was to put in a performance that the players could be proud of regardless of the result. I think the Timbers accomplished that. I’ll chalk up the corner kick concession to dealing with a red card to one of their most important aerial threats and a general state of confusion. Teams (especially young teams, as Neville has pointed out multiple times this season) can wobble at points. It’s just unfortunate that Portland’s weakest period of the game occurred at the same time as the dismissal. However, there is one player that should get a rating for tonight’s game. He didn’t see the pitch, but his impact on tonight’s game cannot be understated.

Santiago Moreno: Villain

Prior to tonight’s game, Moreno flew back to Colombia. That is what was reported by Tom Bogert, but team sources did not confirm nor deny the player’s location. After (rightfully) rejecting a $4M bid for Moreno from Brazilian club Fluminense last week, no further bid materialized. This is Moreno’s own decision to take matters into his own hands. The absence is unexcused, and it will have consequences. 

Two years ago, Moreno submitted a trade request. He later apologized and got back to work with the team, and somehow the damage was repaired. The organization worked hard to bring his mom and other family members to Portland from Colombia to appease him. Last year, he posted a TikTok in September (prior to a big game against playoff rivals Colorado) begging Brazilian clubs to come and sign him. When Fluminense came calling this summer, he saw another opportunity. This is his way of forcing a move.

I don’t want to get too deep into this mess right now. I’m infuriated that I even have to mention it after his teammates (who put in exhausting shifts in the Texas heat against the best team in North America) just played a game. But it is news, and it does impact this game. Today Santiago Moreno effectively quit on the Portland Timbers. That’s the only way to put it. Instead of showing off his talents against the best team in the region, he decided to flee. A 25-year-old who has always been good but not great thinks that this is the best way for him to get the move that he desperately wants. If this was the first time he wanted out, I’d understand being angry at the front office and ownership. But this player cannot stop letting his own selfishness get in the way of reason. 

A mature player (which you probably should be at age 25) would understand the position of his club. I don’t think that the Timbers were ever putting out blanket statements about keeping him. That may be what the club is communicating, but it’s pretty easy to understand that the team just wants more money in a transfer deal. It’s perfectly fine for the club to want that, particularly after all the effort they have put in to keep him happy over the years. But now he’s effectively tanked his value to a point where the foreign move he desires will not happen. MLS teams, would you like him? No you don’t. This same thing would happen to you too. This is still a developing story, so I’m not going to go say anything else. But I think it’s pretty safe to say that Santiago Moreno has played his last game in a Timbers uniform. A formerly beloved player whose name is now mud. 

Player Ratings

Maxime Crepeau

Crepeau made four saves, but didn’t make a single one in the shootout. That’s unfortunate, but his performance was much more positive than negative. 

Finn Surman

The Kiwi looked a little shaky at the start of the game, but found his usual form as the game progressed. Tonight he registered 10 clearances, which is his 6th game of the season with double-digit clearances. He’s just really good at clearing the ball, guys. Well, and he’s good at a lot of other things as well.

Dario Zuparic

This isn’t the first time that Dario Zuparic had to defend down a man against a Gigante Liga MX team. When the Timbers played Tigres in 2023, Zuparic told Zac McGraw at halftime that they were going to “die like heroes.” Tonight he shared a similar sentiment, saying that they were “fighting like warriors.” That’s the exact kind of game that Zuparic would love to play in, and I’m sure that he enjoyed himself tonight. 

Jimer Fory

Fory was brilliant in the first half, but the dismissal cannot be ignored. It’s a tackle that he shouldn’t be attempting on a yellow, and it’s a learning experience on the biggest stage. It was blatantly clear how much weaker Portland’s set piece defense was without the gargantuan Colombian. By the way, the Timbers only conceded once during Phase One of Leagues Cup, and it happened when they were down a man. That’s a positive in my book. Fory’s suspension does not affect Saturday’s game against Dallas, so he should be good to go in Frisco.

Juan Mosquera

Defensively, Mosquera was outstanding. Going forward, he left a bit to be desired. That’s OK because his primary job is to defend. Rodriguez was a difficult assignment, and he did a good job of forcing the winger to only take shots from outside the box.

Joao Ortiz

This was a huge game for Ortiz, who started in place of an injured David Ayala. I thought he handled himself well and matched America’s physicality well in the midfield. He’s a proper 6, and the arrival of Felipe Carballo could limit his playing time. But he needed to put in a shift tonight, and he did just that.

Diego Chara

The beauty of being able to rest Chara is the ability to turn to him for these games on a full tank. His initial recovery and pass set up Lassiter’s goal, and the steely veteran did not allow Las Aguilas to win the midfield battle (with 11 men on the pitch). 

Ian Smith

Be honest: at the beginning of the season you would not have expected Ian Smith to be starting against Club America. You absolutely wouldn’t have put him as one of the first names on the teamsheet either. But that’s just how important he is to the back-three Timbers. Another excellent shift from him against the most difficult opponent of the year. Victor Davila (who was opposite Smith from the opening whistle) had to be subbed off at halftime, for God’s sake. 

David Da Costa

Portuguese Dave assisted Lassiter’s goal, and took his Leagues Cup tally to 1g/1a in 2 games. I don’t have a problem with Neville taking him off in the 55th minute due to the Dallas game on Saturday. His availability and health is much more important in regards to the weekend than it was for tonight. But he had a good shift and contributed to a goal. Excellent work. 

Ariel Lassiter

Filling in for the cowardly Moreno on the right wing was Lassiter, who scored 7 minutes into the game. He wears the 7 on his back, so maybe he was calling his shot. I’m OK with that. After Fory’s dismissal, he moved to LWB and made a couple of back-post headed clearances. Two very strong thumbs up for Lassiter, who had to leave the game in the 67th minute due to injury. His status for Saturday is unclear for now, but will be updated later this week.

Felipe Mora

Every game, Mora desperately holds up play against center backs that are bigger than him. I wish I could put that overhead through ball on replay. He’s one of the team’s biggest assets in possession, but was also needed for Saturday’s game. So he got an early rest after putting in another good shift.

Antony

The Brazilian speedster made his return from a hamstring injury, and wasn’t hamstrung in the slightest. Neville called him “the most dangerous player on the pitch” after the game. No one else on this team can do a one-man counterattack like Antony. He literally didn’t miss a single step. 

Kevin Kelsy

This was a mature performance from the striker, but he wasn’t on the same page as his teammates during a couple of counters. I wish that near-post header went in. But this was definitely a game that he can build off of.

Kamal Miller

I’m going to let Dario Zuparic write this section for me: “It could happen to anyone. It’s not his job to score goals, but he took responsibility and took a big miss.” 

Pretty straightforward. I don’t think I need to add anything else. It isn’t his job to score goals.

Cristhian Paredes

I thought that Paredes would get the start today, but I think he’ll be in the team against Dallas. I also think that it said a lot about him being the first Timber to take a penalty kick tonight. He was the only Timber to take a PK in MLS Cup who was still on the pitch. In that shootout, he also scored.

Gage Guerra

Guerra buried his pressure-packed PK (try saying that five times fast). He was brought into the game to score that penalty kick. Thumbs up. 

Coach Rating

Neville’s job tonight revolved around adaptation, and the 5-2-2 structure the team settled into after the red card was a good choice. By keeping the back five and only countering with two, he gave the team a proper balance after the dismissal. Some were blaming him for the penalty kick order, but it’s unclear how much of that choice was his. Some coaches let the players pick, and others have their own order. Neville strikes me as a “let the players decide” coach.

His discrimination tirade is sure to make some headlines, with cynics saying that it’s his way of dealing with a bad result. But I wonder how many of those people were in the stadium and had to deal with the inevitable (and completely avoidable) hailstorm of slurs being rained down on Timbers players. 

Table Time

Since I’m still feeling complimentary, I’m going to describe this game as the “best bad result” that the Timbers could’ve suffered. I’m still being complimentary because, in Neville’s words, “I thought that we were good with 11 men and were even better with 10 men.”

Meanwhile, their spot in the knockout stage isn’t confirmed. The Timbers have to sweat three more games to see if they will qualify. Here’s how they qualify, with the best possible result for each remaining team listed:

LA Galaxy win by 1 goal or worse

Cincinnati win by 3 goals or worse

NYRB win by 3 goals or worse

Simple enough, right?

Final Whistle

Some people will be disappointed with tonight’s loss on penalty kicks. However, getting to penalties is the real victory. A shootout is the ultimate crapshoot, and anything can happen. On the surface, a 1-1 draw with a shootout loss against Club America is a good result. But getting there in the fashion that they did (defending with 10 men for 55 minutes) is more encouraging than disastrous. It’s worth noting that Club America equalized against Minnesota with a man disadvantage in their last game. This is a good result, but it is a bit hard to swallow. 

This could be the final Leagues Cup game of the year for Portland, and I think they put their best foot forward. A roster with 1 DP and 4 U22s (that includes the one who bailed, he did have two assists against Atletico San Luis after all) ended Phase One with 7 points in 3 games. They conceded one goal in those 3 games, and it occurred with 10 men on the field. This is the momentum that they needed to carry into the Dallas game. It began with a 1-0 victory in Los Angeles, and should continue despite the bitter end to tonight’s fixture. As a bonus, they’re already in Texas and are adapting to the brutal conditions outside. They have to win Saturday’s game, and the impetus for a weekend victory is much stronger than it was tonight. That doesn’t mean that the players didn’t try. They absolutely did, and nearly came away with a precious extra point. 

Now the MLS season resumes, and two key reinforcements are on the way. The question of a top-four spot is still up in the air, much like their advancement in Leagues Cup. As a run of playoff teams appears on the schedule, games like tonight become much more important. We’ll learn the true impact of this game not in the Leagues Cup standings, but in the MLS table. The quest is out of their control, but the climb continues.