(Clicking underlined text takes you to a photo of the corresponding event)
The Portland Timbers opened their home season for 2018 as they did in 2017, with a win over Minnesota United on a rainy, cold evening at Providence Park. Alvas Powell, Diego Valeri, and Fanendo Adi would score for the Timbers (along with a Bill Tuiloma own goal), with Darwin Quintero also scoring for Minnesota.
The Timbers would open the scoring in the 20th minute when defender Alvas Powell made a run from midfield, weaving in and out of two Minnesota defenders before slipping his shot just inside the near post to give the Timbers a 1-0 lead.
It wouldn’t take long to double the lead when just three minutes later, Powell was again involved when his cross from near the sideline, though deflected, found Diego Valeri making a run into the box, with the Timbers midfielder giving a brilliant slight redirect to the cross, and it slipped just inside the far post past Minnesota goalkeeper Matthew Lampson to put the Timbers up 2-0.
Minnesota appeared to have pulled back a goal in the 25th minute, but the center referee José Carlos Rivero went to VAR and determined that Minnesota’s Miguel Ibarra was offside the the goal was overruled.
In the 31st minute, the Timbers would nearly widen the margin to three goals when Sebastián Blanco‘s shot from 25 yards out was off the crossbar and cleared. Just before the half, Timbers goalkeeper Jake Gleeson made a brilliant reaction save on a shot from Christian Ramirez, and the Timbers would go into the half up by 2-0.
In the 64th minute, Minnesota would pull within a goal when Darwin Quintero made a nice run into the Timbers box and slipped the tight angle shot under Gleeson to pull United within a 2-1 score.
But 10 minutes later the margin was up to two goals again, when Cristhian Paredes‘s half volley of a header from Valeri was redirected by Fanendo Adi and into the net to put the Timbers up 3-1.
Four minutes later it was the Timbers who would have a goal disallowed by VAR, when Adi was judged offside on a redirect from Valeri, just before he’d put his shot low past Lampson.
The last few minutes would be tense when Minnesota was once again within a goal, but it was the Timbers own Bill Tuiloma who accidentally chipped the ball into his own net when attempting to clear a long pass into the Timbers box.
But there were no more serious threats and the Timbers would hold on for their first win of the 2018 season.
Jake Gleeson had three saves in the winning effort while Matthew Lampson recorded two saves for the visitors.
MATCH RECAP | Portland Timbers 3, Minnesota United FC 2 | PortlandTimbers.com
