Sports Mole previews Sunday’s Major League Soccer clash between Vancouver Whitecaps and Portland Timbers, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
In the first Cascadia Cup clash of the 2024 MLS season, the Vancouver Whitecaps will host the Portland Timbers on Saturday at BC Place Stadium.
The Caps suffered their first defeat of the domestic campaign last weekend, losing 2-1 to Real Salt Lake, while Portland were beaten 3-1 by the Philadelphia Union.
Match preview
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Last Saturday felt like a carbon copy from their 2023 home opener against RSL, with Vancouver squandering a 1-0 half-time advantage and losing by a 2-1 score yet again.
The first MLS goal for Damir Kreilach as a Whitecap was all for not, as the Canadians were under attack for a good portion of the second half, while they have scored a goal or fewer in their last three regular-season home contests dating back to last season.
Fans have come out in droves to support this team with their match last weekend being their fourth successive MLS home game with over 22,000 people, however the home team have not delivered, going winless in those four matches in the regular season and playoffs.
A familiar face will return to the Caps sidelines for this upcoming fixture with the suspension of manager Vanni Sartini now officially over.
Vancouver have not gone winless in their opening three regular season fixtures at BC Place since the 2019 campaign when they claimed just a single point from their first three MLS home matches.
In 2023, they won the Cascadia Cup for the fourth time, claiming 10 points in six combined matches against the Timbers and Seattle Sounders.
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After a solid start to the Phil Neville era, going unbeaten in their first three matches of the domestic campaign, the Timbers have cooled off, losing back-to-back games in this competition.
Portland have fallen behind in each of their last three domestic affairs, losing last week to the Union despite having 73% of the possession.
Against the Union, they attempted 671 passes, their highest total in a game since the start of last season, but they have only found the back of the net on one of their last 10 shots on target.
With a victory on Saturday, the Timbers would already equal their number of away wins in MLS from the previous campaign when they only won two league contests outside Providence Park.
The Timbers are unbeaten in MLS this year when scoring in the opening half but have not been able to do that in any of their last three encounters.
The last time they won a domestic game which took place in Canada was in April 2022, when Portland held onto a 3-2 victory versus the Whitecaps at BC Place.
Vancouver Whitecaps Major League Soccer form:
Vancouver Whitecaps form (all competitions):
Portland Timbers Major League Soccer form:
Team News
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Sam Adekugbe sat out of another encounter for Vancouver last week due to a knee injury, while Fafa Picault and Andres Cubas were both away on international duty.
Bjorn Inge Utvik made his first appearance as a Whitecap last weekend, replacing Ryan Raposo in the second half, while Levonte Johnson featured for the first time since matchday one.
Ralph Priso is still looking to make his first appearance for the Caps since being acquired in exchange for General Allocation Money (GAM), while Ali Ahmed is seeking his first start of the new campaign, replacing Brian White in the defeat to RSL.
Last weekend, the Timbers were missing Trey Muse, who had an issue with his hand, while Marvin Loria and Claudio Bravo sat out because of knee injuries.
Kamal Miller and former Caps goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau were away on international duty in their previous encounter, helping Canada qualify for the Copa America with a 2-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago, while Miguel Araujo was representing Peru, who had a pair of pre-tournament friendlies before that competition.
Ahead of their match with the Union, Portland waived goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic before acquiring Jonathan Rodriguez a day later from Club America, and the Uruguayan notched his first goal in MLS last weekend.
Vancouver Whitecaps possible starting lineup:
Takaoka; Laborda, Veselinovic, Blackmon; Brown, Cubas, Vite, Picault; White, Gauld; Kreilach
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Crepeau; Mosquera, McGraw, K. Miller, E. Miller; Williamson, Chara; Moreno, Evander, Antony; Rodriguez
We say: Vancouver Whitecaps 2-1 Portland Timbers
Both sides are coming off difficult matches last week, but with Cubas likely to be back in the Caps midfield, we expect them to do a better job of slowing down the Timbers in transition, which should enable them to create more chances when in possession.
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