For fans of the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers, one month never felt so long ago.
A little more than a month is how long ago it was when both sets of fans watched the Timbers dismantle the Sounders at Providence Park, delivering a 3-1 victory that served as the next-to-last match of the Sigi Schmid era in Seattle. That win had the Timbers feeling bullish about the days ahead while the defeat left the Sounders in the midst of a 1-5-2 nightmare run that threatened to snap Seattle's streak of MLS playoff appearances.
How things have changed. Sunday's 3-1 victory by the Sounders marked their third straight win, pulling them to within just two points of the Timbers for the final playoff spot in the West. As for Portland, four losses in five matches since that July victory over Seattle now have the defending MLS Cup champions looking very vulnerable.
The Sounders are playing some of the best soccer in the league, energized by the arrival of Nicolas Lodeiro, who is not only making magic himself but also bringing the best out of his teammates. The Timbers can't get out of their own way, showing flashes of ability at times but far too often making mistakes and wasting chances that allow points to slip away.
Sunday's match showed us just what a difference Lodeiro is making to the teammates around him. Cristian Roldan delivered a man of the match performance playing alongside Lodeiro, taking advantage of the attention the Uruguayan attracts while also benefiting from having another skilled passer to work with. The same can be said for Clint Dempsey, and also the Sounders defense, which is facing less pressure now that it is playing behind an attack that can keep the ball and generate goals more consistently.
"That group is a committed group," Sounders interim coach Brian Schmetzer said Sunday. "I think they just needed some spark. Nico's arrival, any coaching change — whether it was me or not — the team is going to get a little bump.
"So when you have a committed group of players that are committed to each other and committed to winning, because they understand, they can do the math, they understand, they read some of the highlights and the stories that are out there, that maybe the Sounders aren't going to make the playoffs this year. That's a proud team and their response has been tremendous."
The Timbers will need a similar response soon, having suffered their fourth loss in five matches and yet another loss on the road. The Timbers are now the only team in the league not to have a road win after Chicago snapped its own two-year drought. Zero wins is an astonishing number given the fact last year the Timbers were the second-best road team in the league, and rode that excellence to a title.
Instead of road warriors, the Timbers have been road kill this year, and Caleb Porter is running out of time to figure out the issues plaguing the team. Losing veteran leader Nat Borchers to a ruptured Achilles was a crushing loss, and newly acquired defender Steven Taylor endured a rough MLS debut Sunday, leaving us to question whether he will be the answer to helping fill the void.
Offensively, the Timbers continue to be inconsistent. They created chances in what was an even match through the first two-thirds of the contest, but they failed to convert before Seattle pulled away late. Sunday's match followed a blueprint all too familiar to Porter, one in which his team played well enough to earn a better result but ultimately failed to capitalize.
"The effort was there, the attitude was there, the organization was there, everything was there," Porter said of his team's performance Sunday. "You're sitting there, 60 minutes on the road, 0-0 against Seattle, you're feeling pretty good, and you're seeing the chances, you're thinking you're going to score. At the very least you're going to draw, and the whole game turned on that PK.
"We're going to go back to work, and train hard like we always do, and no doubt the guys will respond and we'll have a chance to redeem ourselves next weekend."
If Portland's summer struggles feel familiar, it is probably because the Timbers endured a similar rut last year, when a 2-4-4 stretch from July through September had them looking like they might miss the playoffs. The Timbers eventually found their stride, winning four of five to close out the regular season before rolling through the playoffs on the way to an MLS Cup title.
The Timbers may have worked their late-season magic last year, but right now there is cause for concern. The way the Western Conference standings sit right now, there is a very good chance the playoffs will only have room for one of the Cascadia rivals, and with Seattle riding a wave of momentum, the Timbers are in danger of being overrun and missing the playoffs at the hands of their archrival.
August may be early for talk of must-win games, but the Timbers will be feeling that sort of pressure when Seattle visits Providence Park next weekend. Portland could wind up trailing Seattle in the standings by the time that match kicks off (if the Sounders win in Houston on Wednesday), and a loss at home would be a brutal blow that could be tough for the Timbers to recover from.
The Timbers will need more than flashes of brilliance to beat surging Seattle. They will need to find their best form, because the Sounders have found theirs.
EASTERN CONFERENCE STRUGGLERS RISE UP
Two embarrassingly long droughts were ended by Eastern Conference teams Saturday. The Columbus Crew saw their nearly three-month stretch without a league victory ended by a 2-0 win in New England. The Chicago Fire saw a more than two-year drought halted in Montreal, where they defeated the Impact to record their first road win in 25 months.
Those results might have seemed like small consolations in the midst of terrible seasons, but in the East, it's enough to give both the Crew and Fire hope of climbing out of the basement and toward a potential playoff spot.
The Crew are just five points behind sixth-place D.C. United, with a game in hand, and they have quietly managed just one loss in six. Newly acquired defender Nicolai Naess has put together two strong starts since being inserted in the lineup, giving the Crew the central defender partner next to Michael Parkhurst they have been sorely lacking since Gaston Sauro went down injured in May.
The Crew attack has also been revitalized, with Federico Higuain back from his own injury layoff and Ethan Finlay flashing the All-Star form he struggled to match earlier in the season. With the midfield clicking again, and Ola Kamara proving himself to be a reliable goal scorer, the Crew have the weapons to make a push at the postseason.
The Fire would argue they do as well, sitting just one point behind the Crew. Saturday's 3-0 victory in Montreal was an emotional result for a Fire team that has added several new faces in recent months. A blowout win against a good Impact team should provide a confidence boost for a club that was sorely in need of one.
“We haven’t done anything. It’s just a very small step, but it’s very important," Fire coach Veljko Paunovic said of Saturday's win. "It’s something that we will continue building on our team and our style of play, which has to improve. I think today was a perfect game for us, best of the season so far for sure, but there’s a long way to go.”
The Fire have quietly shown improvement over the past two months, with midfielder-forward Michael de Leeuw providing a boost and David Accam finding improved form. The defense has had its ups and downs, but Saturday's shutout should help reinstill some confidence for a unit that surrendered multiple goals in four of its previous five matches.
The Fire's path to an improbable playoff berth is tougher than the Crew's, with seven of their remaining 11 matches coming against teams current in playoff position. Though Chicago currently sits six points out of sixth place with a game in hand, matches against West powers LA and Seattle loom, as do multiple meetings with red-hot Toronto FC. What the Fire can also point to though is a pair of matches against sixth-place D.C. United, and a pair of matches against the Columbus Crew.
QUICK KICKS
The New York Red Bulls continued to struggle with closing out games on the road, as they saw their lead disappear against D.C. United. That makes seven road matches without a win for the Red Bulls, with their last victory away from Red Bull Arena having been the 7-0 destruction of New York City FC in May. Those road woes look very likely to keep the Red Bulls from being a serious threat to overtake NYCFC for first place in the East.
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Toronto FC's current 5-0-1 hot streak, coupled with a favorable remaining schedule, will make Greg Vanney's side the team most likely to catch NYCFC for first in the East. That's assuming anybody can. NYCFC has a cupcake remaining schedule, including no more remaining games against TFC or the Red Bulls. Toronto FC does have a game in hand, though, so it should be a good race for the top seed in the East playoffs.
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Jason Kreis had to be happy with seeing his Orlando City defense post a shutout in Saturday's visit to Colorado. It was the team's first shutout in seven matches and marked only the second time all season the Rapids have failed to score in a home game. The Lions will need to tighten up defensively with Toronto FC and NYCFC visiting Orlando this week.
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Pop quiz: Which team in the East has the fewest losses? If you said Orlando City you are correct, and you probably cheated.
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The New England Revolution have gone off the rails, having lost four straight by a combined score of 13-2. The Revs defense has been a mess in recent weeks, while the attack hasn't found a consistent rhythm. Jay Heaps has the attacking weapons to compete, but the back line looks like it will be what keeps the Revs out of the playoffs this year if things don't improve dramatically.
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The Vancouver Whitecaps lost their fourth straight match and are tumbling down the West standings. With a brutal remaining schedule, the Whitecaps look more likely to finish in last place in the West than make the playoffs at this point.
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San Jose's loss to Houston served as the latest reminder that you can never predict what will happen in MLS. The Earthquakes were 6-1-4 at home before that loss, while the Dynamo were 0-9-3 on the road. The Earthquakes had better hope Houston can work similar magic against Seattle on Wednesday, or else the Sounders will be passing them in the standings.
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Admit it. You thought Jamison Olave was washed up. Well, the veteran defender turned back the clock to deliver a Defender of the Year-caliber effort in Real Salt Lake's 1-0 win against FC Dallas. Olave has been solid since stepping in for injured starter Aaron Maund, and has shown glimpses of his once-dominant self to help RSL work past a brief summer slump to cement its hold on a playoff spot in the West.
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Here is a friendly reminder that 15 players were selected ahead of Cristian Roldan in the 2015 MLS draft. Of those 15, six aren't on the first-team rosters for their teams at the moment.
BEST OF MLS WEEK 24
Player of the Week: Cristian Roldan. The Seattle Sounders midfielder enjoyed the best game of his young career, drawing a penalty, assisting on another goal and adding his own strike to help the Sounders earn the derby win against Portland.
Team of the Week: Chicago Fire. Snapping a two-year drought on the road is impressive enough, but handing a beat-down to a good Montreal team is enough to give the Fire the edge over Toronto FC this week.
Rookie of the Week: Jonathan Campbell. The Chicago Fire central defender anchored the back line to help the Fire post a shutout in Montreal.
Goal of the Week: Jozy Altidore. Though Luis Solignac's finish against Montreal was excellent, the nod goes to Altidore for his strong run through the Union defense and deft finish.
TOO STRONG, @JozyAltidore.
3-1 @TorontoFC. #PHIvTOR https://t.co/aeKuoSKKUh
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) August 20, 2016
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