The Seattle Sounders visit the Portland Timbers on Friday in the second and final between the sides during the 2019 MLS regular season. Here is everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PT at Providence Park.
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be televised on ESPN and YouTube TV.
WHERE TO LISTEN: The match will air on 950 KJR AM and El Rey 1360 AM.
2019 RECORDS AND STANDINGS: Sounders: 11-8-7 (40 points, 5th West), Timbers 11-10-4 (37, 7th West)
FORM GUIDE (most recent first): Seattle: DLDLW, Portland: LWWLW
ALL-TIME HISTORY: The Sounders are 10-8-6 all-time against the Timbers, including a 3-6-3 mark on the road.
PREVIOUS MEETING: The Sounders fell 2-1 at home against the Timbers on July 21. Seattle nearly opened the scoring just 20 seconds into the match, but Portland goalkeeper Steve Clark denied Raúl Ruidíaz on a breakaway. Timbers striker Brian Fernández then broke the deadlock in the 20th minute, smashing home a rebound inside the box. Ruidíaz then equalized for the Rave Green in the 50th minute, dribbling around Clark and firing into an empty net. Unfortunately, Portland scored the eventual winner two minutes after that, with striking a first-time shot past Stefan Frei.
CASCADIA CUP: A win for the Sounders in Portland on Friday would secure the 2019 Cascadia Cup for the Rave Green, which would see the club repeat as regional champions after winning in 2018.
RESURGENT RUIDÍAZ: Entering Saturday’s match against the LA Galaxy, Ruidíaz hadn’t scored in 220 minutes. While this is a normal occurrence for most forwards, it was one of the Peruvian’s longest droughts since joining MLS in 2018. With his ninth goal of the season under his belt, expect more goals on Saturday.
DATA: Although the Sounders dropped the result at CenturyLink Field against Portland in July, the team won the expected goals battle 2.93 vs. 1.99, meaning they created the better chances but were simply unable to convert.
GLASS HALF FULL: Despite the team’s current run of form, Seattle sits just three points out of second in the Western Conference.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Friday’s fixture marks the third consecutive match away from CenturyLink Field for the Rave Green.
HOME STRETCH: Only five points separate Minnesota United in second (42) and the Timbers in seventh (37) in the Western Conference standings. Five of Seattle’s eight remaining matches come against Western Conference teams in contention for playoff berths.
