The MLS Cup match will be hosted at Columbus’ Mapfre Stadium, and will take place on December 6 at 1 p.m. with television coverage on ESPN.
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The fourth time wasn’t a charm for former Revolution center back Michael Parkhurst as he and his Columbus Crew SC teammates fell 2-1 to the Portland Timbers in Sunday’s MLS Cup final at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
Portland is unbeaten in eight consecutive matches (5-0-3), including five consecutive road matches (4-0-1), dating to a 2-1 win on the road against the Crew on September 26.
Just 27 seconds had ticked by on the clock when Columbus Crew goalkeeper Steve Clark dallied disastrously on the ball from a pass back and Diego Valeri was alert to close down, slide in and block Clark’s clearance into his own net.
Kamara, who lead the MLS with 25 goals through the regular season and playoffs, is a key piece of a Columbus side that hopes to win its first MLS Cup since 2008.
Hinton praised the Timbers for their run through the postseason and the first MLS Cup appearance in franchise history, but stopped short of an MLS Cup prediction, instead reasserting the benefits of the Sounders’ biggest rival winning the league’s ultimate prize. “Credit to them, they got two goals”.
The Timbers got off to the best possible start with the fastest goal in MLS Cup history. However, those first 20 minutes were enough for the Timbers to drop two goals and secure their first title.
The game started with a huge error because Columbus goalkeeper Steve Clark chose to play with the ball in the penalty box. We tried to press them, because most of the situations that they create comes from their backline. However, that was not the case and Crew midfielder Tony Tchani gave up on the play.
Then ten minutes later, Jorge Villafana put a cross into Fanendo Adi, who headed the ball off the far post. But, what I would say is in professional sports you play until either the ball is out of bounds or theres a whistle and we have to keep playing.
“That’s one of the reasons I left the stability and security of college soccer: I saw a sleeping giant here”, said Porter, who nearly became D.C. United’s coach in 2010 before accepting Portland’s offer 2/2 years later. “No one envisioned that”.
Kei Kamara, the MLS most valuable player runner-up, latched on to the ball after Portland goalkeeper Adam Kwarasey failed to collect a cross in the 18th minute. “We were comfortable. We were tight”. Columbus fans can bring it, too; we’ll see on Sunday. We shut it down.
The victory capped a three-year mission for Porter, who led the University of Akron to an NCAA title in 2010 before leaving in August 2012 to join the Timbers. “All I could think about was sharing the moment with my players”.
We have finally arrived at the end of the MLS season. He scored 16 goals in the regular season and has two in the playoffs.
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The victor of Sunday’s game will also earn a berth in the 2016-17 CONCACAF Champions League, the regional competition that pits MLS clubs against the top Mexican, Central American and Caribbean teams. The last time the Timbers played for a championship was a loss to the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the 1975 NASL Cup. New York Red Bulls in the last round to win the Eastern Conference. “A lot of emotions going on but we’re hosting the MLS Cup in Columbus”, midfielder Wil Trapp told the Crew’s official website.
