LAFC’s 8-game unbeaten streak continues as they spoil Timbers home-coming party
The Los Angeles Football Club spoiled the Portland Timbers reopening party of Providence Park after defeating them 3-2 Saturday night.
The Timbers hoped to celebrate their first night back at Providence Park with a victory, after being away for twelve consecutive matches due to the stadium’s renovation.
The action-filled match kicked off with an early goal by Carlos Vela at the 6th minute, after a distribution mistake from goalkeeper Jeff Attinella, who in an attempt to make a quick pass, sent the ball directly to the feet of the Mexican forward, who marked his league-leading 16th goal of the season.
After a back-and-forth attack from both teams, Tristan Blackmon from LAFC crossed a pass to Diego Rossi, whose right-footed shot found the back of the net at the 34th minute to give a comfortable lead to the Angeleno side as they went to the locker rooms with a 2-goal margin over the Timbers in the first half.
The home team didn’t have to wait too long to react and got one back 45 seconds after the second-half whistle blew, a quick reaction from Christian Paredes put the Portland Timbers back in the game.
At the 54th minute, Latif Blessing scored the third one of the night for the black and gold thanks to an assist from Jordan Harvey.
Brian Fernandez, the Timbers most recent designated player, scored an incredible bicycle kick goal in the 84th minute giving hope back to Portland fans.
Things got rowdy during the last few minutes of the game, which turned the 8 minutes of stoppage time into 12 minutes, after tension rose between former Club Necaxa player Brian Fernandez and LAFC player Adama Diomande, who both earned yellow cards, extending the match until the 102nd minute.
Despite their efforts, the Timbers came up short by one goal. Their next regular reason match will be against the Houston Dynamo on June 22 but before that, they must face Seattle Sounders in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup.
LAFC returns home with three points, extending their unbeaten streak to eight games (5-0-3) and remain at the top of the league and the Western Conference with 37 points. Next, they will face Real Salt Lake in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup on June 11. With their next match in the MLS regular season on June 28 against the Colorado Rapids.
