Sporting Kansas City at Portland
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. today at Jeld-Wen Field.
TV: ROOT (cable Ch. 34/734).
Radio: AM 970 (AM 940 for Spanish broadcast).
Tickets: A sellout of 20,438 is expected. Extra and obstructed-view seats are often put on sale on the day before home matches. Check Ticketmaster for availability.
Where they stand: Portland (1-4-1, 4 points) is ninth (last) in the Western Conference; Sporting Kansas City (7-0-0, 21 points) is first in the Eastern Conference.
Last season: Kansas City won both meetings, 2-1 in Portland and 3-1 at Kansas City.
Storyline: Two teams on very different runs meet as Kansas City tries to remain unbeaten and Portland tries to end a string of four losses. Kansas City has outscored opponents 12-2. Portland has been outscored 11-8, and has surrendered leads in three consecutive games.
Injury impact: Portland midfielder Kalif Alhassan (knee) is not expected to play.
Does formation matter more than form? Portland coach John Spencer says not. Kansas City likes to play an attack-oriented formation with three attacking midfielders and a striker pressuring defenses, but Spencer said it is KC’s talent and work rate that impresses him.
“They’re a good team. I don’t think it’s just the formation,” Spencer said. “I think what everybody forgets is the actual hard work that they put in. Even a playmaker like Graham Suzi works his socks off.”
Good memories: The matchup with Kansas City is special for a few Timbers. Portland captain Jack Jewsbury spent his first eight professional seasons with Kansas City. Defender Mike Chabala is good friends with KC winger Kei Kamara from their days in Houston. The friends could be battling each other throughout today’s match. … Oh, and remember Darlington Nagbe’s MLS goal of the year in 2011? That was scored against Kansas City.
Question of the day: Who will have a territorial edge? Kansas City is a physically aggressive club that likes to pressure its opponents up the field. Can Portland push back, and get its forwards free behind the Kansas City back four?
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