The Portland Timbers will not make any moves ahead of Monday’s 10 p.m. PT closure of the MLS primary transfer window.
Timbers general manager Ned Grabavoy told The Oregonian/OregonLive the club was in pursuit of an additional center back to fill the hole created when it traded Bill Tuiloma to Charlotte FC in February, but a deal ultimately did not surface.
“We were vocal when we traded Bill that it was obviously a major priority and necessity to lock up a center back,” Grabavoy said. “For us, we’re not gonna shy away from the fact that we didn’t accomplish that. I take ownership of that. At the same time, looking at the approach that we took and the players we were looking at on the international market, the player we were prioritizing is still very much a strong option for us. It’s just the ability to land that player now and have that player for the next stretch.
“Obviously, in the short-term, you’re trying to strengthen the group as best as you can, but you can’t lose sight of the long-term. Given that the player going forward still remains a strong contender to fill that slot, given the conversations with the club that player is at, we didn’t want to overreach for a different player on the international market.”
Portland rejected a trade offer from another MLS club for midfielder Santiago Moreno last week, which would have included roughly $2 million in general allocation money (GAM).
Grabavoy said he explored the MLS trade market to add talent, but didn’t find a deal he thought would strengthen the team more than an internal move, such as promoting a player from T2. The Timbers are examining their options on that front, with a decision expected in the coming days.
Portland will now turn its attention to the secondary transfer window, which opens July 5 and closes Aug. 2. Deals can be negotiated and agreed upon prior to that transfer window, but international transfers can’t officially be added to the roster until the window opens.
Grabavoy said Portland will seek to finalize the acquisition of a center back in the summer window and also look to add a high-level attacking player with a Designated Player (DP) slot.
“We have massive flexibility heading into the summer and into 2024,” Grabavoy said. “That’s not to say there aren’t a lot of things we want to accomplish with this group this season. We have a lot of players that we believe in. … Even saying that we want to add a player using one of those (DP) slots, heading into the offseason we have the potential to sign two. That would potentially be a DP and a young DP, on top of the center back.”
The Timbers (2-5-2, 8 points) have 13 regular-season matches between now and when the next transfer window opens. They sit outside the playoff picture in 10th place in the Western Conference after an injury-riddled start to the season, and only now are beginning to see a few regular contributors return to the lineup. Key midfielder Eryk Williamson is out for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Also, midfielder Sebastián Blanco is nearing a return from chronic knee issues that date to last season, and forward Felipe Mora is targeting a summer return after multiple knee surgeries. When asked about the potential for using the amnesty rule — which allows MLS clubs to buy out a player’s contract and receive cap relief — Grabavoy brought up Blanco and Mora’s injury situations as ones the club will continue to monitor.
“We’ve been working through two injury situations to two players who have been very important and very solid players for us in Felipe Mora and Sebastián Blanco,” Grabavoy said. “As we head into the summer, having more clarity on their health and their status, starts to set the wheels in motion in terms of how the dominos fall. There’s a lot of moving parts and a lot of discussions happening, some of them tied to those situations.”
The Timbers’ next match is a third-round U.S. Open Cup tilt with USL side Orange County SC. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Providence Park, with a live stream available on the CBS Sports Golazo Network.
— Ryan Clarke, rclarke@oregonian.com, Twitter: @RyanTClarke
