Despite the first goal in 2023 for Sebastián Blanco and some strong attacking moments, the Portland Timbers lost, 4-3, to Real Salt Lake on Saturday in the Round of 32 of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
The Timbers got off to a terrific start, going up 1-0 in the fourth minute on the strike from Blanco. High pressure from rookie Noel Caliskan — who had two assists on the night — put the ball in a precarious spot in the box, and Blanco was able to finish with finesse for his first goal in 2023.
After Blanco’s goal, the pace and quality of the match came to a screeching halt for an extended period. Potential chances for Portland included an attempted through ball from Blanco to Marvin Loría in the 15th minute, and a through ball from Loría to a streaking Nathan Fogaça in the 25th minute which initially earned a penalty before being waved off.
RSL made error after error with the ball at its feet in the first half, only rarely able to advance into the attacking third with any kind of threat. But in the 30th minute, a brutal mistake by center back Tyler Clegg — on a short-term loan from T2 — led to an easy goal for RSL’s Danny Musovski to make it 1-1.
In the 41st minute, with Portland unable to capitalize on some solid runs on the other end, RSL made it 2-1 on a tremendous strike from outside the box by Andrés Gómez.
The Timbers had a flurry of chances before the half which included some high-level activity from Loría, but they weren’t able to pull even prior to the break.
Portland brought on Jaroslaw Niezgoda for Blanco to begin the second half.
The Timbers evened things up in the 49th minute thanks to a goal from Justin Rasmussen — his first in a Portland uniform outside of a preseason contest in 2022. A pass back from Caliskan found Rasmussen’s swinging boot, and he put it high and true to tie the match, 2-2.
Portland kept its foot on the gas pedal and took a 3-2 lead in the 52nd minute. A ball played in to Fogaça was played nicely off his chest, and Niezgoda finished it off clinically.
Three minutes later, RSL equalized. Issues at the back for Portland led to a lot of space for the RSL attackers, and a strong finish by Maikel Chang made it 3-3 in the 55th minute.
The Timbers soon replaced Paredes with T2 call-up Victor Griffith in the midfield.
Chang scored again in the 59th minute, streaking through a porous Timbers back line to finish with power and make it 4-3 RSL.
Portland brought on Santiago Moreno and Dairon Asprilla in the 73rd minute, aiming to add a first-team level attacking punch as they sought their equalizer.
Asprilla and Griffith each had two quality chances down the stretch, but neither was able to convert. Portland brought on Juan David Mosquera in the 86th minute, but even his dynamic presence was not enough to spark a tying goal.
Asprilla received a yellow card in stoppage time after a nasty mid-air collision during his attempted bicycle kick — part of Portland’s last gasp on the attack.
Real Salt Lake advances to the USOC Round of 16 with the win. The Timbers are eliminated.
Next up: Portland returns to regular-season play with a home match against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Providence Park with a live stream available for free on the Apple TV app.
— Ryan Clarke, rclarke@oregonian.com, Twitter: @RyanTClarke
