Portland Timbers on verge of making it to playoffs, take on New England Revolution on Friday
Portland Timbers play host to http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/DC-United-c38901 (34 points) for
a place in the playoffs. To edge past both the contenders, the Timbers need to win Friday’s game at all costs.
“Right now we don’t want to look too far beyond the game at hand,” midfielder and captain http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Jack-Jewsbury-c17457 said. “And this one Friday is a huge one.”
The last time Timbers faced the Revolution was in April at the Gillette Stadium, where they managed to draw 1-1. However, the Revs are not the same team this time around, especially after the acquisition of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Benny-Feilhaber-c7515.
The attacking midfielder has scored four goals since his induction to the roster in July and has ushered the team back into the playoffs race. The Revs are a mere six points behind the Timbers and RBNY and seven short of DCU for the playoffs spot.
The Timbers are wary of the new player and might draw look to mark him out of the game, head coach John Spencer revealed at the press conference.
“Feilhaber is a really, really good player,” he said. “He’s a quality individual and we’ll have to be very, very, very wary of him when he comes to town. He can win the game on his own.”
It never matters whether the Revs play 4-3-3 of 4-4-2, Feilhaber has the tendency to get accustomed to his teammates very quickly and sharply, the tactician believes.
“He gives New England that player from that attacking midfield role, whether they play in a three-man central midfield or they play in a 4-4-2. He has the ability – as we saw against Philadelphia last week – to score from distance, so we have to be careful,”
the head coach said.
Friday’s game is the Timbers’ one shot at the playoffs. The team would be hoping to extend their three-match undefeated streak to four games.
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