Major League Soccer is home to several historic teams, including the Portland Timbers. Based in Oregon, the club has been part of the league since 2011, marking 15 years of competition.
They have lifted the MLS Cup and played two finals; Diego Valeri won the MLS MVP award, and other players like Diego Chara, Sebastían Blanco, Dairon Aspirilla, and Darlington Nagbe left their mark.
However, there was one stat the Timbers couldn’t achieve: that marvelous player scoring a hat trick. After 521 matches and 29 postseason games, it seem odd that no one scored three goals in the same clash for Portland.
But that day is over. During their match against Minnesota United, Vincent Janssen scored a hat trick, breaking that milestone that seemed impossible.
Vincent Janssen is Portland’s hero
You look at this news, and it seems strange that, in the entire history of the Portland Timbers, from when the club was founded in 2009 until this past weekend, no player had ever scored three goals in a single match.
I understand legends like Chara not scoring that many goals because they’re midfielders, but it’s surprising that players like Valeri, who won MVP, were never able to break that record.
Even more, the last few games of the Timbers have ended with a large volume of goals, surpassing the three-goal mark. Also, this club has fast, young offensive players who perform well enough to achieve this mark.
For example, the rivalry match against the Seattle Sounders was the perfect game for Kevin Kelsy to score more than once, as he did. The problem, and this is what keeps happening to the Timbers, is that they miss more chances than they convert.
This season, the Portland Timbers sit eighth in the Western Conference, with a real opportunity to climb the standings.
However, their biggest challenge remains their inconsistency at both ends of the pitch. While winning 5-4 and celebrating a hat trick is exciting, conceding four goals in a single match raises serious questions about the defense.
Of course, the opposition deserves credit, but the Timbers have the personnel in defense and midfield to prevent these things.
To make hat tricks a more regular occurrence, they must also improve their conversion rate in front of goal. Sharpening their finishing and tightening up defensively will be crucial if they hope to turn impressive performances into consistent results.
Nevertheless, congratulations to the Portland Timbers for breaking a curse that seemed impossible, as they have many players scoring in games, but no goalscorer who decides to score first rather than pass the ball.
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