Portland Timbers @ LA Galaxy Player Ratings: Conflicted Edition

Another tough loss on Saturday. Honestly, it's getting tiring just writing the same thing (the same headlines) week in, week out. For a club that was expected to do better this season than last we've certainly been tripped up a little out the gate and with a loss this past Saturday one would expect the player ratings to be harsh, harsher than they realistically were.

Here's my dilemma, I watched the game from home. Took notes. Watched key players very closely. And, all in all, came away fairly impressed with the game as a whole. Perhaps I'm going a little soft, but I'm not quite sure who was to blame for the loss, but I didn't see any glaring consistent mistakes as I've seen in games prior.

Anyway, let's take a look at the individual player ratings:

Starting XI

Troy Perkins: 4

Not a good night for Perkins. While the first goal could be attributed to a defensive backline gaf and the last goal a miracle goal by David Backham that second, middle, goal should have been caught by him. Perhaps his view was skewed. I don't know, but it came from a long ways out and Perkins failed to be the saving grace the Timbers needed.

Ryan's Rating: 5

Always easy to fault the last option in the defense, made some saves and didn't have any huge mistakes.

Steve Purdy: 6

A decent start for the right back. He wasn't perfect by any imagination, but I thought his crosses (particularly one in the beginning, He also really dug in at Keane, which tickled me. Nice start.

Andy's Rating: 4

I liked what I saw from him, and he dealt well with Keane, who was mostly on his side. But he was nowhere on Donovan's goal.

Eric Brunner: 5

An alright night by Brunner soured only because of the last two goals. Unfortunately, however, despite not being the primary reason for the goals scored, his role as the de facto centerback leader also means he is faulted for everything that goes wrong. More communication is in order, I think.

Will's Rating: 5

Intercepted everything. He was not the only person to slip during the game but his fall on Donovan's goal was the most poorly timed.

Hanyer Mosquera: 7

Any lingering questions about Mosqo's ability in the backline or his match fit readiness were quelled last Saturday night. Very confident and very astute defending from the Colombian. Very much looking forward to seeing him on a more regular basis in the coming weeks.

Andy's Rating: 6

Set the tone early and kept it up in his first game back from injury. Kept the ball away from the Galaxy strikers.

Mike Chabala: 4

Decent service into the box, but was consistently torched by Sean Franklin and David Backham combination.

Ryan's Rating: 5

Dangerous going forward and hit better crosses than Wallace (not saying much) but still needs to improve his service.

Kalif Alhassan: 4

As the season goes on I continue to be more and more frustrated with Alhassan. Saturday night he was consistently out of position and, on one occasion, just seemingly attempted to run through 3 defenders into the bxo when passing it off was the smart thing to do. I know he's flexible, but come on...

Will's Rating: 6

Looked very good in his first start since coming back from injury. The Timbers looked markedly worse without him on the field, although he was clearly gassed by the end of his shift.

Jack Jewsbury: 4

Better than last week, but, for some reason, he's become one of the weaker links on the team. Not sure what's happening with him, but we saw how strong the team could be with him as a powerful leader last season and right now the Timbers desperately need that Jewsbury back.

Ryan's Rating: 3

One of his better games this year but it wasn't enough. Time for some youth.

Diego Chara: 5

Once again Chara was forced to step up and cover more ground than he's used to. I think it's beginning to wear on him because he was definitely lacking from the previous match.

Will's Rating: 4

I am used to Chara being everywhere and tonight he just wasn't. Plus he has some very suspect passes tonight.

Eric Alexander: 5

Got the assist and has some great service in the beginning of the match. Was noticeably gassed toward the end of the match however and wasn't able to keep up with the possession the Timbers oh so desperately needed.

Andy's Rating: 5

Give him credit for the assist, but yeah, he was quiet towards the end.

Darlington Nagbe: 4

Also got the assist, but was noticeably absent otherwise. I know he wants to be a striker and maybe he'll get there at some point, but all the evidence is pointing to him being a center mid or right winger. On Saturday his contributions were limited to a very few plays and that's just not acceptable from one of the Timbers' best young players.

Will's Rating: 3

Nagbe gets judged harshly because he has so much talent. I want him to succeed as a striker, but he just does not know how to play the position alongside Boyd. Also, getting skinned at the top of the box is very bad, especially when it leads to the winning goal.

Kris Boyd: 7

Got the goal and should have had a second from a beautiful flick kick that would have made the "Goal of the Week" rounds had the side referee not gotten the call wrong. He was very active in and around the net. I think the season is going to be very good to him if he can keep it up.

Andy's Rating: 6

Had all three of the team's shots on goal, plus one more that should have been. Credit should be given to the team for providing him better service and getting the ball to his feet, but Boyd also gets credit for improved communication and leadership on the attack.

Substitutes

Franck Songo'o: 3

Didn't add much. Didn't contribute much. Looked off for most of the night that he was in. I'm wondering if perhaps his hamstring strain/tenderness hampered him a bit.

Will's Rating: 3

The attack died when he came on. Songo'o needs to get fit and to get on the same page as his teammates, because right now he is just not meshing with the attack.

Lovel Palmer: 3

Not quite sure what he was doing in the midfield, but he didn't really add anything and certainly didn't put an end to LA's resurgence after the 80th minute.

Ryan's Rating: 4

Made some tackles but gave the Timbers nothing in the way of attacking options.

Jorge Perlaza: N/A

As usual, Perlaza came in too late to be effective.