The dog days of summer are here, and the games are coming thick and fast for the Portland Timbers. Six days after battling back to earn a draw against Vancouver, the Timbers host the San Jose Earthquakes at Providence Park.

Storylines So Far

San Jose (5-8-7, 22 points) stands second bottom in the Western Conference standings, but the lats time these two teams met they had the Timbers’ number. The Earthquakes fought back to earn a last-gasp 3-2 victory over the Timbers when Portland traveled down to San Jose, and will be keen to complete the double over Portland tonight. Jeremy Ebobisse, making his appearance at Providence Park since Portland traded him last year, will also be keen to score on his former club.

The Timbers (6-6-9, 27 points) saw their rapid ascent up the standings hit a small roadblock with their draw last weekend, where they saw an opportunity to finally jump above the playoff line go begging. They can rectify that with a win tonight, which would vault them into the 7th (or potentially higher), at least temporarily.

In their effort to do so they will be without the services of Sebastian Blanco, who is serving a suspension tonight for yellow card accumulation. Dynamic midfielder Eryk Williamson will be back in the team to buoy affairs, after serving a suspension of his own last week.

Pre-Match Reading

• Alex recapped last Sunday’s Cascadia draw.
• Naveen compiled his player grades for Portland’s last outing
• Sam’s latest Three Thoughts reflected on Portland’s task without Blanco, among other things

How to Watch

Location: Providence Park | Portland, OR

Time: 7:30 p.m. PST

Watch: FOX 12 Plus

Radio: 750 The Game & LA GranD 93.5 FM

Lineups

Portland Timbers

San Jose Earthquakes