Stumptown Footy: All Posts by Zach Kay

Major League Soccer terminates Brian Fernandez contract

2019-11-15T15:07:18-08:00

Matthew Wolfe

In a shocking press release issued Friday afternoon, it has been announced that Major League Soccer has terminated Brian Fernandez’s contract.

Paul Tenorio, via The Athletic, has reported that the termination is due to “failure to comply with the league’s substance abuse and behavioral health (SABH) program.” However, there is no indication of what that failure is, and Tenorio also reports that the MLS Players Association will be filing a grievance on behalf of Fernandez.

Perhaps the biggest bombshell in Tenorio’s article is that MLS is suing Necaxa, Fernandez’s former club in Liga MX.

Whatever the outcome of today’s news, this is undoubtedly a major wrench in the Timbers’ offseason plans. The club’s record signing is now off the roster having only played 19 games. This leaves Portland with potentially two open Designated Player slots if Diego Valeri ends up departing the club or signing a TAM deal for the 2020 season.

Stumptown Footy will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

Soccer Made in Portland: Red card edition

2019-10-01T19:22:40-07:00

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution and 2-2 draw with Sporting Kansas City, talk about whether Brian Fernandez deserved a red card in the Kansas City game, look at the Timbers’ chances of making playoffs, discuss the Thorns’ 2-0 loss to Reign FC, look ahead of the Thorns’ season finale against the Washington Spirit and discuss the Thorns’ chances of making a run in the playoffs.

Soccer Made in Portland: Comeback edition

2019-09-10T14:42:47-07:00

Kris Lattimore

Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ 2-1 comeback win over Sporting Kansas City, evaluate Portland’s performance in the attack, talk about how injuries could impact the Timbers in the next few weeks, look ahead to the Timbers’ upcoming game against D.C. United, review the Thorns’ 1-0 loss to the Utah Royals, preview the Thorns’ upcoming game against the North Carolina Courage and take a look at the NWSL Shield race.

Soccer Made in Portland: Real Salt Win edition

2019-09-05T21:39:23-07:00

Kris Lattimore

Jamie and Caitlin discuss the Timbers’ 1-0 win over Real Salt Lake, evaluate Portland’s performance in the attack, talk about the club’s injuries on defense, look ahead to the Timbers’ upcoming game against Sporting Kansas City, preview the Thorns’ upcoming game against the Utah Royals and discuss changes that could happen in the NWSL in 2020.

Soccer Made In Portland: Political(?) edition

2019-08-27T12:07:00-07:00

Kris Lattimore

Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ 2-1 loss to the Seattle Sounders, talk about the impact of a protest by the Timbers Army against MLS’s ban on political signage at games, preview Saturday’s match between the Timbers and Real Salt Lake, evaluate the Thorns’ performance in a 3-0 win over the Chicago Red Stars and predict whether the Thorns will win the NWSL Shield.

Soccer Made in Portland: Mid-August Edition

2019-08-14T10:00:00-07:00

Kris Lattimore

Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ 2-1 loss to Minnesota United in the U.S. Open Cup, evaluate Claude Dielna’s performance this year, look back at the Timbers’ 3-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps, preview the Timbers’ upcoming games against the Chicago Fire and Atlanta United, discuss the Thorns’ 1-0 loss to Reign FC, talk about the Thorns’ 2-1 win over the North Carolina Courage and look ahead to Portland’s upcoming game against the Washington Spirit.

Soccer Made in Portland: US Open Cup semifinal edition

2019-08-07T10:25:42-07:00

Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Jamie and Caitlin discuss the Timbers’ controversial 1-0 loss to Minnesota United, look ahead to the Timbers’ U.S. Open Cup semifinal game against Minnesota Wednesday and MLS game against Vancouver Saturday, talk about the refereeing in the NWSL, evaluate the Thorns’ 1-1 draw with Sky Blue FC and preview the Thorns’ upcoming games against Reign FC and the North Carolina Courage.

3 Questions: Minnesota United vs Portland Timbers x2

2019-08-04T12:17:46-07:00

Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports

I checked in with our pal Jacob Schneider over at E Pluribus Loonum about the big two-match ‘series’ between the Timbers and Minnesota United this week. Here’s what he had to say.

STF: Minnesota have an excellent home record this year with only one loss. What is it about the team and Allianz Field that’s made them so strong there?

EPL: Allianz Field has been a fortress for us, for the most part. Nearly every match has been sold out, and the Wonderwall is deafening. The support the fans have here is incredible; some of, if not, the best in the league. The team knows how to play coherent soccer at Allianz and they just seem comfortable on the pitch. It’s grass, not turf, which is always a plus too. If the fans show up in full force, and they play their own game, don’t be surprised to see the Loons take three points.

STF: With wins away at LAFC, NYCFC, and Seattle last month, the Timbers have shown that they’ll put any team that tries to play them in open field to the sword. With that in mind, how will the Loons approach the Timbers tactically? Is it possible to see two straight games of bunker-and-counter?

EPL: For the Loons, not having Quintero is going to hurt today. He’s suspended due to YC accumulation, and frankly, he’s our best player in the final third. They’re going to have to mess around with the formation, and I’m thinking we might see a 4-3-3 today with two 8’s and a 6 accompanied by three attackers. It’ll be interesting to see how they plan to deal with Blanco and Fernandez, and you can’t forget Ebobisse either.

Heath mentioned that they’ve watched more film on the Timbers than any other team this season. Take that as you will, but the Loons know that this will be one of their toughest matches of the season.

STF: Neither of these teams have ever won the Open Cup. What would an appearance in the final mean for MNUFC and its fans?

EPL: An appearance in the Open Cup final would mean a lot for either side honestly. If you look at it Gemma neutral perspective, it’s such a fun matchup. Two very successful teams of late going head-to-head in a semifinal clash - it’s a headline of dreams for a tournament.

Landing in the finals this year would show that the first two years of league play where the squad was created, where mistakes were made and learned from, was not for nothing. It would show that we are a team not to be messed with and that come playoff time, teams should be scared of the Loons.

STF: And lastly, any predictions for the matches?

EPL: 1-1 Sunday, 3-3 (5-4 pens) Loons Wed

Timbers Army, Emerald City Supporters, Gorilla FC issue statement calling for MLS to rescind Iron Front ban

2019-08-01T20:07:45-07:00

Kris Lattimore

The rival supporters groups have united in a joint statement about MLS’s fan code of conduct.

The Timbers Army/Rose City Riveters today issued a statement in conjunction with rival Emerald City Supporters and Gorilla FC in response to MLS’s ongoing ban of the Iron Front symbol. Specifically, the supporters groups have called for three actionable outcomes:

MLS rescinds its ban on flying the iron front flag.

MLS removes the word “political” from its fan code of conduct as it is inherently arbitrary.

MLS works with international experts on human rights to craft language in the fan code of conduct that reflects and supports radical inclusion and anti-discrimination.

The united groups also issued a series of call to actions for fans, which can be read along with the full statement on the 107IST website.

The Iron Front is a historic symbol introduced along with an organization of the same name in Germany 1931 to counter the rising Nazi party. Today, the symbol continues to be used worldwide to represent anti-fascism

Soccer Made in Portland: Big wins edition

2019-07-31T11:58:04-07:00

Kris Lattimore

Jamie Goldberg and Caitlin Murray discuss the Timbers’ big 4-0 win over the LA Galaxy, talk about how Portland will approach back-to-back games at Minnesota, compare this year’s Timbers team to previous squads, look back at the Thorns’ 5-0 rout of the Houston Dash and preview the Thorns’ upcoming game against Sky Blue FC.