BEAVERTON, Ore. – The full debut of the new Providence Park means Saturday will be about more than a soccer game. But there is still a soccer game to be played (7:30pm PT, ESPN2), and if the Portland Timbers plans for 2019 unfold as they hope, the first Major League Soccer game in the team’s remodeled home could prove one of the most important of the season.
Los Angeles FC already sent the Timbers a message once this year, pulling away late for a 4-1 victory when the teams met in March. Since then, Bob Bradley’s team has spent two-and-a-half months reciting the same message to the rest of the league, with their 12-1-4 record and plus-25 goal difference positioning the second-year team for an attack on MLS’ record book.