BEAVERTON, Ore. – There is a tightrope the Portland Timbers players and coaches have had to walk this week, one extending over a precarious present, holding taught between their past and future.
Standing on this line, exposed by an 0-4-1 start, there is balance between two ideas: a reverence for the past, one that demands perspective on a disappointing start; and the urgency a team needs to return to the standard they’ve sought.
“It’s recognizing where we are,” head coach Giovanni Savarese said, when asked what the most important improvement his team could make this week. “It’s being realistic that our performance, especially last game, wasn’t one to make us proud.