Nashville vs Portland Timbers

A Major League Soccer playoff battle in the Western Conference is heating up as Nashville welcome Portland Timbers to Geodis Park.

Nashville scored on either side of halftime to beat DC United 3-1 on the road last time out and halt a frustrating run of consecutive MLS matches without winning (D1, L1). But eighth-placed Vancouver Whitecaps are only two points adrift, meaning Nashville’s hopes of reaching the playoffs are still up in the air. That should inspire the hosts’ bid to defy their underwhelming MLS home record this season (W2, D3, L1) and arrest a three-game winless home run (D2, L1). Scoring first would boost Nashville’s hopes of winning, as they’ve come out victorious in two of three home league games in which they broke the deadlock this season (D1).

On the other hand, Portland Timbers have got their stuttering MLS campaign back on track, going from three winless league matches (D1, L2) to back-to-back victories. But despite closing the gap on the Western Conference playoff zone to only two points, the visitors still have to address their form woes on the road. The ‘Timbers’ have not only won just one of their nine away league matches this term (D4, L4) but are winless on their last six MLS travels (D3, L3). On a more positive note, they’ve scored in four successive away league games after drawing a blank on back-to-back trips beforehand.