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Valeri’s late winner propels Timbers past Impact

Diego Valeri

By MIKE DONOVAN

In the same week he was named to the MLS All-Star Team, Diego Valeri delivered a game-winning blast that propelled the visiting Portland Timbers to a 3-2 victory over the Montreal Impact.

Valeri’s strike was the difference after a four-goal first half that saw Will Johnson and Maxi Urruti score in a six-minute span for Portland while Andres Romero and Maxim Tissot had the goals for Montreal at a rain-soaked Stade Saputo. The loss Sunday was the fifth straight defeat for the last-place Impact (3-12-5, 14 points).

Portland, on the other hand, won its second straight match and finds itself just one point below the red line thanks to Valeri. The Argentine DP made no mistake after the ball fell to him off a deflected Rodney Wallace cross, curving a one-bounce strike around Impact goalkeeper Evan Bush. It was the second consecutive game-winner for Valeri and his fifth goal of the season. 

Despite dominating shots (20 to 9) and duels won (59 to 25), Portland needed the late goal after conceding just before the halftime whistle when Montreal tied the score at two behind a Maxim Tissot strike. It was the second career goal for the 22-year-old Quebec native and his first of the season.

Before Tissot’s goal, Portland used a penalty kick from its captain Johnson to gain a 2-1 lead. Valeri was brought down in the box by Hassoun Camara and referee Silvio Petrescu wasted little time pointing to the spot. Despite diving the correct way, Bush couldn’t stop Johnson’s spot-kick as the Canadian International tallied his sixth goal of the season.

Joining Valeri on the scoresheet for the second consecutive match was his fellow countryman, Urruti. Receiving his first start in seven league matches, Urruti pinged the ball off the post and in past a sprawling Bush. Darlington Nagbe had the assist after he creatively working his way past the Montreal defense before slotting the ball through to Urruti.

Despite playing fewer minutes on the season than 10 of his teammates, Urruti leads Portland in scoring with eight goals in 2014. The assist was Nagbe’s fourth of the season and the Akron product was a constant nuisance as he was fouled six times by the Impact while consistently dribbling his way through the middle of the field.

It was Montreal who tallied the match’s first goal when on their first attack inside the 18-yard box, Romero easily maneuvered around Danny O’Rourke before blasting the ball past Donovan Ricketts. The 13th-minute goal was the fifth of the season for the Argentine.

Both teams now head into Saturday matches, with Portland traveling to California for a nationally-televised match at the LA Galaxy while Montreal will host rival Toronto FC.

Comments

  1. The most interesting thing to note from that game was the debut of Liam Ridgewell. More than anything else, he was clearly organizing the back line, getting just upfield and calling out assignments. I don’t know a lot about him, but the biggest weakness in MLS is niave, physical defending, Having a more sophisticated defesnive brain back there may be the peice of the puzzle the Timbers needed

    Reply
  2. Nagbe was at Akron for two seasons, let’s be honest. He is a product first of his family and second of the Cleveland Internationals Development Academy. He’s been doing his amazing stuff on the pitch long before Portland and Akron. He is the most fouled player in MLS, suffering 16 more fouls than the next closest player. Cant wait for the day he plays for the USMNT except I hope Klinsmann is gone by then. I can see the pulled hammys and complaining by Klinsmann that Darlington needs to dive and isn’t nasty enough.

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    • Lets be honest…..LOL.

      It shows on Wiki that he played 18 games for the Cleveland Intern. team.

      ( and 115 for the Timbers )

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      • LOL you trust Wiki? He was with the Internationals since he was 10 years old. The Wiki entry just shows the summers in college when he played for the Internationals PDL team.

      • that Wiki number of 18 appearance is for his senior team career. The Development Academy is youth soccer.

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