Timbers at Columbus
1 p.m. Sunday at Mapfre Stadium in Columbus
TV/radio: ESPN / AM 750.
At stake: The winner is the Major League Soccer champion and lifts the Phillip F. Anschutz Trophy. The champion also earns a berth in the 2016-17 CONCACAF Champions League.
Format: If the match is tied at the end of the regulation 90 minutes, an extra 30 minutes will be played. If it remains tied, penalty kicks will decide the winner. Last season the L.A. Galaxy won the title with an overtime goal from Robbie Keane. In 2013, host Sporting Kansas City won a penalty-kick tiebreaker over Real Salt Lake. Nine of the first 19 MLS Cup finals have gone overtime, and three of them have been decided by penalty kicks.
How they got here: The Timbers needed a late goal from Maximiliano Urruti then survived an 11-round shootout to beat Sporting Kansas City in the knockout round. Portland then beat Vancouver by winning 2-0 on the road, and dispatched Dallas 5-3 on aggregate over two games in the conference finals. Columbus avoided the knockout round by finishing second in the East. The Crew eliminated Montreal on a Kei Kamara goal in overtime, then held off the New York Red Bulls 2-1 over two legs to win the Eastern title.
A little history: The Timbers are in a league final for the second time. In 1975, the year the club entered the North American Soccer League, the Timbers lost 2-0 to the Tampa Bay Rowdies in the Soccer Bowl, a match played in San Jose. … The Timbers are only the third MLS expansion team to reach the MLS Cup final, in this the league’s 20th season. The Chicago Fire — who joined MLS in the league’s third season and won the Cup that same year — and Real Salt Lake are the other two. Of the league’s original 10 teams, only the defunct Tampa Bay Mutiney never reached the championhip match. … An original MLS franchise, Columbus won the title in 2008 by beating the New York Red Bulls at Los Angeles, the Crew’s only other trip to the finals. Following that victory, coach Sigi Schmid left Columbus to coach the Seattle Sounders.
Why at Columbus? The Crew and Timbers finished with identical records (15 wins, 11 losses and 8 draws) in the regular season. And the Timbers won the head-to-head meeting. But the tiebreaker for home-field was regular season goal differential. By beating D.C. United 5-0 on the final day of the season, Columbus finished at plus-5 to Portland’s plus-2. … This is the seventh time that MLS Cup has been played at the home of one of the participants. The home team has won five of the previous six such games, including the last four in a row. The Galaxy won the 2002 Cup by beating host New England.
MLS Cup experience: Portland and Columbus each has a central defender who has played in multiple MLS Cup finals. The Timbers Nat Borchers played in two with Real Salt Lake (a win and a loss, both on penalty kicks). The Crew’s Michael Parkhurst made three consecutive trips to the final with New England from 2005-07 (all losses). For Portland, midfielders Will Johnson (Real Salt Lake) and Jack Jewsbury (Kansas City) have also played in an MLS Cup final. Johnson and Jewsbury figure to be available substitutes for Portland in this match.
Notable numbers: Columbus striker Kei Kamara has scored a league-best three playoff goals this season. He shared the regular season lead with 22 goals, including one from a corner kick in the Timbers 2-1 win at Columbus. … For Portland, Fanendo Adi scored a MLS club-record 16 goals in the regular season, two in the win at Columbus. His two playoff goals gave the Timbers 1-0 leads in road games at Vancouver and last week at Dallas. … Eight different Timbers have scored goals in the playoffs. Diego Valeri is tied for the league lead with four playoff assists with Mauro Diaz of Dallas, despite missing one game due to caution accumulation. Valeri assisted on both goals last week in the 2-2 draw at Dallas that clinched the Timbers spot in this final. … In the regular season Columbus scored 58 goals (tied for second most in MLS) and ranked 15th on defense with 53 goals allowed. The Timbers scored 41 regular-season goals (tied for 17th) and allowed 39 (third best defense in the league).
Viewing parties: The Timbers official all-ages viewing party will be at McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W. Burnside St. In Vancouver, the Timbers Army Northern Alliance is gathering at Heathen Brewing Feral Public House, 1109 Washington St. in downtown Vancouver.
Injury impact: The big question emerged Saturday when Columbus striker Kei Kamara, who shared the league lead in goals this season, suffered a leg injury in the Crew’s final training session. His status for the final is expected to be a game-time decision. For the Timbers, defender Liam Ridgewell who missed last week’s match at Dallas, and forward Fanendo Adi who left that game late with an injury, are both available according to Timbers coach Caleb Porter.
