The Portland Timbers are set to host the MLS Cup Finals at Providence Park this Saturday, Dec. 11th against New York City FC after both teams successfully navigated their semifinal matches. The Timbers were crowned Western Conference Champions last weekend after shutting out Real Salt Lake 2-0 at home. Meanwhile, New York City captured the Eastern Conference for the first time in club history by scoring the game-winner with just over a minute to play in a 2-1 away win over the Philadelphia Union.
Portland opened their playoff run with a 3-1 home victory over Minnesota Utd and followed up with a last-minute 1-0 road triumph over the Colorado Rapids. They finished in fourth place in the West this season with 55 points from 14 wins, 4 draws and 13 defeats while outscoring the opposition 56-52. At home, they were ranked third best in MLS with 35 points from 11 victories, 2 draws and 4 losses with 35 goals scored and 22 allowed. They enter the Final on a hot streak as they’ve lost just three times in their past 17 contests with 13 victories and a draw.
On the injury front, the team is without Jeff Attinella, Andy Polo, Eryk Williamson and Ismaila Jome due to injuries while Hunter Suite is listed as questionable due to a concussion. On the bright side, Dairon Asprilla returns to the side following his suspension for a red card against Colorado in the second round of the playoffs.
New York City FC blanked Atlanta Utd 2-0 at home in their postseason opener and then edged league-leaders New England Revolution in a penalty shootout on the road in the second round after the game finished in a 2-2 tie. They finished the 2021 campaign in fourth place in the East with 51 points from 14 wins, 9 draws and 11 losses while scoring 56 goals and conceding 36. They were ranked 15th on the road in the 27-team league with 4 wins, 5 draws and 8 losses while being outscored 23-19. However, they’ve lost just once in their last 10 games overall with six wins and four draws.
New York City welcomes back the league’s top scorer Valentin Castellanos with his 19 goals, after he was suspended for the previous game due to a a red card received against New England in the second round. However, the team expect to be without Anton Tinnerholm and Keaton Parks due to injuries.
The Timbers and New York City FC last met in 2019 in the league with Portland winning 1-0 on the road. The teams have met just five times in the past with Portland winning four games and losing just once. The sides have never met before in the playoffs. This is the first appearance in the MLS Cup for New York City while it’s the third time for Portland. They beat the Columbus Crew 2-1 in Columbus in 2015 and lost 2-0 to Atlanta Utd in 2018.
The current Bet365 odds show this to be a very close call with New York City FC at 4/5 to win the MLS Cup and the Portland Timbers at 19/20. Don’t forget to can also make numerous types of wagers on the game such as half-time and full-time score, method of victory, margin of victory, number corners, red cards, correct score, both teams to score and individual goalscorers etc.