The first semi-final of the MLS is Back tournament takes place down in Orlando on Wednesday night when the Philadelphia Union and Portland Timbers face off for a place in the final which would put them one win away from the Champions League next season.
When the tournament started these two teams wouldn’t have been first choice on the list of potential winners, but they have progressed nicely through the draw and merit their spot in the last four. It will be interesting to see who grasps the opportunity in front of them.
The Format
The 26 MLS teams have now become 24 with FC Dallas and Nashville being withdrawn from the tournament after positive Covid tests. The remaining teams have been placed into six groups of four. Each team plays the other three in their group once in the group stage. The results of these matches not only count in this tournament but also towards the regular season when it resumes. At the end of the group stage the top two from each group and the four best third placed finishers go into a 16-team knockout stage. The entire tournament takes place in Orlando with the final scheduled for August 11. There is a Champions League place for the winners which should ensure it is competitive.
Where to watch
The match will be shown live on the Sky Main Event, Sky Football and Free Sports channels. The build up to the clash begins at 1am with the match due to start a few minutes after that.
Special Offer
OPEN AN ACCOUNT WITH 888SPORT AND BET £10 TO GET £30 IN FREE BETS PLUS A £10 CASINO BONUS! PERFECT OFFER TO USE ON THIS TOURNAMENT! CLICK THE IMAGE BELOW TO JOIN. USE CODE 30F. NEW ACCOUNTS ONLY. 18+ T&Cs apply (See image for significant terms). Gamble Aware.
Philadelphia Union
It has been a wonderful campaign for the Philadelphia Union and having come this far they will be itching to go all the way and win the title to not just set them up for next season, but to build confidence for whatever might remain of this term as well. I’ve mentioned a few times in this tournament already that they have a good cup pedigree and are used to playing in the latter stages of them so this semi-final shouldn’t be too daunting.
The criticism of the Union heading into their quarter final was that they didn’t look fluent in front of goal but that changed completely against Sporting Kansas City in a match they had sewn up midway through the first half with a three goal blitz. They sat back and reserved some energy the longer the match went on so that they came under pressure is no massive problem. They will be looking for a repeat performance here.
Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are another side who are no strangers to playing in big matches in the last few years and that certainly showed in their quarter final win over New York City FC. You could clearly see one side knew how to handle the pressure of the big matches and the other who so obviously couldn’t. A lot of this tournament now will be about that so to have that confidence and knowhow up your sleeve could be a really big thing.
The other thing that is going to be important from here on in is having players who can win matches with a bit of brilliance. It stands to reason that these matches are going to be tight affairs so if you have a bit of genius or magic in your side it will help. Portland certainly have that in the likes of Diego Valeri or Sebastian Blanco so if their defence holds firm then they are going to take a good deal of beating from here on in.
Betting
I respect the Philadelphia Union but if there is a winner in normal time here then I would expect it to be the Portland Timbers. I just think their extra big game knowhow and that little bit more composure and clarity at the top end of the pitch is going to be the difference. The Union did well to put their quarter final against Sporting Kansas City to bed as quickly as they did but I’d be surprised if Portland are as open here.
A tight defence and some creativity up front are generally what is needed in these big semi-final matches and Portland by and large have that covered. I’m not convinced that there isn’t even more to come from the Timbers too whereas I think we saw the best of the Union in the previous match. I expect this to be a tight and competitive semi-final but if someone is ahead at the final whistle I think it will be the team from Oregon.
Tips
WON – Back Portland Timbers to beat Philadelphia Union (DNB) for a 3/10 stake at 1.88 with 888sport
Back them here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2020
