A place in the MLS Cup is the prize as Portland Timbers square off against Real Salt Lake in the Western Conference Final. The Timbers won all three meetings against Real Salt Lake this season and being the home team here, will go into Saturday’s clash full of confidence.
Portland Timbers secured their place in the Western Conference final thanks to a 1-0 victory over number one seed Colorado Rapids. It was a closely fought contest with little to separate both teams before Larrys Mabiala struck the winner on the stroke of 90 minutes.
It has been a fairly erratic campaign for fourth seeded Portland but they appear to be picking up their form at the right time, winning their last five matches. Gio Savarese’s men also have a solid home record and head into Saturday’s clash with six wins in their last seven matches at Providence Park.
Although they kept a clean sheet against Colorado, defending has generally been a problem for Portland Timbers this season. They often struggle to limit their opponents’ chances and have conceded in five of their last eight matches.
Real Salt Lake also came through a team ranked higher than them as they saw off third seeded Sporting Kansas 2-1 to secure a place in Saturday’s clash. They fought back from a goal down with second half efforts from Anderson Julio and Bobby Wood earning them the win.
Pablo Mastroeni’s men finished seventh in the regular season but have been on a giant killing run throughout the playoffs. They knocked out second seeds Seattle Sounders on penalties before the win over Sporting Kansas.
One of the reasons for Real Salt Lake’s low finish in the regular season was a poor record on their travels. Prior to the playoff victories over Sporting Kansas and Seattle Sounders, they had claimed just five wins from their previous 17 away matches and were beaten twice at Providence Park this season.
How the bookies view it
Portland Timbers are considered overwhelming favourites among the bookies and are priced at odds of 87/100 by Vbet to secure the win. A victory for Real Salt is valued at 29/10 by Vbet while a draw is set at odds of 11/4 by Paddy Power.
Recent head to head
Portland Timbers won all three matches against Real Salt Lake this season. They claimed an impressive 6-1 victory in the last meeting between both teams at Providence Park back in September.
Players to watch
Felipe Mora is the top scorer for Portland Timbers this season with 11 goals while Jaroslaw Niezgoda has also impressed in attack. Both men can combine to ensure Portland find the net on Saturday at 2/17 with Vbet.
Much of Real Salt Lake’s goals come from midfield with Damir Kreilach scoring 16 times this season. The visitors have found the net five times in their last six matches and given Portland’s unconvincing backline, they will be confident of getting on the score sheet at 31/100 with Vbet.
Anything else catch the eye?
All three matches between Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake this season produced over 3.5 goals and they could be set for a similar outcome at 7/5 with Vbet. Two of the three meetings saw first half BTTS and a repeat is priced at 13/5 with Vbet.
There have been more goals before the break in the last three meetings between both teams so the first half can be tipped as the highest scoring half at 21/10 by betway.
This MLS match between Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake will be played on Dec 4, 2021 and kick off at 23:30. Check below for our tipsters best Portland Timbers vs Real Salt Lake prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
