Sporting Kansas City 2 - 1 Timbers
Final
  for this game

Portland hopes to turn things around against Sporting

Jul 1, 2011 - 2:42 PM Portland, OR (Sports Network) - The Portland Timbers will be hoping that a return to Jeld-Wen Field on Saturday will be just what the team needs to snap a poor run of form that has seen the club earn just one point from its last five games.

The Timbers suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat at FC Dallas last time out, and coach John Spencer certainly didn't mince words when discussing the match after the final whistle.

"I thought we were very poor," Spencer said. "From the first moment to the last, we never matched them at all, never got close to them, never tackled them, never ran with them. Just a poor, poor performance."

Things can only get better for Portland after last weekend, but the opposite is true of Portland's opponent on Saturday, Sporting Kansas City.

Sporting won just one of its first 10 games, which were all played on the road while the club waited for its new stadium, Liverstrong Sporting Park, to be completed.

But since that time K.C. is on a seven-game unbeaten streak, including wins in three of its last four games.

Playing games at home will obviously help any team, but more than that, there have been other differences in the side according to striker Omar Bravo.

"The change is obvious now," said Bravo, who scored Sporting's first goal from the penalty spot in a 2-1 win over Vancouver last game. "The responsibility, the attitude and the discipline has changed with these games. We've been a lot more positive."

Another thing that has helped Peter Vermes' team get results in recent matches is the fact that defensively things have tightened up considerably.

Sporting has allowed just four goals in its last eight games, and that run could continue on Saturday against a Portland side that has been held without a goal in three of its last four games.

But despite its recent struggles, Portland forward Kenny Cooper is remaining optimistic about his team's ability to turn things around.

"I believe in this group that we have," Cooper said. "I have a lot of confidence in our coaches and my teammates, and I believe we are going to get back on track and hopefully we can do that this week."






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