Brandon Bye

Right Back - Seattle Sounders
13 Dec 2029
Thursday
Process

Marked for Brandon Bye

169 Edition

The Seattle Sounders Herald

22 Oct 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Seattle Sounders

Jesus Ferreira was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Noel Buck falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Boardroom

Seattle Sounders agree a free transfer for Jack Elliott

Nothing happens for months and then he simply arrives, at no cost, having signed a pre-contract while still turning out for somebody else. It is the least dramatic way to sign a footballer and frequently the shrewdest.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Álex Roldán

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

A promise honoured at Seattle Sounders

Something was said to Joel Waterman and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.

Market

The Jonathan Klinsmann story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jonathan Klinsmann signs something — a contract at Seattle Sounders or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

In brief

Back issues
166 Edition

The Seattle Sounders Herald

1 Oct 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

The dugout

Jackson Ragen says Seattle Sounders went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Squad

Cristian Roldan has been here 14 seasons

456 appearances across 14 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.

Squad

Jesus Ferreira in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Seattle Sounders this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at Seattle Sounders

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Noel Buck was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Market

Brandon Bye told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Brandon Bye has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Seattle Sounders.

Squad

5 new faces, and Seattle Sounders are still learning each other

A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.

The dugout

Jonathan Dean gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

Yeimar Gómez Andrade knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Seattle Sounders, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Market

Jesus Ferreira linked with a move away

The name of Jesus Ferreira keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Seattle Sounders say nothing, which says plenty.

In brief

157 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

30 Jul 2029
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

Portland Timbers cannot stop winning

9 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.

Match

Nobody wins at Portland Timbers

17 home matches unbeaten. Visiting sides arrive already talking about the atmosphere, which is usually the sign that they have half-lost before kickoff.

Match

Portland Timbers tear San Diego Football Club apart

Rarely has this fixture seen a display like it: 4‑0 against San Diego Football Club, and it could have been more.

Player ratings

Alexander Aravena scores twice — 9.69

Two goals and a mark of 9.69 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Match

The view from the top for Portland Timbers

51 points, and the rest of the division looking up. Every side that finishes first spends the season pretending it is not thinking about it, and this one has started pretending.

Player ratings

Antony scores twice — 8.43

Two goals and a mark of 8.43 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Market

Portland Timbers say no — this time

The offer from Minnesota United FC for Brandon Bye was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Market

Bruno Caicedo moves on

Vancouver Whitecaps pay $3.3M, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.

Market

Antony wants more than Portland Timbers are offering

“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.

In brief

154 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

9 Jul 2029
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

The run at home goes on for Portland Timbers

15 matches unbeaten here. Every visiting manager is asked about it in the week before, which is precisely why it keeps going.

Match

Portland Timbers make it 6 in a row

Momentum is a hard thing to buy and an easy thing to lose, and right now Portland Timbers have 6 straight wins of it.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers rebuffed over Matheus Nascimento

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Vancouver Whitecaps have kept their man, and Portland Timbers go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers bid $3.5M for Jake Davis

The offer went to Seattle Sounders this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers bid $1.7M for Chituru Odunze

The offer went to New York City this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

James Pantemis and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Market

Brandon Bye attracts admirers

The name of Brandon Bye has come up in conversations Portland Timbers were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Juan Mosquera is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

Portland Timbers get the job done against Real Salt Lake

A 2‑0 win over Real Salt Lake, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

In brief

153 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

2 Jul 2029
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

The view from the top for Portland Timbers

39 points, and the rest of the division looking up. Every side that finishes first spends the season pretending it is not thinking about it, and this one has started pretending.

Match

Portland Timbers make it 5 in a row

Momentum is a hard thing to buy and an easy thing to lose, and right now Portland Timbers have 5 straight wins of it.

Market

Brandon Bye is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Portland Timbers is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Match

Portland Timbers keep winning on the road

6 away wins in a row. Travelling support is the truest kind, and this season it is being repaid in the only currency that counts.

Player ratings

Nicolás Rodríguez was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 23. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

Juan Mosquera in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Portland Timbers this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Nicolás Rodríguez has his eye on Europe

It is not a grievance and it is not a demand: he wants to play continental football, and he has stopped hiding it. Whether Portland Timbers can give him that is a question about the club, not about him.

Match

Antony the difference as Portland Timbers beat Minnesota United FC

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Antony. 1‑0 against Minnesota United FC, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kamal Miller is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

  • The dugout No hiding place for Joao Ortiz
  • Squad Antony is in the form of his life
  • Player ratings The afternoon belonged to Antony
151 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

18 Jun 2029
From our football correspondent Upbeat

The dugout

Brandon Bye keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Portland Timbers may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Market

Only the photograph left for Joel Waterman

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Joel Waterman will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Portland Timbers the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Nicolás Rodríguez

Successful dribbles: 24. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Match

Portland Timbers are at home on the road

5 straight away victories. Sides that win away are usually sides that can defend and can counter, and the table has begun to reflect what those journeys have earned.

Match

Portland Timbers cannot stop winning

3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.

Squad

Words exchanged at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cole Bassett is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

David Da Costa the difference as Portland Timbers beat Los Angeles Football Club

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: David Da Costa. 2‑0 against Los Angeles Football Club, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Squad

51 clean sheets for James Pantemis

A goalkeeper's career is counted in the games nobody scored in, and James Pantemis now has 51 of them across 164 appearances. Nothing about that number was luck.

In brief

149 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

4 Jun 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Brandon Bye is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Portland Timbers is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Squad

Juan Mosquera in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Portland Timbers this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Antony is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Joao Ortiz

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

The month belongs to Antony

The award is a small thing with a heavy meaning: for four weeks nobody in this division did his job better. Portland Timbers have the trophy on a shelf and the player in the side.

Squad

A place in the month's best eleven for Antony

Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Antony has come out of that comparison in the side, and Portland Timbers have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.

The dugout

Jimer Fory has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Portland Timbers will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

Market

The David Da Costa story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until David Da Costa signs something — a contract at Portland Timbers or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

The dugout

Bruno Caicedo asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

In brief

145 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

7 May 2029
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Still nobody has beaten Portland Timbers

The unbeaten run reaches 19. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Player ratings

Both of them Antony's — 8.38

2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.38, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.

Market

Brandon Bye is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Portland Timbers is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

The dugout

Henadii Synchuk says Portland Timbers went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Market

David Da Costa wants more than Portland Timbers are offering

“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

James Pantemis and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Nobody wins at Portland Timbers

9 home matches unbeaten. Visiting sides arrive already talking about the atmosphere, which is usually the sign that they have half-lost before kickoff.

The dugout

No hiding place for James Pantemis

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to James Pantemis, and the manager let it.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joao Ortiz is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

143 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

23 Apr 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

17 unbeaten for Portland Timbers

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 17 matches without defeat is a foundation Portland Timbers did not have in the autumn.

Player ratings

Antony beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 26. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Market

Joel Waterman has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Portland Timbers they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Market

Antony wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Portland Timbers hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Portland Timbers make home a hard place to visit

8 without defeat on their own grass. The pitch has not changed; the crowd has — louder earlier, and quicker to sense when the opposition would rather be somewhere else.

Squad

Kamal Miller falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Player ratings

Nicolás Rodríguez in the eights

A performance of 8.15 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Market

No place for Brandon Bye in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Brandon Bye has his answer from Portland Timbers; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

In brief

141 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

9 Apr 2029
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Whatever happens, Portland Timbers do not lose

15 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Transfer targets

Houston Dynamo tell Portland Timbers: Sebastian Rodriguez is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Market

Brandon Bye has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Portland Timbers they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Tempers go at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

Alexander Aravena the difference as Portland Timbers beat FC Dallas

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Alexander Aravena. 1‑0 against FC Dallas, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joao Ortiz is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Alexander Aravena at his very best

Marked 8.25. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Portland Timbers.

The dugout

No hiding place for Kristoffer Velde

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Kristoffer Velde, and the manager let it.

Market

Amar Sejdic told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Amar Sejdic has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Portland Timbers.

In brief

137 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

12 Mar 2029
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

No mercy from Portland Timbers

Seattle Sounders will want this one forgotten quickly: 3‑0, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Portland Timbers were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.

The dugout

Owen Gene keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Portland Timbers may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Match

11 unbeaten for Portland Timbers

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 11 matches without defeat is a foundation Portland Timbers did not have in the autumn.

Market

Ariel Lassiter hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Portland Timbers can pretend not to have heard.

Transfer targets

The paperwork begins on Devin Padelford

A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Portland Timbers have done the hard part with Minnesota United FC, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.

Market

Brandon Bye has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Portland Timbers they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Player ratings

Up for the corner, and Owen Gene delivers — 7.78

Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Owen Gene scored, was marked 7.78, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.

Market

Los Angeles Football Club come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Portland Timbers did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Squad

Tempers go at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

In brief

135 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

26 Feb 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

The dugout

Joao Ortiz keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Portland Timbers may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Market

Portland Timbers turn down St. Louis CITY SC for Reed Baker-Whiting

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Transfer targets

Jack Elliott due for a Portland Timbers medical

Everything agreed with Chicago Fire, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.

Market

Ian Smith moves on

Nashville SC pay $1.3M, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Market

Nicolás Rodríguez has his eye on Europe

It is not a grievance and it is not a demand: he wants to play continental football, and he has stopped hiding it. Whether Portland Timbers can give him that is a question about the club, not about him.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers baulk at the price for Brendan Hines-Ike

Austin FC wanted more than $74.0K and the board would not go there. Walked away, for now, which in a transfer window means until somebody blinks.

Squad

A row about effort at Portland Timbers

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joao Ortiz was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Brandon Bye

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

In brief

134 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

19 Feb 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Terms done: Ian Smith is going

Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Nashville SC waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Portland Timbers is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.

Market

Brandon Bye hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Portland Timbers can pretend not to have heard.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers bid $3.2M for Tyler Wolff

The offer went to Real Salt Lake this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.

Squad

Juan Mosquera in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Portland Timbers this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers baulk at the price for Lucas Bartlett

DC United wanted more than $240.0K and the board would not go there. Walked away, for now, which in a transfer window means until somebody blinks.

Transfer targets

Chicago Fire tell Portland Timbers: Christopher Cupps is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kamal Miller is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Transfer targets

A loan move for Julian Hall is in the works

Portland Timbers have made the call to Colorado Rapids. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.

Market

No place for Ariel Lassiter in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Ariel Lassiter has his answer from Portland Timbers; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

In brief

133 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

12 Feb 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Only the photograph left for Brandon Bye

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Brandon Bye will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Portland Timbers the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Boardroom

Brandon Bye has agreed to leave Portland Timbers for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

James Pantemis and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Óscar Perea is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

Owen Gene gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

David Da Costa gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say David Da Costa is on it.

The dugout

Cole Bassett knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Portland Timbers, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Market

The David Da Costa question follows Portland Timbers around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with David Da Costa’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

Market

Still no signature from Brandon Bye

6 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what Portland Timbers could get for him.

In brief

133 Edition

The Seattle Sounders Herald

12 Feb 2029
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Tempers go at Seattle Sounders

Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Yeimar Gómez Andrade falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Boardroom

Seattle Sounders beat the market to Brandon Bye from Portland Timbers

Portland Timbers will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Brandon Bye has pre-agreed a move to Seattle Sounders, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.

The dugout

Jonathan Klinsmann has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Seattle Sounders will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

Market

The Jonathan Klinsmann question follows Seattle Sounders around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Jonathan Klinsmann’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

The dugout

Osaze De Rosario knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Seattle Sounders, and both men came out saying it was fine.

In brief

132 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

5 Feb 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Portland Timbers are in among the leaders

Position 2 and 48 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.

Market

David Da Costa wants more than Portland Timbers are offering

“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.

Squad

Words exchanged at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kamal Miller is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

No hiding place for Bruno Caicedo

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Bruno Caicedo, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Juan Mosquera knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Portland Timbers, and both men came out saying it was fine.

The dugout

When it matters, Kristoffer Velde plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

Market

The Cole Bassett question follows Portland Timbers around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Cole Bassett’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

The dugout

The manager makes Brandon Bye a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Portland Timbers. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

In brief

129 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

15 Jan 2029
From our football correspondent Steady

The dugout

Gabe Segal says Portland Timbers went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Market

Antony wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Portland Timbers hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Squad

Tempers go at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Market

Ronald Hernández wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kamal Miller is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

Sean Pulisic signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Sean Pulisic and Portland Timbers agree another 3 years.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Brandon Bye

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

David Da Costa has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Portland Timbers will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

Market

The David Da Costa question follows Portland Timbers around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with David Da Costa’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

In brief

115 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

9 Oct 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Fabian Herbers breaks a bone — 18 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 18 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Antony raises the bar for Portland Timbers

“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Portland Timbers heard it as anything else.

Squad

A falling-out at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Joao Ortiz falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Joao Ortiz gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

Portland Timbers are still strangers to each other

13 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.

Market

Brandon Bye told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Brandon Bye has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Portland Timbers.

The dugout

A promise honoured for Óscar Perea

It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Portland Timbers told Óscar Perea something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.

The dugout

Jimer Fory has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Portland Timbers will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

105 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

31 Jul 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Transfer targets

Fee done, terms next for Luke Brennan

Portland Timbers and Atlanta United FC have settled on $2.1M. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.

Player ratings

Antony was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 28. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers make their move for Dylan Borso

$1.7M on the table at Chicago Fire. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.

Transfer targets

Portland Timbers rebuffed over John Pulskamp

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Sporting Kansas City have kept their man, and Portland Timbers go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Transfer targets

Óscar Perea is a medical away from Portland Timbers

The deal with Pachuca is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.

Match

7 unbeaten for Portland Timbers

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 7 matches without defeat is a foundation Portland Timbers did not have in the autumn.

Squad

James Pantemis in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Portland Timbers this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at Portland Timbers

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Cole Bassett was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

Joao Ortiz left out for the big one

A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Joao Ortiz will call it something else in private.

In brief

101 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

3 Jul 2028
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Player ratings

Antony runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 29. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Market

Antony wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Portland Timbers hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Match

No end in sight to Portland Timbers's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Portland Timbers has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Words exchanged at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Match

Portland Timbers cannot find the net

4 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.

Squad

Cole Bassett falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Looking ahead

Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake meet at the summit

The fixture the rest of the division is looking forward to more than either of the sides in it. Both know a win changes the season and a defeat does not end it, which is what makes it hard to play.

Squad

Gabe Segal slips down the pecking order

The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Gabe Segal is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.

Boardroom

7 new boys at the Portland Timbers academy

Signed today, seen by nobody for years, and one of them may one day be the reason the club exists. That is the whole of the argument for an academy, and it is a good one.

In brief

91 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

24 Apr 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Antony runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 32. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Match

10 unbeaten for Portland Timbers

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 10 matches without defeat is a foundation Portland Timbers did not have in the autumn.

Boardroom

Deadline passes with 6 signed and 1 gone

That is the business done at Portland Timbers until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.

Market

Orlando City come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Portland Timbers did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Squad

Words exchanged at Portland Timbers

James Pantemis and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Kamal Miller is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

James Pantemis makes it 26 clean sheets

26 shut-outs in 127 appearances. A keeper’s career is counted in games where nothing happened, and none of it happened by accident.

Player ratings

The afternoon belonged to Nicolás Rodríguez

A mark of 7.43, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.

The dugout

No hiding place for Brandon Bye

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Brandon Bye, and the manager let it.

In brief

88 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

3 Apr 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

The dugout

Joao Ortiz keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Portland Timbers may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Squad

James Pantemis keeps Portland Timbers in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Market

Hunter Sulte hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Portland Timbers can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings

Nicolás Rodríguez runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 24. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Market

Antony wants to know where this is going

“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Portland Timbers hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.

Squad

Tempers go at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

6 unbeaten for Portland Timbers

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 6 matches without defeat is a foundation Portland Timbers did not have in the autumn.

Squad

A row about effort at Portland Timbers

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Kamal Miller was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Antony

Marked 8.09 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

In brief

81 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

14 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Portland Timbers are in among the leaders

Position 2 and 53 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.

The dugout

Brandon Bye keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Portland Timbers may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Market

Sawyer Jura puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Portland Timbers, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Words exchanged at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Market

Nicolás Rodríguez wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

A row about effort at Portland Timbers

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joao Ortiz was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom

Portland Timbers agree a free transfer for Strahinja Tanasijević

Nothing happens for months and then he simply arrives, at no cost, having signed a pre-contract while still turning out for somebody else. It is the least dramatic way to sign a footballer and frequently the shrewdest.

Market

Joel Waterman is free to find somewhere else

“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Portland Timbers has been clear about where Joel Waterman stands, which is more than many ever get.

The dugout

Kristoffer Velde gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kristoffer Velde is on it.

In brief

80 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

7 Feb 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

David Da Costa raises the bar for Portland Timbers

“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Portland Timbers heard it as anything else.

Squad

Tempers go at Portland Timbers

Juan Mosquera was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joao Ortiz is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Boardroom

Portland Timbers agree a free transfer for Rudy Camacho

Nothing happens for months and then he simply arrives, at no cost, having signed a pre-contract while still turning out for somebody else. It is the least dramatic way to sign a footballer and frequently the shrewdest.

Squad

Luca Musah slips down the pecking order

The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Luca Musah is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.

The dugout

Joao Ortiz is still paying for one afternoon at Portland Timbers

Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.

The dugout

No hiding place for Brandon Bye

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Brandon Bye, and the manager let it.

The dugout

When it matters, Jimer Fory plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

Squad

Portland Timbers have started building around Nicolás Rodríguez

He used to be one of the options. He is now one of the men the options are picked around, and the change happened quietly enough that only the dressing room noticed on the day.

In brief

79 Edition

The Portland Timbers Gazette

31 Jan 2028
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Juan Mosquera in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Portland Timbers this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Portland Timbers training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joao Ortiz is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Joao Ortiz

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

Portland Timbers count the cost of losing Ryan Pulisic

29 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

The dugout

David Da Costa gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say David Da Costa is on it.

Market

The Antony talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Portland Timbers know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

In brief