Portland Timbers Vs. Chicago Fire: Wild Game Ends With Timbers Claiming First MLS Victory

The Portland Timbers certainly put on quite a show in their first MLS match at Jeld-Wen Field, beating the Chicago Fire 4-2 in a match that featured plenty of action. That action wasn't always pretty, in fact it rarely was, as most of the goals were the result of severe defensive breakdowns.

The game got off to a rocking start when Kenny Cooper appeared to score in the 8th minute, but it was waved off after the referee ruled that the corner kick had gone out of bounds. It didn't seem to matter much, though, as Jorge Perlaza put the Timbers on the board for real in the 11th minute when he beat Sean Johnson after a Fire defender fell down and seemed to get in his goalkeeper's way. Rodney Wallace doubled the lead in the 28th minute when he struck a ball from about 22 yards out that ricocheted off a Fire defender. The game seemed to be destined for an outright celebration when Perlaza scored his second goal of the season after Johnson badly mishandled a cross and gave the Timbers a 3-0 lead.

An own goal by Eric Brunner and another goal off the foot of Marco Pappa cut the Timbers' lead to 3-2, but Mamadou Danso was able to restore a two-goal lead after a scramble in front of the net. Danso's goal, which could have very easily been deemed an own goal, probably should have been disallowed as Cooper appeared to handle it near the goal line.

The victory was the first of the season for the Timbers, who lost their first two matches and needed a stoppage-time goal to salvage a tie against the New England Revolution. The win also ends a week in which the Timbers announced a high-profile friendly against Club America and the signing of their first-ever Designated Player, Diego Charra.