The moment we’ve all been waiting for in the MLS has finally come, as the MLS Final is upon us this weekend. Atlanta United will play host to the Portland Timbers with the two teams looking for glory in a one-off match. Atlanta United clearly have the upper hand as this match is played in their home ground, but don’t count the Portland Timbers out just yet. They have come a long way in order to be here, but so have the hosts. This is undoubtedly one of the most exciting matches of the weekend for soccer fans around the world.
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Atlanta United did a fantastic job in just their second season in the MLS, and barely lost the Supporters’ Shield too. They were on track to capture the trophy but a loss against the indifferent Toronto FC in the final match of the regular season allowed the Red Bulls to bypass them for the top spot and capture the trophy themselves. Even so, Atlanta United did great in the playoffs, as they brushed off both New York franchises. First came New York City, whom Atlanta United beat by 1-0 in the first leg at home, before doubling their wins with a solid 1-3 at home. They moved to the Eastern Conference semi-finals where they met with the Red Bulls, and Atlanta United was looking to take revenge for the lost Supporters’ Shield. They did great in the first leg at home, beating the Red Bulls by 0-3 and taking a massive advantage ahead of the second leg on the road. They did great there as well, as they only lost by a slim 0-1 that came in the final moments of the match. Atlanta United was really good at home during the regular season (11-2-4), where they also beat New York City FC and the Red Bulls in the playoffs. Moreover, they are undefeated in their last 11 home matches for the MLS but kept just three clean sheets in that span. They also won each of their last six at home, and have scored at least twice in each of their previous eight.
On the other hand, we have the Portland Timbers, who might have struggled a bit during the course of the season but they did great when it mattered the most. They finished at the 5th spot of the Western Conference and had to go through three rounds of playoffs in order to be here. The Timbers knew they had a tough time in the first knock-out round when they had to play a single match on the road against FC Dallas, but they won by 2-1 and moved to the Conference semi-finals. They met with Cascadia rivals Seattle Sounders there and won the first leg at home by 1-2. But they lost the second leg on the road by the same score, and the match eventually went to penalties, where the Timbers were much better and qualified. After that, they met with a very stable Sporting Kansas City side, at least they were throughout the regular season. Things didn’t look very good after a goalless draw in Portland in the first leg. And they looked even worse when Sporting Kansas City took the lead in the second leg on the road. But The Timbers fought their way out of that problematic position and eventually won that match by 3-2 to force their way through to the final. Portland was not very good on the road in the regular season (4-8-5), but lost just once in their last five (3-1-1).