Portland's Comeback Over Tijuana Was the Right Way to Start an Era
New coaches usually get judged on results. Martí Cifuentes got something more useful in his Portland debut: proof his team could fall behind and not panic.
Tijuana took the lead in the 19th minute when Mourad El Ghezouani converted a cross from Alan Vega. Instead of unraveling, Portland leveled it in the 40th minute through Kevin Kelsy, who finished off a buildup from David Da Costa and Jimer Fory. The second half belonged entirely to the home side. Kelsy was denied a second goal by Tijuana keeper Sebastian Hernández, but pounced on the rebound to set up Anthony Alves for the go-ahead goal in the 64th minute, before Ariel Lassiter added a third, sealing a 3-1 win. Leagues Cup + 2
The numbers behind the scoreline back up what the eye test suggested. Portland led the match in shots 16-7, possession 61 to 39 percent, and passing accuracy 92 to 81 percent, according to figures published by the club. This wasn't a team riding a bounce. It was a team that dictated the terms of the game and eventually got what that dominance deserved. OurSports Central
It's now Portland's fourth come-from-behind result in their last six competitive matches, a pattern that says something about the squad's temperament under pressure regardless of who's patrolling the touchline. Cifuentes took over from interim coach Jack Cassidy, who had gone 3-0-1 in MLS play and 1-1 in the Leagues Cup while filling in after Phil Neville was fired in May.
None of this changes Portland's group-stage elimination. Results elsewhere on the night meant the win came too late to matter for qualification. But if the job for any new coach is to find out quickly whether a team will fight when a game turns against it, Cifuentes got his answer inside 40 minutes.
