Preview:Portland Timbers vs. Philadelphia Union - prediction, team news, lineups

Portland Timbers will seek to bounce back from a disappointing defeat last time out when they welcome Philadelphia Union to Providence Park on Sunday.

The away side, meanwhile, remain in search of a first victory and will be keen to get their campaign up and running with all three points this weekend.

Match preview

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Portland Timbers fell to a 1-0 narrow defeat against Houston Dynamo in Sunday's meeting between the sides at the Shell Energy Stadium in Texas.

Phil Neville's men conceded a first-half opener to Aliyu Ibrahim two minutes shy of half time, and that was enough to settle a tight affair.

As a result, the Timbers have dropped down to third place in the Western Conference of the MLS table, three points behind division leaders Minnesota United.

Coming up next is the challenge of an opposing outfit who have won both of the last two editions of this fixture after losing the five meetings prior to that.

Having managed just one win from six home matches either side of the New Year, Sunday's hosts will need to get going in front of their fans.

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Philadelphia Union had to make do with a share of the spoils in a 2-2 draw against Austin FC at the Q2 Stadium on Sunday morning.

Jim Curtin's men opened the scoring through Daniel Gazdag's penalty but soon found themselves behind due to quickfire strikes from Diego Rubio and Jon Gallagher, after which Mikael Uhre restored parity.

With just three points amassed from as many games so far, the Zolos sit 13th in the Eastern Conference standings despite having the best goal difference of all bottom-half teams.

Currently on a run of 11 goals let in from their most recent four away involvements, Sunday's visitors will need to keep things tight at the back to stand any chance of success here.

Team News

Portland Timbers' Claudio Bravo is unavailable due to a muscle problem, while defender Marvin Loria continues to battle with a damaged ankle.

Felipe Mora is unavailable for the home side through injury with Miguel Araujo, Maxime Crepeau and Kamal Miller all away on international duty.

American duo Isaiah LeFlore and Holden Trent are ruled out for Philadelphia Union as they continue to nurse hamstring and knee injuries respectively.

The visitors are also set to be without Leon Flach through injury, while Andre Blake, Daniel Gazdag, Damion Lowe and Jack McGlynn miss out due to international commitment.

Twenty-three-year-old Leon Flach remains sidelined for the visitors but is making progress towards a potential return to action in the coming weeks.

Portland Timbers possible starting lineup: Pantemis; E.Miller, McGraw, Zuparic, Mosquera; Chara, Paredes; Antony, Evander, Moreno; Asprilla

Philadelphia Union possible starting lineup: Semmle,; Wagner, Glesnes, Elliott, Mbaizo; Martinez, Bedoya, Sullivan, Rafanello; Uhre, Carranza

We say: Portland Timbers 2-1 Philadelphia Union

Goals have been a constant theme of this fixture, and we expect this weekend's edition to be no different. That said, we can also see Portland Timbers emerging victorious, albeit by only a narrow margin.

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