Watch live online as the Portland Timbers make the trip south down the west coast, heading to Carson, California, where they’ll take on the Los Angeles Galaxy Sunday afternoon with a spot in the 2015 Major League Soccer playoffs on the line. The Timbers currently sit in the Western Conference seventh position, but tied on points with a game in hand over the San Jose Earthquakes.
Even a tie should lift Portland into the playoffs with the MLS season winding up next weekend.
For the defending MLS champion Galaxy, who have already secured a playoff berth and a shot at retaining the Cup, the Sunday visit from the Timbers offers an opportunity to gain on FC Dallas and New York Red Bulls in the race for the Supporters Shield, the league’s award for the team with the best regular season record, as well as chance to improve their playoff seeding.
But the game comes amid rumors that recent import Steven Gerrard may cut his stay in Los Angeles short, making a return to Liverpool, the English Premier League Club that he captained, and where he played from the start of his youth career in 1987 until leaving for the Galaxy after the 2014-2015 English season.
According to a report in Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper , the recent appointment of Jurgen Klopp as new manager of Liverpool after the dismissal of Brendan Rodgers has Galaxy brass “worried” that the former Borussia Dortmund boss may try to tempt Gerrard back to Liverpool, possibly with an offer of a coaching position.
Gerrard arrived in Los Angeles in June on an 18-month contract with the Galaxy. A sudden departure would throw the MLS club’s plans for next season, and possibly even this season’s playoffs, into turmoil.
To find out how to watch the Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Portland Timbers MLS Sunday late game live online, see the streaming link in the final paragraph of this article. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. Pacific Time on Sunday, October 18, at the StubHub Center in Carson — a suburb just south of Los Angeles — 7 p.m. Eastern Time.
The Galaxy will likely be without their other top international star for Sunday’s match, with Mexican icon Giovani Dos Santos still nursing a strained hip — but Dos Santos was seen practicing with the team this week and according to reports out of the Galaxy camp, the Mexican superstar may attempt to get into Coach Bruce Arena’s starting lineup after all.
Galaxy goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts will be attempting to stop his former team — Ricketts played for the Timbers from 2012 to 2014.
“They’re a very tough team to play against. When they play on the road they keep their shape. They’re very compact and make it hard to give up goals.”
If history is any indication, the Timbers face an uphill battle to get a win in Sunday’s game. Portland has never won in Los Angeles, losing five times and drawing two matches.
At the same time the Galaxy have won seven of their last eight matches at the StubHub Center, with no losses and just the one draw.
Can the Portland Timbers save their season with a big but improbable win on the road over the Galaxy? Or will Los Angeles continue to dominate the Timbers and take a step close to a Supporters Shield as well as a potential second consecutive league championship? To find out, watch the Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Portland Timbers MLS match live online from StubHub Center in Carson, California, by visiting Fox Sports Go at this link , or by paying for a subscription to Fox Soccer2Go, available at this link .
[Featured Image: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images]
