For the second consecutive season, the Portland Timbers host the Western Conference wild-card game when Real Salt Lake visits on Wednesday night.

But the hope that greeted manager Phil Neville's first playoff appearance in 2024 has been replaced with frustration that the Timbers couldn't finish higher than eighth in the West in his second.

Portland lingered higher than that in the table for much of the season, before ending on a run of only one win in 10 league games.

The team's two center forwards, Kevin Kelsy and Felipe Mora, combined for only 12 goals and just two since the beginning of August. And the Timbers head into the wild-card game having been roughed up 4-0 by Western Conference top seed San Diego on Saturday in both teams' regular-season finale.

But a shot at revenge agains

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