Phil Neville had the option to blame.
He had the potential to make a huge mess. He had the option to squawk.
The Timbers coach had the option to condemn, denounce, and deflect. He had the option to assign blame.
However, Neville didn’t do that following a season-opening loss to Vancouver that seemed a bit too similar to the season-ending one from the previous year. Of course, if he had, nobody would have criticized him, which speaks more to our standards of coaches than it does to Neville.
Neville stated, “I don’t want to make excuses.”
However, it would have made perfect sense if Neville had publicly stated that the performance of a certain Victor Rivas was the reason behind the 4-1 outcome.
The new Timbers do not include Rivas.
He officiated Sunday’s match.
After a brief altercation at the top of the box, Rivas swiftly reached for a red card in the eleventh minute of the match, presumably dismissing defender Kamal Miller. When the Timbers finally came alive in the second half, Rivas again missed what appeared to be a handball on Vancouver.
After the Whitecaps scored on the counterattack, it became an unbeatable 3-0 instead of the shorthanded Timbers perhaps bringing it within 2-1.
As a result, you would have anticipated that the flamboyant Neville would use his extensive knowledge of vivid English idiom to attack Rivas. Instead, he provided one of the most compelling justifications I’ve ever heard for not blaming the referee.
Neville added, “We can sit here and hide behind the referee,” which I will most likely do in a season. However, that isn’t for today. For what reason? We lost that game ourselves, despite my strong thoughts about what I witnessed from the referee. The referee, no.
Let’s dissect that.
Neville stated, “We put a lot of effort into being a compact shape and a really good defensive unit throughout the season, and one ball over the top cost us the game.” Going down to ten men cost us the game, which is why I think it cost us the game. That’s bad placement, bad defense, and a failure to follow the strategy. Right now, it’s all I’m thinking about: how can we make that better?
A lot of coaches have told me to control what you can control. You always have another chance, so don’t blame the officials. However, I doubt I’ve ever heard it presented so clearly and firmly.
Watch what Neville did. Although the referee’s call ultimately ended the Timbers’ chances on Sunday, the defense’s errors in responding to a long pass left Miller alone with Whitecaps forward Brian White, forcing Rivas to make a call.
“That piece of defending for that instant cost us the game, fundamentally,” Neville stated. The referee is not to blame for that.
I adore hearing that if I’m a Timbers supporter. It demonstrates accountability in a manner that blaming the whistleblower will never do. Do I believe Neville is secretly resenting the way the game was called? Without a doubt. However, he concentrated on a more fruitful discussion.
We have a complex connection with referees as a society. We admire them when they draw a card or throw the flag on the opposing team, but when they do it to ours, we believe they are weak, failing athletes on a power trip.
We constantly witness it on a variety of scales.
After he barged onto the ice and shoved two kids who were refereeing his son’s game, a Seattle hockey dad is facing charges. It doesn’t get much worse than that.
However, even though I took the parental oath promising not to do so, I will admit to venting my frustration at my son’s youth basketball game this weekend because I thought the referees had allowed the game to spiral out of control and become dangerous for the children.
When it comes to game officials, it’s always worthwhile to take a temperature reading.
Now, I would argue that Sunday was an especially difficult day for Rivas at work. Furthermore, this is not a volunteer or a teenager laboring for pennies.
Since 2018, Rivas has worked on Major League Soccer games. He was awarded the league’s best referee in 2023. He has so gained the respect of his teammates, coaches, and peers. And Neville’s moderation might have been a reflection of it.
Neville stated that we could spend the entire night discussing some of the choices and say whatever we wanted about Victor.
The handball no-call in the 53rd minute would be the most notable of those. Did that happen to be a handball? Neville remarked, “I think probably everyone in the stadium saw it.”
The crucial element was then added by him: However, it was still 80 yards from the goal.
Yes, it was. Vancouver’s Jayden Nelson won a footrace to the other end and lashed a pass to Sam Adekugbe for the score after the stadium erupted at the no-call.
It destroyed the momentum created by David Da Costa’s arrival after halftime as the new designated player.
The fact that Portland was playing with ten men does not, by itself, account for the frequent backline breakdowns. The Timbers have struggled with it for a long time, and it also makes some people wonder about Neville as he starts his second season as head coach of a young club currently battling with a number of ailments.
The Timbers had six shots versus Vancouver’s twenty-three.
After a turbulent summer and the departure of star midfielder Evander, Sunday was about moving on. Instead of losing to a rival for the second time in a row, it would have been good for the Timbers to start with a victory.
Work needs to be done.
No justifications.
Not even when they’re sitting there waiting to be taken.
–Bill Oramis, The Oregonian/OregonLive’s sports columnist.
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