Portland Timbers ride hot streak into Audi MLS Cup Playoffs

Portland Timbers ride hot streak into Audi MLS Cup PlayoffsBy Harrison HammThe Portland Timbers are heading to the Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs as one of the league's hottest teams.Portland won their final four regular-season games, including Saturday’s 2-0 Decision Day victory at Austin FC, to clinch the Western Conference's No. 7 seed that avoids the Wild Card and advances directly to Round One. They'll face No. 2 seed FC Dallas later this month in a Best-of-3 Series. “Some weeks ago, it [making the playoffs] was an ambitious target,” said manager Martí Cifuentes, who was hired in July.“Credit to the players who believed in what we were working on and what we were doing.”Decision Day statementPortland’s red-hot attack delivered again on Saturday. Ariel Lassiter opened the scoring inside three minutes at Q2 Stadium, and star Designated Player Kristoffer Velde made it 2-0 with a stunning second-half goal.The pair, alongside David Da Costa, have kicked into gear at the right time. During the four-game winning streak, Lassiter, Velde, and Da Costa have combined to record 9g/4a. Their production spurred Portland's climb back above the red line and secured an unlikely third consecutive playoff appearance. When Cifuentes arrived in the summer, the Timbers faced an uphill battle in a crowded Western Conference.“Everybody has been so supportive,” Cifuentes said. “All of them have been trying to help me as a coach, coming into a new league in the middle of the season… Now, we need to enjoy, and from there, we need to be ready to push again. We’re ready for the next challenge.“The team has grown a lot over the past three months. We are far from perfect. We are far from an end product.”FC Dallas awaitUp next for the Timbers is a Round One Best-of-3 Series against FC Dallas.Led by Croatian international striker Petar Musa (22g/6a), the No. 2 seed scored 60-plus goals in a season for the first time in club history with additional help from Logan Farrington and Uruguayan playmaker Joaquín Valiente.For Portland, the matchup's high-stakes nature will offer a familiar feeling. “We’ve been in playoff mode for the last three to four weeks,” said goalkeeper James Pantemis. “The pressure’s been there. We’ve built this momentum now. We got hot at the right time.“We’ve got to go back to the one-game-at-a-time mentality. The job’s not done yet. We’re just getting started.”HIGHLIGHTS: Austin FC vs. Portland Timbers | November 7, 2026