The Portland Timbers have lost their last two road games, and head coach Phil Neville wants them to turn that around at home against Real Salt Lake in MLS.
Portland are unbeaten in their last 10 matches at Providence Park, including a 2-1 win over the New England Revolution in their last such game, but have struggled away from home.
They have suffered three consecutive road defeats, which leaves them fifth in the Western Conference on 33 points, just below Seattle Sounders.
Neville is confident in his team’s mentality on home soil, but acknowledged that their struggles away from home could harm the team later in the season.
“You’re not going to be successful if you don’t have a mentality away from home,” he said. “The last two away performances, for me, are a major concern for this group.
“I’ve told them they need to learn that mentality, and it’s not going to be pretty. You’ve got to play for the team, and if you don’t do that, you shouldn’t be playing.
“We’re all frustrated, and we’re all challenging ourselves to be better, myself included. At Providence Park, I have no doubts [about the team’s mentality], but at this moment in time, we’ve got a lot to learn.”
Real Salt Lake, meanwhile, are 11th in the West, but are within touching distance of the playoffs after a four-game unbeaten streak (W3 D1).
Their only road game during that run ended in a 1-1 draw with Sporting Kansas City, but head coach Pablo Mastroeni is upbeat after their recent results.
“As we head towards the end of the season, our performances should build confidence when the game isn’t going your way,” he told reporters.
“Instead of absolving yourself of defensive responsibilities, you’ve got to have everyone on the team working their tails off to keep the three points. That’s a big step for us.
“We’ve still got a lot of stuff we need to continue to improve on, but I’m really proud of the mentality of the group, especially against Houston [Dynamo].”
Time to chop down the Timber’s
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) July 15, 2025
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Portland Timbers – Felipe Mora
Felipe Mora has scored in all five of his regular-season home matches against Real Salt Lake.
The only player to score in each of his first six home matches against a single opponent was Roy Lassiter against New England from 1996 to 1999.
Real Salt Lake – Justen Glad
Real Salt Lake held just 42% possession in their win over the Houston Dynamo on Saturday, their lowest share of possession all season.
Justen Glad was collected when he had the ball, though. He had the most touches (77), attempted the most passes (67) and completed the most (57) out of all RSL players.
MATCH PREDICTION: PORTLAND TIMBERS WIN
The Portland Timbers have won six of their last eight regular-season home matches against Real Salt Lake (D2), last losing at home to RSL in 2017. Portland have scored at least three goals in five of those eight matches.
And they are unbeaten in 10 straight home matches (W6 D4) after a season-opening defeat to the Vancouver Whitecaps at Providence Park. This is the Timbers’ sixth unbeaten run of 10 or more matches at home in all competitions since debuting in MLS in 2011.
Meanwhile, Real Salt Lake have won only two of 13 away matches in all competitions (D5 L6), dating back to last season’s playoffs. RSL have allowed at least one goal in all 10 of their away matches in the 2025 regular season.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Portland Timbers – 48.4%
Draw – 25.8%
Real Salt Lake – 25.8%