Deadspin | LAFC brings record clean-sheet start into game vs. skidding Portland 
Apr 7, 2026; Los Angeles, CA, USA; LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris (1) defends the goal against Cruz Azul in the first half of a Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal at BMO Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images The Portland Timbers will try to snap a five-match winless streak when they host Western Conference-leading Los Angeles FC on Saturday afternoon.
The question heading into the match is not whether the Timbers (1-4-1, 4 points) can win the game, but rather can they at least score a goal?
LAFC (5-0-1, 16 points), led by former French national team and Tottenham Hotspur star Hugo Lloris in goal, have set an MLS record with six straight clean sheets to start a season.
Lloris, who helped lead France to the 2018 World Cup, has made 22 saves in the six contests, including six in last week’s 6-0 victory over Orlando City.
“We don’t go into games thinking about, ‘Oh, we have to keep a clean sheet,'” Los Angeles coach Marc Dos Santos said. “We go into games thinking about what we have to do as a group, collectively.”
To that end, LAFC is tied for second in goals scored in MLS with 14. Forward Denis Bouanga leads the team with four goals, including a hat trick that took just 28 minutes to complete against Orlando, while Son Heung-Min leads the league with seven assists.
The only blip on LAFC’s record so far this season is a 0-0 draw at Austin FC on March 21.
Portland, which is 0-4-1 in its last five matches since a season-opening 3-2 home victory over the Columbus Crew on Feb. 21, has allowed a Western Conference-worst 15 goals while scoring nine times.
The Timbers come in off a 3-2 loss at MLS Cup runner-up Vancouver last Saturday in which they allowed two goals in second-half stoppage time to take a shocking defeat.
Portland coach Phil Neville knows his squad faces a big challenge on Saturday.
“They’re a team that has not conceded any goals this season and they don’t give away many chances,” Neville said. “In terms of attacking play, I think we’re going to have to be really, really, really good in our attacking play, our attacking movements and our attacking control.”
–Field Level Media
#Deadspin #LAFC #brings #record #cleansheet #start #game #skidding #Portland
Apr 7, 2026; Los Angeles, CA, USA; LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris (1) defends the goal against Cruz Azul in the first half of a Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal at BMO Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images The Portland Timbers will try to snap a five-match winless streak when they host Western Conference-leading Los Angeles FC on Saturday afternoon.
The question heading into the match is not whether the Timbers (1-4-1, 4 points) can win the game, but rather can they at least score a goal?
LAFC (5-0-1, 16 points), led by former French national team and Tottenham Hotspur star Hugo Lloris in goal, have set an MLS record with six straight clean sheets to start a season.
Lloris, who helped lead France to the 2018 World Cup, has made 22 saves in the six contests, including six in last week’s 6-0 victory over Orlando City.
“We don’t go into games thinking about, ‘Oh, we have to keep a clean sheet,'” Los Angeles coach Marc Dos Santos said. “We go into games thinking about what we have to do as a group, collectively.”
To that end, LAFC is tied for second in goals scored in MLS with 14. Forward Denis Bouanga leads the team with four goals, including a hat trick that took just 28 minutes to complete against Orlando, while Son Heung-Min leads the league with seven assists.
The only blip on LAFC’s record so far this season is a 0-0 draw at Austin FC on March 21.
Portland, which is 0-4-1 in its last five matches since a season-opening 3-2 home victory over the Columbus Crew on Feb. 21, has allowed a Western Conference-worst 15 goals while scoring nine times.
The Timbers come in off a 3-2 loss at MLS Cup runner-up Vancouver last Saturday in which they allowed two goals in second-half stoppage time to take a shocking defeat.
Portland coach Phil Neville knows his squad faces a big challenge on Saturday.
“They’re a team that has not conceded any goals this season and they don’t give away many chances,” Neville said. “In terms of attacking play, I think we’re going to have to be really, really, really good in our attacking play, our attacking movements and our attacking control.”
–Field Level Media
![Miami Grand Prix: Forecasted weather forces earlier start Weather forecasts have forced an earlier start to Sunday’s Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.All week long, the incoming weather for Sunday was a major focus of discussion. With forecasts calling for thunderstorms and heavy rain late on Sunday afternoon, coinciding with the scheduled start time for the Miami Grand Prix, F1 officials and even the drivers themselves wondering if the schedule would be altered.This evening, that decision was made by race officials.In a statement released Saturday night, following the qualifying session, the start time for the Miami Grand Prix was pushed up three hours, to 1:00 p.m. Eastern on Sunday. The statement cites the forecasts of “heavier rainstorms” close to the original start time, and notes that the decision was made to “ensure the maximum possible window to complete the Grand Prix in the best conditions and to [prioritize] the safety of drivers, fans, teams and staff:”Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli, the current Drivers’ Championship leader, secured pole position for Sunday’s race. Four-time Drivers’ Champion Max Verstappen will start alongside him on the front row. #Miami #Grand #Prix #Forecasted #weather #forces #earlier #start](https://i2.wp.com/platform.sbnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/05/gettyimages-2274207014.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C10.738219895288%2C100%2C78.523560209424&w=1200&ssl=1 "Miami Grand Prix: Forecasted weather forces earlier start Weather forecasts have forced an earlier start to Sunday’s Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.All week long, the incoming weather for Sunday was a major focus of discussion. With forecasts calling for thunderstorms and heavy rain late on Sunday afternoon, coinciding with the scheduled start time for the Miami Grand Prix, F1 officials and even the drivers themselves wondering if the schedule would be altered.This evening, that decision was made by race officials.In a statement released Saturday night, following the qualifying session, the start time for the Miami Grand Prix was pushed up three hours, to 1:00 p.m. Eastern on Sunday. The statement cites the forecasts of “heavier rainstorms” close to the original start time, and notes that the decision was made to “ensure the maximum possible window to complete the Grand Prix in the best conditions and to [prioritize] the safety of drivers, fans, teams and staff:”Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli, the current Drivers’ Championship leader, secured pole position for Sunday’s race. Four-time Drivers’ Champion Max Verstappen will start alongside him on the front row. #Miami #Grand #Prix #Forecasted #weather #forces #earlier #start")
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