Portland Timbers boss Marti Cifuentes insisted he understood the challenges that come with facing more experienced teams such as upcoming opponents Charlotte FC.

The Timbers have been in poor form, with their last MLS win coming on September 5 against Minnesota United.

Portland's recent results have seen them drop to 11th in the Western Conference, five points behind the Colorado Rapids, who occupy the final postseason spot.

Next up for the Timbers is a home matchup against Charlotte, whose roster features the likes of Allan Saint-Maximin, Tim Ream and Ashley Westwood.

Cifuentes acknowledged the challenge of facing more experienced sides and has urged his players to always be focused.

"When you approach a younger team, you know that they are capable of having a fantastic game," said Cifuentes. "But, at the same time, it can be a little bit up and down.

"While when you face a more experienced team, they know how to handle different situations.

"So even if they don't start the game in the best way, they are more calm, they are more composed, and that's what makes them a difficult team to beat.

"They don't need a lot of possession. They don't need a lot of situations around the box to create chances, because they rely on this composure and this experience that they have with many players."

"When that chance comes, you got to make the most out of it"  This is The Pathway presented by @Allstate with Eric Izoita https://t.co/4o80RZFz0r

— Portland Timbers (@TimbersFC) October 21, 2026

Charlotte are fifth in the East and still have a chance of finishing second in the conference.

They were held to a 2-2 draw by the Philadelphia Union last time out, which came after a 3-1 defeat against the Columbus Crew.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Portland Timbers – David da Costa

David da Costa leads the Timbers in assists this season (eight), and Portland will need the midfielder to be in top form for the remainder of this season.

Since the beginning of the 2024 campaign, the Timbers have been shut out at home in six regular-season matches, and four of those have been in the month of October.

Charlotte FC – Idan Toklomati

Idan Toklomati has scored four goals over his last three matches, netting at least once in all three games.

Toklomati is the fourth different Charlotte player to score in three consecutive MLS matches, and he is looking to be the first to do so in four straight.

MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW

Charlotte earned a draw against Philadelphia despite trailing 1-0 at half-time. Charlotte have lost just one of their last six MLS matches when conceding first (W3 D2) after earning 11 total points in their previous 25 such regular-season matches.

Portland are winless in their last seven outings (D3 L4), most recently a 0-0 home draw against Colorado on Saturday.

The only longer regular-season winless streaks by the Timbers were a nine-game streak in 2024 and eight-game streaks in both 2012 and 2014.

The lone previous meeting between Charlotte and Portland was a 2-0 home win for Charlotte in 2024. Charlotte have won two of their 15 all-time MLS road games against Western Conference teams (D5 L8), with their last win coming in May 2023 at LA Galaxy.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Portland Timbers – 38.5%

Draw – 26.5%

Charlotte FC – 35%