Austin had the ball but Portland's early goal and keeper decided it

Portland won 2-0 at Austin with less of the ball and fewer shots, holding a three-minute lead on the strength of a goalkeeper who made seven saves.

Ariel Lassiter put Portland ahead in the third minute, assisted by Vincent Janssen, and Kristoffer Velde doubled the lead in the 70th. In between, Austin had most of the ball and plenty of the play, yet came away with nothing. Austin's home games this season have averaged 1.3 goals scored, and this one produced none.

Austin had 59% of the possession, which is well above the 49.8% they usually keep at home. Possession simply means how long a side has the ball, and a team with that much of it would normally expect to create the bulk of the chances. Austin did get forward often, but the balance of quality tells a more complicated story.

Austin took 16 shots, comfortably above their home average of 11.3, and nine of them came from inside the box. Expected goals, or xG, is a way of scoring each shot by how likely it was to go in, based on where it was taken from and how it was struck. Austin's total of 0.68 sat below their usual 0.97 at home, so the shots were, on balance, poorer chances than their volume suggested.

Portland had only 41% of the ball, which is under their usual share of 50.8% away from home, and they managed nine shots against an average of 14.5. Their expected goals figure of 0.42 was also well short of their normal output of 1.59 on the road. Much of their night was spent defending, and the goalkeeper J. Pantemis was the reason it held, making seven saves to keep Austin off the scoresheet.

Velde's goal came after a pass from Ian Smith, who had come on in the 77th minute and set up the finish within seconds of his arrival. Austin's reply was limited to a couple of half chances, and the final score of 2-0 gave Portland their second goal of the match against an average of 1.8 scored per away game. Austin conceded two, close to their usual 1.9 at home, so the defeat was not a sudden collapse at the back.

Austin sit 14th in the table with 34 points from 33 matches, while Portland are eighth with 43 from the same number of games. In their last six matches Austin have won once, whereas Portland have won three and drawn two. For Austin the defeat leaves another home result to explain, and for Portland it adds to a run that has been steadier than most on the road.

Player of the matchJ. Pantemis7 saves9.6

K. Velde1 goal8.0

A. Lassiter1 goal7.7

Jorge Alastuey2 chances created7.2