Dairon Asprilla is building a case as an Audi 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs specialist, and he'll get more of a chance to burnish that reputation for the Portland Timbers on Sunday.
Asprilla, commonly a substitute for the Timbers, both throughout his MLS career and this year under head coach Giovanni Savarese, enters the starting XI for Portland in their Western Conference Championship Leg 1 match at Providence Park against Sporting Kansas City, replacing Andy Polo.
According to The Oregonian reporter Jamie Goldberg, Polo is out of the 18 altogether for the match due to a calf strain during a stint with Peru during the recent international break.
Asprilla played a vital role for the Timbers in their previous playoff series, coming off the bench in the second leg and scoring a go-ahead goal in extra time against the Seattle Sounders in Seattle, before hitting the clinching penalty in the shootout to win the series. In his career, the Colombian has five goals and six assists in 79 career MLS regular season appearances, but he has three goals and four assists in 10 MLS Cup Playoffs appearances to date.
Meantime, Sporting KC line up with what they expected to roll with for this game, as Khiry Shelton replaces the suspended Diego Rubio up top for Peter Vermes' men.
