Janssen’s hat trick shines in Portland’s 5-4 goal spectacular win over Minnesota United

Vincent Janssen writes his name in history in his first start as a Timbers player by scoring the franchise’s first-ever hat trick in its history as an MLS team.

MLS Regular Season Minesota United at Portland Timbers

SEPTEMBER 5, 2026 – PORTLAND, OR: Vincent Janssen (Portland Timbers, 14) scores the partial 2-0 in the first half of the Portland Timbers 5-4 win over Minnesota United (Photo by Diego G Diaz).

It was roughly the 55th minute, ten minutes into the second half. Minnesota had equalized five minutes earlier after a gross error by the Timbers’ back line, with Pantemis losing the ball under pressure from the attackers, leading to a wide-open goal for Marcus Caldeira. Portland’s winger Ariel Lassiter’s run down the right wing delivered a pass into the penalty box for the Dutchman; Janssen turned and fired to the bottom-right corner. With Drake Calender’s vision obstructed by a defender, there was nothing he could do in his last-ditch dive; the ball went by him, inches from the tip of his fingers, and into the net for glory.

Janssen ran to the left corner to celebrate with the fans; Lassiter ran behind him. Per his testimony at the post-match press conference, “Bro, you just made history!” Portland was the only club in Major League Soccer that had never seen a hat trick by the same player in a game; hats and caps were thrown onto the field; the hat trick was finally here!

SEPTEMBER 5, 2026 – PORTLAND, OR: Ariel Lassiter (7) to Janssen (left) “You just made history!” (Photo by Diego G Diaz).

The game had been broken since the 10th minute of the first half, when Vincent Janssen opened the scoring from the penalty spot, forcing the game into a tit-for-tat. Portland went up 3-0 before the half-hour mark. In minute 21, Ariel Lassiter received a pass back from Janssen, drove the ball a few yards, and took a shot from outside the box that hit the crossbar and bounced into the net after hitting Calender in the back, ruling it an own goal. Five minutes later, Janssen completed a pass, this time from David Costa, and the game was looking to head toward a complete rout.

To say that Portland hasn’t been a tidy team in the back end this season would be one of this season’s biggest understatements. A defense that, in 23 games, had managed just a single clean sheet on May 6th, when they routed Sporting Kansas City 6-0 on these same grounds. What looked like it would go the same way as that May game turned into a thriller, with them allowing Marcus Caldeira in the 32nd minute, then Anthony Markanich in the 38th, and, just minutes into the second half, the aforementioned equalizer.

With Janssen’s consecration and the Timbers’ advantage restored to 4-3, the game was far from over; an unlucky Kristoffer Velde, Portland’s left-wing attacker, who had hit the woodwork twice already, got his reward with the fifth goal of the night in the 74th. Tomás Chancalay would close the score for Minnesota and for the evening when he skillfully controlled a lobbed pass in the box from Carlos Harvey for the final 5-4.

Vincent Janssen, the hero of the night, is a talented, clinical striker known for the intensity of his physical play. Born in Heesch, Netherlands, in 1994, he is a veteran of the Eredivisie (top scorer in 2015-16 with AZ Alkmaar) and has played for well-known clubs such as Tottenham Hotspur in England’s famed EPL, Fenerbahçe in Turkey, and CF Monterrey, before joining Portland in July. He has also earned 22 caps for the Dutch national team, including a couple at the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Janssen had played limited minutes coming off the bench this season and had already missed a game due to a double yellow in August during the draw against LAFC. In contrast to his ejection in late August, he had already shown he could be a smart and tidy forward; his experience, on and off the pitch, was already becoming a force for change in this new project under coach Martí Cifuentes, who took the reins from interim coach Jack Cassidy in early August.

He still had yet to prove his mettle as a clinical striker and show that the team could remain an effective offensive force after Kevin Kelsy’s departure to Glasgow Rangers. The fans were relieved to see him enter the scorebooks for the season with that penalty in the 11th minute. None of them were prepared for what happened in that first half, from his first goal to his first brace to his third, which would make everyone forget the Venezuelan striker at least for one night.

In the post-match press conference, he was asked what went through his mind as the stadium sang his name when he was subbed off in the 68th minute, and when he lifted the traditional log with a rudimentary hat carved into it to the fans’ delight: “When, as a footballer, you work so hard, you live for these moments…” Another anecdote about Janssen: he replied to the question in Spanish to my colleague Enrique Caicero from Sol Mañanero, which he speaks alongside perfect English and, of course, his native Dutch.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2026 – PORTLAND, OR: All smiles at the post-match press conference after a 5-4 win by the Timbers over Minnesota United at Providence Park (Photo by Diego G Diaz).