The Portland Timbers of Mamadou Futty Danso will compete against a team other than themselves for the first time late this evening after two weeks of training in Portland. The Timbers shift their training camp to Los Angeles on Monday as they begin a 10-day stay highlighted by a slate of preseason games starting with defending Major League Soccer champion Los Angeles of former English captain David Beckham.

The game against the Galaxy is the first of four preseason games the Timbers will play at the Home Depot Center, home of the Galaxy. The Timbers are scheduled to play against the expansion Montreal Impact of Gambian international Sanna Nyassi (Friday), MLS Cup finalist Houston (Feb. 12) and Chicago (Feb. 15).

The games will be the first opportunity for some players to impress coach John Spencer and his staff. There are a number of undecided starting and backup positionsavailable and live games against another team is one of the best ways to determine who earns roster spots.

Even though some starting spots are already taken, Spencer will use different combinations and give ample time to see which players are most effective. The Timbers will take a long look at trialist Cameroon wing player Franck Songo'o and Spencer has praised the rookies for solid play in the first two weeks of training. "We're going to give everybody the opportunity," Spencer said. "Get (everybody) some minutes, get some games."

The Timbers carried their full roster of players to Los Angeles, however, it's likely that some players won't be accompanying the team when the Timbers return to Portland. Spencer declined to say if he will make roster cuts after the team finishes its training stint in Los Angeles.One likely change will be the expected addition of Kris Boyd. Spencer said the Scottish striker is in the process of acquiring a visa and expects Boyd to join the team in Los Angeles.

Playing different combinations during games will give players such as recently acquired Colombian centerback Hanyer Mosquera a chance to play alongside fellow centerbacks Eric Brunner and Mamadou "Futty" Danso and when Boyd does join the team, he must develop a relationship with the other players. Beyond wins and losses in the preseason games, the trip to Los Angeles will give the players and coaches opportunities to come together and build chemistry as a team.

The games may just be preseason and Spencer talks about continuing to build fitness and camaraderie, but the coach takes every game - preseason, friendlies or regular season - seriously and wants the players adopt the same mentality.