Sports Mole gives a preview of Saturday’s game between Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer, including predictions, team news and possible line-ups.
That Seattle Sounders have the opportunity to extend their home winning streak to three straight domestic games when they host the top MLS team, Los Angeles F.Con Saturday at Lumen Field.
On Tuesday, The Rave Green advanced to the playoffs thanks to a convincing 4-0 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps, while LA defeated the San Jose Earthquakes 3-2 back and forth in late May.
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game preview
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Whenever times have been tough in Seattle, which isn’t often, they can always count on the Vancouver Whitecaps to lift their spirits, and that was the case on Tuesday when the Sounders extended their unbeaten run against them to 15 straight games extended 2017.
While not that impressive, the Rave Green have a solid track record of welcoming the black and gold to the Emerald City. They lost just one of their five home games against them, beating LA by a margin of 9-3 in that span.
Brian Schmezer has brought his side to life of late, winning four of their last five games and keeping two of their last four matches clean.
For years this has been one of the top programs in the entire league, capable of overcoming any kind of adversity and their resilience is showing after a demanding schedule with the CONCACAF Champions League and a string of injuries early in this campaign .
In the last few games we’ve seen the Sounders be strong in the attacking third, scoring on four of their eight shots on goal against the Caps after scoring two of their three shots on target in a 2-1 win at Charlotte FC.
Half of their wins this MLS season have come from behind, conceding first goals in three of their last five encounters but winning twice.
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The international break in LA was used for this Steve Cherundolo are working on some tactical adjustments, particularly in defence, as they have conceded four goals away from home in 2022.
Limiting big chances will be a big focus for them in the coming weeks, an area they hope will be addressed with the signing of an experienced centre-back Giorgio Chiellini.
The tall Italian is littered with accolades, having won nine Scudetto trophies at Juventus and helped the Azzurri triumph at last summer’s Euro. LA hopes its championship history can be the missing ingredient as they aim for their first MLS Cup.
Cherundolo have managed to get the best out of their players for much of the season so far, despite struggling to get off to a good start, conceding seven away goals in the last five league games in the first half.
Their approach isn’t too different from what we saw a year ago, but some new faces have made them a much tougher side to deal with in the transition.
Los Angeles have 13 different players with at least one domestic goal this year, and that kind of depth has proved invaluable for a team that has relied heavily on a player or two to score a goal in years past .
LAFC leads the league with 29 goals, having failed to score in just one domestic game and conceding two away away.
Form of the Seattle Sounders in Major League Soccer:
Form of the Seattle Sounders (all competitions):
Los Angeles FC form of Major League Soccer:
Form of Los Angeles FC (all competitions):
Team News
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Raul Ruidiaz is tied to Freddy Montero for most MLS regular-season goals with Seattle (55) while scoring a brace on Tuesday Alex Roldan clinched his first win of the season in that encounter Danny Leywa made his league debut.
Joao Paulo continues to miss time with a right cruciate ligament tear, Yeimar Gomez Andrade has a right hamstring strain and Stephen Cleveland dropped out due to a laceration on his face.
captain Nicholas Lodeiro scored his third game of the season in the last clash, converting from the penalty spot, while Schmetzer brought five new players into the starting XI on Tuesday Jackson Ragen, Kelly Rowe, Jimmy MedrandaMontero and Leo Chu replaced Albert Russak, Christian Rollan, Jordan MorrisAndrade u Nouhou Tolo.
Ryan Hollingshead was an unexpected contribution from behind for LAFC, earning his fourth-place finish in the campaign in their previous game Christian Arango scored goal number three and Brian Rodriguez fired home the winner against the Quakes, his second in the domestic campaign.
Your top scorer Carlo Vela is questionable with a problem with his left thigh, Franco Escobar has left calf strain and Ismael Tajouri Shradi has a problem in his left quadriceps.
Diego Palacios suffers a head injury Julian Gaines has a sore pelvis Eric Duenas dropped out due to a knee injury.
Jose Cifuentes was one of their best playmakers with three assists Jesus Murillo joined in with a few helpers.
Seattle Sounder’s possible starting lineup:
Free; A. Roldan, Andrade, Arreaga, Tolo; Vargas, Russak; C. Roldan, Lodeiro, Morris; Ruidiaz
Los Angeles FC possible starting line-up:
crepeau; Palacios, Ibeagha, Murillo, Hollingshead; Sanchez, Cifuentes, Acosta; Rodriguez, Arango, Opoku
We say Seattle Sounders 2-1 Los Angeles FC
The Rave Green are full of confidence after Tuesday’s win and if this team is in a groove it’s terrible news for the rest of the league.
As strong as LAFC is, the Sounders have managed them well at home, conceding a goal or fewer on each of their visits to the Pacific Northwest.
For data analysis of the most likely outcomes, goal scores and more for this game, please click here.
top tip
Our expert Tipster partners at Sporita.com predict over 2.5 goals in this game. Click here to find out what else they predict for this game and for more of their football best tips.Above 2.5: data