Seattle Sounders vs LA Galaxy

Lumen Field is the venue as out-of-sorts Seattle Sounders and high-flying Los Angeles Galaxy go head-to-head in a mouth-watering MLS fixture.

It has been an embarrassing start to the new MLS campaign for the two-time winners Seattle Sounders, as they’ve lost both league matches by the identical 1-0 scoreline. A goalless half-time score in each fixture suggests first-half action could be at a premium. Seattle’s commanding 3-0 win over Mexican outfit Club Leon in midweek CONCACAF Champions League action could serve as a morale boost. What’s more, the ‘Sounders’ have gone unbeaten in their last six MLS home meetings with LA Galaxy (W3, D3) since a 1-0 defeat in 2016. Interestingly, while Seattle netted 3+ goals in each win, averaging 3.00 per match, all three draws yielded the same 1-1 scoreline, implying this may not be a low-scoring affair after all.

On the other hand, LA Galaxy have won both MLS fixtures this season by an aggregate score of 2-0, scoring the winning goals beyond the 75th minute on each occasion. The travelling support wouldn’t mind another dramatic triumph here, but Galaxy’s seven-game winless MLS streak against Seattle (D3, L4) shows the ‘Sounders’ have been a thorn in their side. Bringing the 2021 MLS campaign into the equation, each of Galaxy’s last three away league matches have featured under 2.5 goals (W1, D1, L1), with two of them seeing the winner on the day keep a clean sheet. That could be frustrating for Greg Vanney’s men, who have drawn a blank in two of their last four MLS visits to Seattle, scoring precisely once per game in the remaining two.