Croatia
Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Preview: Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders - prediction, team news, lineups

sportsmole.co.uk, 30 March 2023, 10:14
Los Angeles Galaxy will be seeking to claim their first victory of the 2023 MLS season when they host the Seattle Sounders at the Dignity Health Sports Park in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The hosts have shared the spoils in their previous three outings, while Seattle find themselves in second place in the Western Conference entering this match.

Match preview

Los Angeles Galaxy had to make do with a share of the spoils for the third game running, courtesy of a 0-0 draw with the Portland Timbers at Providence Park last Saturday.

Portland came into the game off the back of a 5-1 loss at Atlanta the previous weekend, and have allowed 10 goals this season, which is the joint-highest in the league.

The Timbers even ended the game with defender Justin Rasmussen between the sticks after David Bingham appeared to suffer a hamstring injury, but Greg Vanney's side could not find a breakthrough, striking the woodwork twice.

That result means the Galaxy have picked up just three points from their four outings so far, leaving them in 11th place in the Western Conference, just one point clear of rock-bottom Colorado Rapids.

Although the Galaxy remain winless, their recent draws against Sporting Kansas City, Vancouver Whitecaps and Portland Timbers means they have now gone three games unbeaten, so Vanney may be quietly confident that his side can claim their first win of the season in front of their own fans this weekend.

As for Seattle, they have began the 2023 MLS season excellently, as 10 points from their opening five games has them in second place in the Western Conference coming into this weekend.

The Sounders got back on track last time out with a 4-1 victory against Kansas City after enduring two games without a win, closing the gap on league leaders St Louis City and resulting in Jordan Morris winning MLS Player of the Week for this four-goal performance.

Morris will be eyeing up this game as an opportunity to extend his lead at the top of the golden boot standings - in the last 13 games, Morris has recorded seven goals against the Galaxy, with five of them coming at Dignity Health Sports Park.

The two sides played out an enthralling 3-3 draw in California last season, but one potential cause for concern for Brian Schmetzer is that his side were not the greatest travellers last year, winning just three of their 17 away outings.

This term, the Sounders have managed one win and one loss from their two away trips so far, but Schmetzer will know that his team's performances on the road must improve vastly if they are to challenge for the biggest honours.

Los Angeles Galaxy Major League Soccer form:

L

D

D

D

Los Angeles Galaxy form (all competitions):

Seattle Sounders Major League Soccer form:

W

W

L

D

W

Seattle Sounders form (all competitions):

Team News

Javier Hernandez has not featured in any of the Galaxy's matches this season, due to a muscle injury which is set to keep him out of this weekend's contest.

Despite having already served his suspension for a sending-off last season, Douglas Costa remains out of contention for the visitors through a torn muscle.

Jonathan Bond looks set to remain on the treatment table for this clash, after picking up an injury against Vancouver, so Jonathan Klinsmann looks set to take his place between the sticks once again.

As for the visitors, Heber is back in full training in ahead of this weekend's matchup with the Galaxy, although this match may come too soon for him to feature.

Alex Roldan and Nouhou Tolo could return to the starting XI after being away on international duty, while Leo Chu tallied four assists against Kansas City - making him the first player in club history to do so - so he could be rewarded with a starting place here.

Los Angeles Galaxy possible starting lineup:

Klinsmann; Calegari, Caceres, Neal, Edwards; Brugman, Delgado, Puig; Alvarez, Boyd, Joveljic

Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:

Frei; Roldan, Ragen, Gomez Andrade, Tolo; Joao Paulo; Roldan, Lodeiro, Rusnak, Morris; Ruidiaz

We say: Los Angeles Galaxy 0-2 Seattle Sounders

The Galaxy have shown in recent weeks that they have shored things up defensively by only conceding one goal in the past three games, but by the same token, they have only scored one goal during that time.

LA seem to be missing Javier Hernandez's goals while Seattle seem to be growing in confidence, so we think they will have too much firepower for Greg Vanney's side.

How to watch

You can watch Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders and every MLS match this season live on Apple TV. Click here for more details on how to subscribe.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Previews by email

Top News

23 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United transfer target Randal Kolo Muani is very likely to leave Paris Saint-Germain in the January transfer window, according to reports. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City have reportedly set their sights on West Ham United attacker Mohammed Kudus, with Pep Guardiola keen to strengthen his struggling squad. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly set to rival Arsenal for the signature of Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic in the summer of 2025. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk The final Premier League gameweek before Christmas appropriately served up some crackers, including a festive feast of goals in North London, where Liverpool ran riot in an exhilarating 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Even when the pulse settled a little after this compellingspectacle it was still difficult to know quite where to start todissect this nine-goal thriller. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Ange Postecoglou cut an irritated figure as he claimed he's going to stop answering questions about Tottenham's tactics. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Tottenham Hotspur have supposedly expressed an interest in signing Borussia Dortmund attacker Julian Brandt next month. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool's Mohamed Salah refused to give anything away when asked whether he could break Ian Rush's all-time goalscoring record after the Reds' remarkable 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool's astonishing 6-3 Premier League win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday evening saw a multitude of records and achievements surpassed, as the Reds moved four points clear at the top of the table. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Al-Ahli have reportedly emerged as the favourites to sign Marcus Rashford, with the Manchester United attacker widely expected to be on the move during the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Everton have become surprise leaders in one statistic across Europe thanks to their draw at home to Chelsea. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool will spend Christmas Day four points clear at the top of the Premier League table thanks to a breathtaking 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur in North London. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Kylian Mbappe struck a landmark effort to put himself firmly among Real Madrid's elite. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has insisted that he is "absolutely happy" with his side's goalless draw at Everton on Sunday. 22 December 2024 talksport.com If you thought Mohamed Salah couldn't set yet another record, think again. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk For a second time in successive Gulf Cup competitions, The United Arab Emirates and Kuwait will meet in the group stage, with this upcoming game taking place on Tuesday at Jaber Al-Amad International Stadium in Kuwait City. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong is supposedly not a 'concrete target' for Liverpool amid speculation over Trent Alexander-Arnold's future. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid moved into second spot in the La Liga table courtesy of a 4-2 success over Sevilla in Sunday afternoon's contest at Bernabeu, with Los Blancos ending 2024 on a high note. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Oman and Qatar will compete in the Gulf Cup for the first time in over a decade on Tuesday at Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, each seeking their first victory in this edition of the tournament. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have reportedly received offers from three clubs for defender Eric Garcia, but the player is pushing against a move away from Catalonia during the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United have broken two unwanted club Premier League records in their humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk New Wolverhampton Wanderers' boss Vitor Pereira earned three points when his side comfortably beat Ruud van Nistelrooy's Leicester City 3-0 away from home on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Aaron Ramsdale was spotted wearing a modified goalkeeper glove in Southampton's Premier League clash at Fulham. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea squandered the chance to go top of the Premier League table for a couple of hours as Everton held the Blues to a goalless stalemate at Goodison Park. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Djed Spence has been named in the Tottenham Hotspur starting XI for their Premier League clash with Liverpool, while Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo get the nod up front for the visitors. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Manchester United were beaten 3-0 by Bournemouth in a defeat that saw Ruben Amorim's side achieve an unwanted record. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Gary Neville believes that Ruben Amorim will allow Marcus Rashford to leave Manchester United for the sake of 'himself and the club'. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Pep Guardiola isn't immune from the sack at Manchester City having continued their unprecedented and dismal run of form. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United have reportedly earmarked Leeds United shot-stopper Illan Meslier as one of two goalkeeper targets ahead of the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly identified Burnley's James Trafford as their top transfer target for the January transfer window.