Houston Dynamo will be hoping to secure their first MLS win of the season this Sunday when they play host to Los Angeles FC at Shell Energy Stadium.
After six games in the regular season, the hosts are second-bottom in the Western Conference with just two points, while the visitors are in eighth place with nine points.
Match preview
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Houston Dynamo have stumbled out of the starting blocks this season, having only managed two points from their first six games, coming by way of goalless draws away to Columbus Crew and the Seattle Sounders.
Last week, Dynamo conceded inside the first six minutes against the Portland Timbers, and while they managed to pull level shortly after, a brace by Antony either side of the interval saw them lose the match 3-1, marking their fourth defeat of the season.
What will be particularly concerning for Ben Olsen from their performance against Portland will be that his side only registered a single shot on target despite having the lion's share of possession across the 90.
Houston will now return to the Shell Energy Stadium, where they have already lost both league matches this term and have not tasted victory since beating LA Galaxy at this venue in mid-October last year.
However, the one positive they will carry into this match is that they are unbeaten in their last three home league matches against this opponent and have only lost one of their six encounters between them in the top-flight.
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Meanwhile, Los Angeles FC have made a mixed start to their 2025 campaign, splitting their first six games three wins and three defeats, while scoring eight goals and conceding nine over that period.
In their last league match, the Black and Gold conceded three goals in a space of 20 minutes on the road against San Diego, and while they managed to pull two back before the halftime break, they were unable to find an equaliser after going down to 10 men in the second half.
Despite their mixed league form, Steven Cherundolo and co will enter this match with high spirits, having managed to hold off Inter Miami to a 1-0 victory in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup tie in midweek.
The visitors will need to carry that momentum into this match, as they have lost two of their three away games this season and eight of their nine goals conceded to date came in those defeats.
Team News
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Houston are missing several players at present due to injury, including Lawrence Ennali (knee), Duane Holmes (leg), Jimmy Maurer (muscle), Nelson Quinones (knee) and Andrew Tarbell (knee).
Blake Gillingham made seven saves in his first career MLS start between the sticks for Dynamo last week, and he will almost certainly continue in goal in this match in Maurer's absence.
Andy Batioja, who is on loan from Dynamo 2, also made his MLS debut off the bench against the Timbers and will be hoping to get some more minutes under his belt in this match.
LAFC, on the other hand, will have to make do without the services of holding midfielder Igor Jesus, who was the player sent off early in the second half in the defeat to San Diego last week.
Denis Bouanga was left out for the last league match after returning from international duty with Gabon, but he played the full 90 against Miami in midweek and should be in the squad this weekend.
The visitors have only two confirmed injury absentees for this match, with Lorenzo Dellavalle (thigh) and Jeremy Ebobisse (leg) sidelined for the foreseeable future.
Houston Dynamo possible starting lineup:
Gillingham; Dorsey, Escobar, Awodesu, Steres; Artur, McGlynn; Lodeiro, Bassi, Kowalczyk; Ponce
Los Angeles FC possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Palencia, Long, Segura, Hollingshead; Tillman, Holm, Delgado; Under, Ordaz, Bouanga
We say: Houston Dynamo 2-2 Los Angeles FC
Houston Dynamo have made their worst start to an MLS season and have suffered three consecutive home defeats already this term, conceding two or more goals in each of those matches.
LAFC, on the other hand, have picked up nine points in six games, but they are still some way from their best and have already shipped eight goals on their travels this term. Given these teams' form to date, we feel this one will end level at the final whistle.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
