Seattle Sounders set out to pick up successive home wins for the first time since April when they go head to head with Dallas at Lumen Field on Saturday evening.
The Hoops, on the other hand, are currently on a run of four back-to-back away defeats since the start of June and will head into the weekend looking to end this dry spell.
Match preview
© Reuters
Seattle Sounders failed to return to the top of the Western Conference standings as they suffered a 2-0 defeat against San Jose Earthquakes at PayPal Park on Thursday morning.
Despite seeing less than 40% of the ball possession and being under the cosh for most of the game, goals from Cristian Espinoza and Miguel Trauco helped the Quakes pick up all three points.
Prior to that, Seattle Sounders snapped their five-match winless run on July 2, when they beat Houston Dynamo 1-0 on home turf, one week before claiming a pulsating 3-2 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps.
With 35 points from 23 matches, Brian Schmetzer's men are currently third in the Western Conference standings but could move level with first-placed St Louis City with all three points this weekend.
Elsewhere, Dallas failed to stop the rot as they suffered a disappointing 2-1 defeat at the hands of rock-bottom Colorado Rapids when the sides squared off last Saturday.
In an action-packed contest at Dick's Sporting Goods Park, Sam Junqua put the visitors ahead in the 18th minute but goals from Andreas Maxso and Braian Galvan helped the Rapids turn the game on its head.
Nico Estevez's men head into this weekend's clash on a run of four defeats in their last five matches, with a 2-0 home victory over Los Angeles FC on July 2 being the exception.
The Hoops are currently seventh in the Western Conference table, level on 29 points with sixth-placed Austin FC having picked up eight wins and five draws in their 22 matches so far.
While Dallas will look to return to winning ways, they journey to Lumen Field, where they have failed to win their last five visits, losing three and picking up two draws since September 2019.
Team News
© Reuters
Seattle Sounders remain without the midfield duo of Sota Kitahara and Ethan Dobbelaere, who are currently recuperating from muscle and hamstring injuries respectively.
Ecuador international Xavier Arreaga sustained a muscle injury in June, while first-choice goalkeeper Stefan Frei has missed the last two matches as he follows the concussion protocol.
Experienced midfielder Kelyn Rowe has also missed the last two matches since picking up a muscle problem against Houston Dynamo on July 2 and is also a doubt for the Sounders.
Dallas have several injuries to contend with heading into the weekend, as the likes of defender Antonio Martinez, midfielder Geovane Jesus and striker Paxton Pomykal all continue their spells on the sidelines.
Tarik Scott has been out of action since last September through an ACL injury while Spanish midfielder Jesus Jimenez has missed the last five matches after picking up an ankle problem against Portland Timbers on June 12.
Ghanaian full-back Ema Twumasi, who has 13 league appearances this season, will also play no part in Sunday's game as he also continues his journey back from an ankle injury.
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Cleveland; Baker, Gomez, Ragen, Tolo; Paulo, Vargas; Lodeiro, Rusnak, Chu; Heber
Dallas possible starting lineup:
Paes; Korca, Ibeagha, Burgess; Junqua, Quignon, Cerrillo, Farfan; Lletget, Obrian, Velasco
We say: Seattle Sounders 2-0 Dallas
While Seattle Sounders will be looking to find their feet, they have struggled for results on the road where they have picked up just one point from the last 15 available. Schmetzer's head into the weekend as the more in-form side and given their solid home record against the Hoops, we are backing them to claim all three points.
How to watch
You can watch Seattle Sounders vs. Dallas 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.
