Two sides separated by 10 points in the Major League Soccer Western Conference table will do battle at Lumen Field on Saturday, as Seattle Sounders entertain Portland Timbers.
Despite suffering a defeat to San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday, the hosts sit at the summit of the division, while their visitors find themselves 10th after back-to-back losses.
Match preview
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After a disappointing season last time around, in which they finished 11th in the Western Conference and missed out on the playoffs as a result, Seattle Sounders have enjoyed a far more positive start to the 2023 MLS campaign, currently sitting atop their division with 26 points from 16 league outings.
In those games, Brian Schmetzer's side have managed eight victories, including five in the opening seven matches of the term, although they have been unable to continue at that rate since, with 10 further points coming from the last nine games.
Following a 1-0 win away at Houston Dynamo in mid-May, courtesy of Paul Rothrock's 87th-minute goal after the hosts saw two players sent off, the Sounders would suffer back-to-back defeats at the hands of Austin FC and Vancouver Whitecaps before scoring their latest victory at home to New York Red Bulls last weekend, with Jordan Morris netting the only goal of the game in the first half.
On the back of that return to winning ways, Schmetzer's men most recently welcomed San Jose Earthquakes to Lumen Field on Wednesday, but they were unable to build another positive run of results, instead falling to a 1-0 defeat having been unable to draw level after Jeremy Ebobisse put the visitors ahead at the beginning of the second half.
While they do remain at the summit of the Conference even after that result, Seattle Sounders' position is far from secure having played the joint-most matches thus far, and with St Louis City and Los Angeles FC both just a point behind with three and four games in hand respectively, they must focus on correcting their form and at least ensuring they remain at the right end of the table in the coming weeks.
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They meet a side who are also seeking improvement, with Portland Timbers having failed to kick into gear so far this season.
After amassing just five points from their first seven MLS games, Giovanni Savarese's men did briefly see some improvement between mid-April and mid-May, picking up three victories from a five-match span culminating in a 3-1 beating of Vancouver Whitecaps thanks to Franck Boli's early opener and an Evander brace, but they have been unable to continue that run since.
The triumph was followed by a goalless draw away at fellow strugglers Real Salt Lake, and the Timbers are now on the back of consecutive defeats, firstly being beaten 1-0 by Minnesota United, with Bongokuhle Hlongwane's decisive goal coming deep into injury time, before they most recently travelled to take on Sporting Kansas City on Sunday and came away empty-handed again.
Boli put Portland Timbers ahead inside 10 minutes, but Erik Thommy levelled the scores in the first half before Daniel Salloi and Felipe Hernandez got on the scoresheet for the hosts alongside a Larrys Mabiala own goal in an eventual 4-1 home victory.
Having now dropped back to 10th spot with just 16 points from their 15 games, Savarese's men will be keen to truly kickstart their campaign with an upturn in form starting on Saturday when they travel to the Conference leaders.
Team News
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Seattle Sounders could remain without key attacker Jordan Morris, who was forced off shortly after netting his ninth league goal of the season in their win over New York Red Bulls last weekend, while midfielder Cristian Roldan is also sidelined with an injury.
They will, however, welcome Joao Paulo back into the engine room after he served a suspension last time out, with the Brazilian likely to join Albert Rusnak in the centre in a 4-2-3-1 setup.
Morris shone on the right wing in the first months of the campaign, and Dylan Teves could again play there in his absence on the opposite flank to Leo Chu, while Heber and Raul Ruidiaz will likely battle to lead the line having each netted two league goals this term.
Giovanni Savarese may look to make several changes to his Portland Timbers side after their heavy defeat last time out, although he will be unable to call on experienced attacker Yimmi Chara, who saw his substitute appearance cut short due to an injury concern.
Franck Boli will continue to lead the line, having netted his third league goal of the season last weekend, while Evander is another key attacking threat in the middle of a supporting trio behind the front man, with the Brazilian having contributed four MLS goals and two assists since arriving from Midtjylland in the off-season.
Sebastian Blanco, Marvin Loria and Jaroslaw Niezgoda are both vying to come into the attacking unit from the outset on Saturday, while Cristhian Paredes and Diego Chara are unlikely to see as much competition for their spots in the engine room.
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Frei; A Roldan, Ragen, Arreaga, Tolo; Rusnak, Paulo; Teves, Lodeiro, Chu; Ruidiaz
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Ivacic; Mosquera, McGraw, Mabiala, Bravo; D Chara, Paredes; Niezgoda, Evander, Loria; Boli
We say: Seattle Sounders 2-1 Portland Timbers
Although Seattle Sounders have not been at their best in recent weeks, Schmetzer's side do have plenty of quality and should do enough to get over the line at home to an out-of-sorts Timbers team who have struggled particularly in defence.
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Top tip
Sam Varley
