Major League Soccer returns with a fresh set of fixtures as Dallas and Seattle Sounders go head to head at the Toyota Stadium on Saturday evening.
Both sides, who were involved in a share of the spoils in their last outings before the international break, will look to take the positives from those results and return to winning ways.
Match preview
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Dallas turned in a resilient team performance on September 3 when they fought back from behind to salvage a 2-2 draw against Atlanta United at the Toyota Stadium.
Giorgos Giakoumakis and Saba Lobjanidze found the back of the net to cancel out Paul Arriola's fourth-minute opener and put the visitors in front before Bernard Kamungo struck in the 62nd minute to force a share of the spoils.
Prior to that, Dallas snapped their run of three straight matches without a win on August 27, when they scraped a 1-0 victory over Austin FC, four days before suffering a 2-1 loss at St Louis City.
With the result against Atlanta United last time out, Nico Estevez's side are now unbeaten in four of their last five MLS home matches, picking up three wins and one draw since June.
Dallas have now collected nine wins, seven draws and lost 10 of their 26 MLS matches to collect 34 points and sit ninth in the Western Conference standings, albeit with two games in hand.
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Seattle Sounders, on the other hand, were denied successive wins for the first time since July as they were held to a 2-2 draw by a resilient Portland Timbers side after blowing their two-goal first-half lead at Lumen Field.
In a game where Leo Chu received his marching orders, goals from Raul Ruidiaz and Chu put the hosts in a commanding lead heading into half time before Dairon Asprilla and Evander scored in a three-minute spell to force a share of the spoils.
This followed a 2-1 victory at Austin on August 31, when Jordan Morris and Albert Rusnak scored either side of Sebastian Driussi's 72nd-minute equaliser to end their run of six consecutive games without a win across all competitions.
Brian Schmetzer's men have now picked up 41 points from their 28 MLS matches so far to sit second in the Western Conference standings, seven points adrift of first-placed St Louis City.
While Seattle Sounders will be looking to return to winning ways, they are without success in 11 of their last 12 visits to the Toyota Stadium, losing eight and claiming three draws since September 2014.
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Team News
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Dallas remain without the services of 18-year-old forward Tarik Scott, who continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines through an ACL injury.
With his assist against Atlanta United last time out, Jesus Ferreira has now been involved in 11 goals this season and the 22-year-old should spearhead the Cows attack once again, alongside strike partner Alan Velasco.
As for Seattle Sounders, Schmetzer will be unable to call upon the services of Brazilian winger Chu, who is currently suspended after picking a red card against Portland last time out.
In his absence, veteran forward Nicolas Lodeiro should return to the starting XI, teaming up with Rusnak, Morris and 33-year-old striker Ruidiaz in the final third.
On the injury front, the visiting side will be without the duo of Dylan Teves and Kelyn Rowe, who are currently recuperating from hamstring and muscle injuries respectively.
Dallas possible starting lineup:
Maurer; Jesus, Ibeagha, Martinez, Farfan; Kamungo, Illarramendi, Fraser, Arriola; Ferreira, Velasco
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Frei; Roldan, Gomez, Ragen, Tolo; Paulo, Vargas; Morris, Rusnak, Dobbelaere; Ruidiaz
We say: Dallas 1-1 Seattle Sounders
Dallas and Seattle Sounders have struggled for results in recent weeks and will head into the weekend in search of a pick-me-up. Both sides are closely matched on paper and we predict that they will cancel out each other's efforts in this one.
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Top tip
Joshua Ojele
