Los Angeles FC will set out to book their place in the knockout stages of the Leagues Cup when they welcome Vancouver Whitecaps to the BMO stadium on Wednesday.
The visitors, meanwhile, head to California looking to kick off their cup campaign on a winning note and get back to winning ways having been beaten in their last outing.
Match preview
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Los Angeles FC ran out emphatic 3-0 winners against Mexican side Club Tijuana in Saturday's meeting between the teams.
Two goals from Cristian Olivera either side of Denis Bouanga's strike got the job done for Steve Cherundolo's men in a largely one-sided affair.
Consequently, The Falcons currently sit top of their Leagues Cup group and need just one point from their final outing to make it through to the next phase.
Standing in their way is the challenge of an opposing outfit who boast just one win from the last seven editions of this fixture since the start of 2023.
Unbeaten in 16 of their last 17 home matches across all competitions, Wednesday's hosts have been rock-solid in front of their fans and will take some stopping here.
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Vancouver Whitecaps were left red-faced in their friendly encounter against Wrexham, which ended in a 4-1 thrashing at BC Place on Sunday.
Vanni Sartini's men went into the break trailing to Sebastian Revan's opener right on the half-hour mark but restored parity through Giuseppe Bovalina 10 minutes into the second period before strikes from James McClean, Elliott Lee and Jordan Davies decided the game.
That was a second straight defeat for The Blue-and-White off the back of a six-game unbeaten streak across all competitions prior.
Having picked up three wins and one draw from their last four away outings, Wednesday's visitors will fancy their chances of securing another positive result on the road.
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Team News
Lorenzo Dellavalle is still battling with a knee injury and the Italian will not play any part for Los Angeles FC in this one.
Following his double against Tijuana, Cristian Olivera has scored three times in his last two appearances for the hosts, making him one to keep an eye on.
Ryan Gauld remains sidelined for Vancouver here after he was hauled off with an injury scare in a 4-3 defeat to Houston Dynamo last Sunday.
The away side will also be without the services of defender Tristan Blackmon who remains without an appearance since June due to a groin injury.
Los Angeles FC possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Long, Chanot, Murillo; Palencia, Sanchez, Segura, Campos; Olivera, Kamara, Bouanga
Vancouver Whitecaps possible starting lineup:
Takaoka; Utvik, Veselinovic, Martins; Ahmed, Vite, Cubas, Berhalter; Raposo, White, Picault
We say: Los Angeles FC 3-1 Vancouver Whitecaps
Given their record against Vancouver Whitecaps, Los Angeles FC will fancy their chances of coming away with maximum points and we fully fancy them to get the job done.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Los Angeles FC win with a probability of 54.04%. A win for Vancouver Whitecaps had a probability of 24.38% and a draw had a probability of 21.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Los Angeles FC win was 2-1 with a probability of 9.61%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (7.44%) and 1-0 (7.41%). The likeliest Vancouver Whitecaps win was 1-2 (6.18%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (9.57%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 6.2% likelihood.
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