San Jose Earthquakes set out in search of their first win since May 12 when they go head to head with Chicago Fire at PayPal Park on Sunday.
Having lost each of the last three meetings between the sides, the Men in Red will head into the game looking to get one over the hosts and pick up just their second away win of the season.
Match preview
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San Jose Earthquakes failed to stop the rot as they fell to a 2-0 defeat against fellow strugglers St Louis City when the sides squared off on Thursday.
In a one-sided affair at the CityPark Stadium, Eduard Lowen and Japanese midfielder Hosei Kijima both found the back of the net in the first half to hand the hosts a deserved victory.
San Jose Earthquakes have now lost six games on the bounce and have failed to win any of their last 10 outings across all competitions, claiming one draw and losing nine since scraping a 3-2 victory over Colorado Rapids on May 12.
This poor run of results has seen Ian Russell's men crash out of the US Open Cup as they fell to a shock 4-3 defeat at the hands of USL Championship outfit Sacramento Republic FC in the round of 16 on May 22.
The Quakes have now lost 16 of their 21 MLS matches this season while claiming three wins and two draws to collect 11 points and sit rooted to the bottom of the Western Conference standings.
Having conceded a staggering 56 goals already — 10 more than any other side in MLS — San Jose's defensive vulnerabilities have been a major sticking point, an area needing improvement sooner rather than later if they are to leave the doldrums.
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Chicago Fire, on the other hand, turned in a resilient team display as they fought back from two goals behind to secure a thrilling 4-3 victory over Philadelphia Union at the Soldier Field Stadium on Thursday.
After falling behind to Maren Haile-Selassie's 30th-minute opener, Chris Donovan, Daniel Gazdag and Jackson McGlynn all scored to put Philadelphia in a commanding lead but a late flurry of goals turned the game on its head as Hugo Cuypers scored on either side of Gaston Gimenez's strike in the final eight minutes.
Prior to that, Frank Klopas's side saw their four-match unbeaten run come to an end on June 23, when they suffered a 4-2 loss against Orlando City at the Saputo Stadium, one week before they were beaten 2-1 by Seattle Sounders.
With 21 points from 21 matches, Chicago Fire are currently 13th in the Eastern Conference standings but could move level with eighth-placed Toronto FC should they secure all three points on Sunday.
However, the Men in Red will need to go through a San Jose Earthquakes side who have won each of the last three meetings between the teams, scoring eight goals and conceding twice since a 2-1 loss in June 2018.
Team News
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San Jose Earthquakes will take to the pitch without the trio of Carlos Akapo, Bruno Wilson and Jamar Ricketts, who have been all sidelined through hip injuries.
Thirty-year-old goalkeeper Daniel has been out of action since March through a hamstring problem while fellow goalkeeper James Marcinkowski remains out of contention as he continues his journey to full fitness after suffering an ACL injury.
Meanwhile, Chicago Fire will be without the defensive duo of former Silkeborg man Tobias Salquist and 28-year-old Chase Gasper, who are currently recuperating from leg injuries.
Federico Navarro has been sidelined since May through a muscle injury while Colombian defender Carlos Teran is a major doubt, having missed the game against Philadelphia Union through injury.
Andrew Gutman is ruled out with a leg injury, while experienced forward Xherdan Shaqiri is currently on duty with the Switzerland national team at the ongoing European Championship.
With his brace against Philadelphia Union, Cuypers now boasts seven goal involvements in his last seven games for the Men in Red and the Belgian striker will be one to keep an eye on.
San Jose Earthquakes possible starting lineup:
Yarbrough; Munie, Rodrigues, Beason, Costa; Yueill, Skahan, Tsakiris; Espinoza, Judd, Kikanovic
Chicago Fire possible starting lineup:
Brady; Souquet, Omsberg, Czichos; Arigoni, Acosta, Gutierrez, Herbers, Dean; Cuypers, Haile-Selassie
We say: San Jose Earthquakes 1-2 Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire will be licking their lips as they welcome the challenge of a floundering San Jose Earthquakes side who have picked up just one point in their last nine league games. Off the back of a hard-fought win over Philadelphia, we fancy the Men in Red to secure all three points at PayPal Park.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
