The final California Clasico of this MLS campaign will be the most significant for the Los Angeles Galaxy, who need a victory at Stanford Stadium against the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday to assure they remain above the Western Conference playoff line.
Last weekend, LA captured a 4-1 win at home to the Colorado Rapids, vaulting ahead of Real Salt Lake for that final playoff spot, while the Quakes came back to draw Dallas 1-1 in their previous encounter.
Match preview
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Another disappointing season in Silicon Valley is almost over for the Goonies, who at best could finish the year with 40 points, which would be their worst total in a 34-game regular-season since 2018.
To reach that mark, Alex Covelo's men will have to win three consecutive matches, something which San Jose have not done all season.
Following the dismissal of Matias Almeyda early into this campaign, the Quakes have operated under a more traditional setup, usually a 4-2-3-1, which has them among the league leaders for possession, while their quality play along the wing has enabled their star striker to thrive in a number nine role for the first time in his MLS career.
Those are some of the things that incoming manager Luchi Gonzalez will have to look forward to when he takes charge in 2023.
In the meantime he will need to find out who is best suited to shore up the backline, as the Goonies have allowed the most goals in the Western Conference heading into this weekend (64).
They seem to play with more composure defensively at home, conceding a goal or fewer in four successive contests, and collecting points in four of their previous five home fixtures.
San Jose have found a way to edge the Galaxy in their previous two encounters, beating them 3-2 in July, while they have points in six of their last seven home meetings against them, losing a 3-1 encounter to LA at PayPal Park last year.
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At long last, the Los Angeles Galaxy got the break they needed in their playoff quest, and they have FC Cincinnati to thank, as the Orange and Blue took care of RSL 2-1 last weekend.
Because of that result, the Galaxy's playoff fate now rests in their hands as they currently sit seventh in the Western Conference.
They may be back in control of their postseason destiny, but the margin for error from here on out is razor-thin for Greg Vanney and his side, who are tied with Claret and Cobalt on points, with the Galaxy holding the first tiebreaker, with one more win.
After a subpar second-half performance on the road against the Vancouver Whitecaps last Wednesday, Vanney saw his side show plenty of character to bounce back last weekend, going up 3-0 at home to the Burgundy Boys after just over 30 minutes of action and cruising to a comfortable victory.
The big challenge now will be to find a way to win away from home, something they have only managed to do once in their last nine regular-season affairs.
Two of their final three fixtures will be away from home, although those two road games will be against teams that have already been eliminated from playoff contention (San Jose Earthquakes and Houston Dynamo).
Team News
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Jeremy Ebobisse put home his 16th of the campaign last weekend and has now scored the third-most goals in a single season in club history and the most among all Quakes' players not named Chris Wondolowski, while Cristian Espinoza is third in MLS for assists this year (13).
Espinoza, Ebobisse and former defender Marcos Lopez each found the back of the net in their narrow victory over the Galaxy earlier this season.
Nathan has two goals domestically in 2022, both coming at home, and Benji Kikanovic has exceeded his goalscoring output from 2021, netting one more tally than he had in their previous campaign (five).
Eric Remedi missed their match against Dallas with a yellow card suspension, Carlos Akapo is questionable with a sore right foot and Jackson Yueill has a sprained left foot.
Emi Ochoa was called up to the Mexican national team for the international window, Will Richmond is suffering from an injured nose, Ousseni Bouda has a problem with his left foot and Gilbert Fuentes continues to take time off for personal reasons.
Investing in Riqui Puig has paid off handsomely for LA, as the former Barcelona midfielder became the first player in club history to record three assists in a single MLS match last Saturday.
Raheem Edwards scored in his first match back from suspension a week ago, Gaston Brugman had a brace, his first two goals of the season, and Chicharito tallied his team-leading 15th of the year.
Douglas Costa will not be available after receiving a red card against the Burgundy Boys, while Jonathan Perez and Jorge Villafana remain out with knee injuries.
San Jose Earthquakes possible starting lineup:
Marcinkowski; Thompson, Rodrigues, Nathan, Beason; Gregus, Yueill, Monteiro; Kikanovic, Ebobisse, Cowell
Los Angeles Galaxy possible starting lineup:
Bond; Araujo, Coulibaly, Williams, Edwards; Delgado, Brugman, Vazquez, Puig; Chicharito, Grandsir
We say: San Jose Earthquakes 1-3 Los Angeles Galaxy
San Jose have too many holes defensively to suggest they can contain an attack as potent as the Galaxy for 90 minutes, especially knowing the desperation LA will be playing with because of what they have at stake.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joel Lefevre
