LA Galaxy vs. San Jose Earthquakes Prediction, Preview, and Odds - 8/20/21
The San Jose Earthquakes will look to extend a lengthy unbeaten streak when they visit the Los Angeles Galaxy on Friday night at Dignity Health Sports Park. After a horrendous start, San Jose is now unbeaten in its last nine matches after battling Minnesota United to a 1-1 home draw on Tuesday night with the tie hitting at +135 odds to move into ninth place in the Western Conference at 5-8-7 overall. Los Angeles is in third place in the West at 11-2-7, although it is coming off a 2-1 home loss to the Colorado Rapids on Tuesday as a +103 underdog.
These teams have met twice already this season with Los Angeles winning both matchups, including a 3-1 victory at San Jose on June 26, the last time the Earthquakes lost a game. The Galaxy lead the long-standing in-state rivalry 35-22-29.
San Jose looks to push unbeaten streak to double digits
It’s now been nearly two months since San Jose lost a match, as it was able to overcome a red card on Tuesday night to earn a point against Minnesota United. Minnesota provided some help with an own goal in the 12th to give San Jose the lead, and while the next 10 minutes would be a disaster as Nathan Cardoso got sent off just before the Earthquakes gave up the game-tying strike, they managed to hold on for the next hour plus to force a draw.
As expected, Minnesota dominated statistically being up a man for nearly the entire match, holding 66% possession while managing 15 shots to San Jose’s four. JT Marcinkowski only had to make two saves to preserve the shutout, however, as the Earthquakes escaped with a point despite having just one attempt on target.
San Jose has generally struggled to score goals with an average of 1.10 per game on 12.25 shots per match. The defense has been on a roll lately to fuel the hot streak, bringing its overall season numbers to an average of 1.40 goals on 15.65 shots per match allowed for the season while keeping three clean sheets.
Javier Eduardo Lopez is San Jose’s top scorer with five goals and one assist this season. All-Star Cade Cowell has been terrific at just 17 years old with four goals and four assists, while Cristian Espinoza has a team-high six assists in addition to two goals.
Defemder Tommy Thompson is the biggest name on San Jose’s injury report, as he continues to be sidelined by a knee problem after starting eight games earlier this year. Forward Benjamin Kikanovic has also been out with a thigh issue. Defender Florian Jungwirth was recently sent off in a trade to the Vancouver Whitecaps after starting 13 games for San Jose this season.
Galaxy falter in matchup of Western Conference heavyweights
After briefly moving into first place in the West last weekend, the Galaxy’s four-match unbeaten streak came to an end on Tuesday as they couldn’t break through against a fellow top four team in Colorado. Rayan Raveloson conceded a penalty early on to put the Rapids up but recovered with a goal of his own in the 34th minute, yet that would be it for the Los Angeles offense despite getting better chances as Colorado headed in the game-winner in the 73rd.
Los Angeles will be disappointed not to get a point from the game, as it had 65% possession and racked up 20 total shots, six of which went on target. Derrick Williams was credited with the assist on the lone Los Angeles goal, while goaltender Jonathan Bond made four saves.
The Galaxy are near the top of the table thanks to their offense, which is putting up 1.55 goals and 12.9 shots per match. Los Angeles’ defense has not been as good, allowing 1.50 goals and 14.4 shots per match while keeping four clean sheets.
Raveloson is now Los Angeles’ top currently healthy scorer with five goals and one assist on the season. Julian Araujo leads the team with four assists, while veteran Victor Vazquez has chipped in two goals and three assists.
Unfortunately for the Galaxy, the only name on the injury report is a big one, as Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez is set to miss his ninth straight match with a calf injury. Chicharito has been one of MLS’ brightest stars this season, racking up 10 goals in just 10 matches played.
Side Prediction: San Jose Earthquakes +0.5 (+105)
Total: Under 3 (-130)
This is a tough road match, but the Earthquakes are now running an unbeaten steak of close to two months and look like a completely different team than the first two times they played Los Angeles. Until it falters, betting on San Jose to at least get a result has proven to be a good move lately, especially when Los Angeles is missing its best player by far.
While the team as a whole hasn’t played that poorly since Chicharito went out, the Los Angeles offense has certainly taken a downturn with more than one goal scored in just one of its last six matches. The opposite is true of San Jose, which has surged up the standings thanks to a defense that has allowed just eight total goals during the nine-game unbeaten run.
San Jose has also underperformed its mark of 27.7 expected goals offensively this season, and is scratching out just enough production to get results lately. Beating a good team on the road might be too much for San Jose right now, but it has gotten at least a draw against some strong opposition lately, and will do the same here.
With its top star out, Los Angeles has shifted into being more of a defensive team, and has now allowed a total of four goals over its last six matches as a result. It’s impossible to replace Chicharito’s pace of one goal scored per fame and the Galaxy are having a lot of trouble finishing chances with their current lineup of forwards, so expect a lot of low-scoring games from them in the foreseeable future.
While better lately, the Earthquakes still aren’t lightning up the scoreboard and still rank below average offensively in every statistic, and have to rely heavily on the 17-year-old Cowell. The situation has changed for both teams since they last met, and this one will be more of a defensive struggle based on recent trends.
