Seattle Sounders vs. San Jose Earthquakes Prediction, Preview, and Odds - 7/31/21
Seattle is in first place in the Western Conference and play host to a San Jose team that has been all about the draw as of late.
San Jose has played to a draw in their last four matches and is winless in their last 11 matches. In that span, they lost at home 1-0 to the Sounders and the club is in the 11th spot in the West with only 14 points in 15 matches.
Seattle is in the top spot in the West and they have the second-most points in MLS. However, the club is not in form coming off a bad loss and they have dropped two of their last three matches.
A Couple of Ones, Once Again
In their last match San Jose was at home and played to a 1-1 draw with Houston and it was their third straight match that ended 1-1. In the draw with Houston Zarek Valentin was given credit for the Earthquakes goal on an own goal. In the draw San Jose won the time of possession battle (65% to 35%) and had more shots but only had two shots on targets while Houston had five.
San Jose has had issues on both sides of the pitch this season and while the club has only scored three goals in their last three matches, they have only conceded three goals. Their D played a solid match in the 1-0 loss to Seattle earlier this season but were shut out despite six shots on target. FW Benjamin Kikanovic is listed as questionable for this match due to injury. Cade Cowell and Javier López have combined for seven goals this season and Cowell and Cristian Espinoza lead the Earthquakes with four assists apiece.
Not a Good Opening Half
Seattle was at home in their last match losing 3-1 to Kansas City where they were outscored 2-0 in the first half. Fredy Montero scored the lone goal in the loss, which had nearly even time of possession, where Seattle had more shots (13-7) and more shots on target (6-4).
The Sounders attack has been solid on the season, but they have only scored two goals in their last three matches. Raúl Ruidíaz leads the MLS with 11 goals, and he has two goals in his last four matches. DF Nouhou Tolo is listed as questionable for this match with an injury and the MF duo of Alex Roldan and Cristian Roldan are out due to international duty. The loss to Kansas City was Seattle’s first home loss of the season and they are winless in their last two home matches.
Pick: Seattle -163
The Earthquakes are winless in their last 11 matches, and they have played to a draw in their last four matches. Their defense has been solid as of late only allowing one goal in each of their last three matches, but they have also only scored one goal in each of their last three matches. Seattle has lost two of their last three matches and their attack has not looked good as of late. However, they have more scoring options and a better defense than San Jose. I see the Earthquakes putting up a good fight in this one and playing good defense, but the Sounders will squeak by and get the win extending San Jose’s winless streak.
Total: Under 2.5 goals
I am leaning towards the Under in this match and that was the winning pick in the earlier season matchup between these two conference rivals. Seattle has only scored two goals in their last three matches and San Jose has scored one goal in each of their last three matches, which were all draws. In the early season match between these teams, it was a defensive affair in the 1-0 Sounders win. Look for the same type of match in this one, as Seattle will be cautious not in top form. Not much offensive fireworks will occur in this one, which is why the Under is the money pick.
