Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs LA Galaxy Prediction, Preview, And Odds - 7/17/21
Vancouver welcomes LA Galaxy to Rio Tinto Stadium in Utah, their temporary home for the season, on Saturday night in a crucial Western Conference tilt. The two teams have already met once this year, June 23rd in Rio Tinto in what was a 2-1 win for the Galaxy. It was a great three points for the away side, who found an extra-time winner to seal the deal. Galaxy got the scoring started in the 47th minute, only to see Vancouver seemingly grab a tie with a stoppage time goal. Galaxy shocked everyone though, scoring just a minute later to silence the away crowd and head back to Los Angeles over the moon. Vancouver has had a month to think over the points lost in that game and will look for a win to help propel them in the conference standings. Vancouver sits in last place in the Western Conference heading into Saturday’s game and knows they need three points if they want to find themselves anywhere close to the playoffs come the end of the season.
Vancouver Looks To End Winless Drought
Vancouver is happy to be back at their home away from home for Saturday’s meeting with Los Angeles, especially given that they haven’t taken the full three points in a match since April 18th against Portland. Sitting on only nine points on the season and a -10 goal differential, Vancouver can’t afford to let games slip through their grasp the rest of the way as it did the last time they welcomed the Galaxy to Utah. Vancouver was embarrassed last week, dropping a 4-0 match to Real Salt Lake and going 0-3-2 since the return from the break last month. A win against the Galaxy would serve to build up some momentum heading into the end of the summer and would serve as revenge for last month’s collapse.
The CONCACAF Gold Cup has served to make life tough for many MLS teams and Vancouver is no different. They’ll have two players out due to playing for Canada in the tournament, in Lucas Cavallini and Maxime Crepeau. Cavallini will be crucial, as he ranks second on the team with three goals and has also added an assist. Lucky for Vancouver, they’ll still have Cristian Dajome in the lineup, who leads the team with four goals and two assists and should continue to be an asset for the home side. Overall, Vancouver will still have nine of their 12 goals represented in the lineup on Saturday and the offense hasn’t been an issue. Besides being held scoreless the last time out, they had scored in five games straight prior to that and should be able to find the score sheet again.
The larger question at hand is how the defense will be able to handle themselves against the Galaxy. With Bruno Gaspar out, along with Crepeau at keeper, a defensive group that has already struggled this year is not only weaker. Jakob Nerwinski continues to be a mainstay in the back but is seen as more of an offensive threat, while the rest of the defense struggles to cope when he gets forward. Vancouver has allowed multiple goals in seven straight games and with the Galaxy coming in, it seems like they are destined to make it eight straight on Saturday.
Galaxy Look To Jump Sporting KC
After a few subpar seasons by LA Galaxy standards, this season has seen the club rise back up to the top of the conference. Sitting third in the Western Conference with 24 points but only a plus-two goal differential, Saturday presents a great opportunity for them to make a jump into second place over Sporting KC. Having just taken three points from Vancouver just a few weeks ago, they know there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be able to replicate that performance. LA is coming off of a solid 3-1 win against FC Dallas the last time out and is 3-2 overall in their five games since returning from the extended break. LA Galaxy knows how important it is to be a one or two seed in the MLS Playoffs and the key to getting there is to take points from the worst teams in the league, a role that Vancouver definitely qualifies for.
LA Galaxy has been one of the teams hardest hit by the Gold Cup and that could cause them issues going on the road on Saturday. Efrain Alvarez scored the game-winner in the last matchup with Vancouver, but is currently with Mexico, as is attacker Jonathan dos Santos. As if missing those two wasn’t bad enough, Javier Hernández is also out. Hernandez leads the team with ten goals and has been one of the most dynamic scorers in all of the league so far this season, whose offense can’t simply be replicated. Of the Galaxy’s 18 goals on the year, only six of those will be represented by the starting lineup on Saturday night.
The offense is hit hard, but the defense might be hit harder. Daniel Steres, Giancarlo Gonzalez, and Oneil Fisher are all out for this weekend’s slate of games, either with injuries or due to international duty. Given the Galaxy’s surprising reluctance to defend, being without three defenders will at the least test their depth, but at most give Vancouver plenty of opportunities in the attack. Expect Jonathan Bond to get tested in the back and he’ll need to be much sharper than the keeper who has allowed 18 goals in only 12 games on the year.
Pick: LA Galaxy (+100)
The Gold Cup has added an interesting wrinkle to the schedule for the month and even though the Galaxy sit third in the Western Conference, Saturday might not be such a walk in the park. The Galaxy will be without some key faces but still shouldn’t have any issues given they’re taking on one of the worst teams in the league in Vancouver. Vancouver has their own issues with Canadians playing in the Gold Cup and while LA will be missing starters, so will Vancouver. The difference is that LA has the depth to overcome their losses while Vancouver, a team plagued by their lack of depth all season, will struggle to put a serviceable team out there, as evidenced by their 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Real Salt Lake. Expect more of the same from Vancouver and for LA to do enough to come out on top, even with a makeshift lineup.
Pick: Over
The first meeting between the two teams saw three goals scored, as did the two team’s last meeting of 2020. The Gold Cup has put a dent into both defenses and with the goals that both teams have allowed this year, even makeshift starting attacks should result in more goals than usual. Both teams’ depth will be tested and given the lack of quality substitutions, the back end of the game might be slightly ugly from a defensive and tactical side, which will give the advantage to the attackers. Expect goals to be seen Saturday night between the two teams, especially given how many times recently has seen multiple goals scored and allowed by both sides.
