The battle lines will be drawn in the Pacific Northwest as the Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders FC renew their long-standing rivalry this Saturday. The Caps are flying high atop the Western Conference standings in the early stages of the season, but the Sounders aren’t that far behind and have two games in hand.
The Sounders have the most feared strike partnership in the league today, but the two-time defending Cascadia Cup champion Caps have had their number in recent meetings. Who will draw first blood in this heated regional rivalry? Read on for our complete preview below.
Over in the East, the table-topping New England Revolution take on Toronto FC in another star-studded battle. Check out our preview of that match here.
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Vancouver Whitecaps vs. Seattle Sounders FC Preview
The Vancouver Whitecaps’ great start to the season continued as they thrashed the Philadelphia Union 3-0 on Sunday. Goals from Pedro Morales, Octavio Rivero and Darren Mattocks did the job for the Caps, who now move to a tie for first place in the Western Conference.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Head coach Carl Robinson has done wonders to transform his squad with some heady transfers over the past couple of years. He’s infused a lot of youth to the team. He also unearthed some obscure Central and South American players that have come good this season. Rivero is one of those terrific finds, and leads the team with six goals.
Robinson has instilled a very aggressive mentality to his team, on both ends of the pitch. They lead the league in fouls committed (163) as well as in shots (149). But that style, coupled with their relatively young and inexperienced squad, has led to inconsistency. They had failed to win four out of the previous five games (a win, two draws and two losses) before beating Philly.
But it can also lead to some great results, much like their 2-0 home win over defending champion LA Galaxy on April 4. Robinson is a very canny tactical manager, and should have his team set up to get after the Sounders.
In fact, Robinson had great success against the Sounders in his rookie season last year. Vancouver went undefeated in three games, with two wins (home and away) and a draw.
Betting on the Seattle Sounders
The Seattle Sounders suffered a significant setback as they were defeated 3-2 by the Columbus Crew on Sunday. The loss snapped their three-match winning run and dropped them to third in the West. However, they’ve played just nine games (5-3-1), the fewest in the conference.
On the bright side for the Sounders, Designated Player Clint Dempsey continued his fine start to the season with both of their team’s goals in a losing effort. He’s now tied for the league lead with seven this season.
Dempsey and Obafemi Martins lit up the league for 32 regular season goals last season, and are on pace for even more this term. Martins is hot on Dempsey’s heels with six goals. Their prolific strike partnership has scored 13 of the team’s 15 goals this season.
With a strike force that potent, Seattle is a threat to score in any game. Sounders FC has been especially deadly away from home, with eight goals scored in five games. However, they’ve also allowed six goals, and could be caught out by the Whitecaps if they commit too many men forward. The total has reached four goals or more in the Sounders’ last three road games.
Writer’s Prediction
Seattle’s strikers find the net once again as they take down Vancouver, 2-1, on the road. Create a betting account now and start netting major sums in Major League Soccer.
