The Seattle Sounders are taking on the San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday night in their third and final matchup of the regular season. Here is everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. PT at PayPal Park in San Jose, Calif.
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be televised on FOX 13+ and Prime Video.
WHERE TO LISTEN: The match will air on 1090 KJR AM and El Rey 1360 AM.
2021 RECORDS AND STANDINGS: Seattle: 14-5-6 (48 points, 1st West), San Jose: 8-9-9 (33 points, 10th West)
PREVIOUS MEETINGS: The Earthquakes defeated the Sounders 1-0 at Lumen Field in Seattle on July 31 behind a first-half stoppage time goal from Cristian Espinoza. The Sounders won 1-0 at San Jose in their first matchup of the season on May 12 on a golazo from Cristian Roldan.
FORM GUIDE (most recent first): Sounders: WLWLW, Earthquakes: WWLDL
NO PLACE LIKE THE ROAD: Fresh off a massive 2-1 win at Sporting Kansas City over the weekend, the Sounders will finish a four-match road trip. Seattle owns the best road record in MLS at 8-2-2 and has a better road PPG than all but two teams’ (New England and DC) home PPG.
BACK ATOP THE WEST: The Sounders laid a massive stake in the ground in their quest for first place in the Western Conference with their win over SKC. Seattle now has a two-point lead over Sporting with a match in hand.
WILLING THE TEAM TO VICTORY: Sounders forward Will Bruin started up top with Raúl Ruidíaz in a two-forward set on Sunday, returning to the way the Sounders started the season. Bruin rewarded Head Coach Brian Schmetzer with his second goal of the season and the match-winner.
CHOFIS EN FUEGO: San Jose attacker Eduardo “Chofis” López is in the form of his life at the moment, having scored six goals and added an assist over his last three matches. He started with a hat trick against Real Salt Lake, followed it up with a brace against Austin FC before recording a goal and an assist in a 2-0 win over LAFC. The 27-year-old Mexican on loan from Liga MX giants Chivas is firmly in the conversation for MLS Newcomer of the Year.
DEFENSIVE IMPROVEMENT: The ‘Quakes allowed 51 goals in just 23 matches in 2020. They’ve allowed just 38 goals through 26 matches this season. It may not be enough to push them into the postseason, but it is a marked improvement and will keep them in the hunt down the stretch.
HOME STRUGGLES: Part of why the Earthquakes are currently below the playoff line is because they have the fourth-worst home record in MLS (only Austin FC, Toronto FC and FC Cincinnati have taken fewer home points). The Sounders will be looking for their second win of the season at PayPal Park.
