The Seattle Sounders are visiting the LA Galaxy on Friday night (7:08 p.m. PT; ESPN, ESPN Deportes, 93.3 KJR FM, El Rey 1360 AM) in their first of three straight road matches. Here are three matchups to watch:
Raúl Ruidíaz vs. Séga Coulibaly
Ruidíaz looked sharp in his return to the starting lineup last week, including scoring a great goal that was ultimately called back because of a fractional offside decision in the buildup. The Sounders will need to rely on their talisman to get on the score sheet against a Galaxy team that enters just one point above them in the playoff picture. LA will rely on its big Malian defender to try and keep Ruidíaz at bay.
Albert Rusnák vs. Mark Delgado
If there’s an advantage to be had for the Sounders on Friday, it’s in the middle of the park. The Galaxy shipped defensive midfielder Rayan Raveloson to France this summer, and new acquisition Riqui Puig, although available for selection, likely won’t be slotted into the starting lineup right away. Rusnák is coming off a well-taken goal last week and will need to be an offensive threat through the center of LA’s defensive shape.
Xavier Arreaga vs. Javier “Chicharito” Hernández
Outside of the rise of 23-year-old forward Dejan Joveljić, the Galaxy’s attack starts and ends with Chicharito. The Mexican legend has 10 goals on the year, including one last weekend and another in Seattle earlier this season. It will be a dual effort between Arreaga and Yeimar to match his elusive movement all game, with the former, who’s a little more mobile, likely doing more of the tracking.
