Orlando City SC v Atlanta United

One match kicks off on Wednesday night in the latest midweek round of fixtures in the MLS regular season and it is a big one in the Eastern Conference as the rivals Orlando City and Atlanta United meet at Exploria Stadium. 

These two teams came into MLS at the same time but it is the visiting side that were the only trophy winners until last week when Orlando got their hands on the US Open Cup. As we predicted at the weekend, they duly followed that up with a thumping at the hands of Philadelphia Union, although that was expected after the emotions of celebrating triumph a week ago. 

The Lions are going to need to set their attention back to the MLS here though because although they sit in fifth in the Eastern Conference, they are not safe in the postseason yet, with a queue of teams within touching distance should they slip up. 

One of those teams is Atlanta United and a win here will give the 2018 MLS Cup champions hope that they can make it into the postseason for another tilt at the title. Defeat here though could be a dent which is fatal to their hopes so there is plenty on the line.

Atlanta gave their hopes a shot in the arm at the weekend when they beat Toronto FC 4-2. That was important not just to win but to score four without Josef Martinez who the club internally suspended for that game. If they went scoreless that situation could have erupted more than it has.  

When you add in the rivalry between these two I think we’re set for a very interesting contest, one which I think purely because of the desperation of the two sides will lead to goals. 

Both teams have scored in the last eight Atlanta games and Orlando have one clean sheet in 10. I like both teams to score here.

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Austin FC v Real Salt Lake

Three matches kick off in the early hours of Thursday morning in the MLS and the first of those sees two teams going well in the Western Conference going at it when Austin FC host Real Salt Lake in a clash which pits second and seventh against each other. 

While Austin are going well this season, they have hit a wall in recent times with four defeats in their last five but before we condemn them too much for that we should acknowledge that those losses have been in Seattle, Nashville and Minnesota as well as a home loss to Portland – all currently top six sides with the exception of the Sounders who are comfortable in the best six teams on paper. 

Real Salt Lake arrive at the Q2 Stadium with just one defeat in their last six matches to their name and that loss was away to Los Angeles FC which isn’t exactly a disaster of a result. 

The big issue that Austin are having is they have suddenly capsized defensively. In five of their last nine outings they have conceded three times and twice in two others and there were no signs of that changing when Seattle cruised past them at the weekend. 

That will encourage Real Salt Lake in a match they could do with winning to keep the chasing pack at bay in the race for that all-important seventh spot. They too have an issue with conceding goals, especially on their travels where they have conceded 26 in 15 road games. 

Austin FC lost in Seattle at the weekend but they kept Sebastian Driussi on the bench until the last few minutes so he should get a much bigger role here which can help Austin do the business at the top end of the pitch but while they are conceding like they are this one looks an obvious 2.5 goal candidate.

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Colorado Rapids v San Jose Earthquakes

Two more Western Conference sides go at it in the early hours of Thursday morning when the Colorado Rapids host the San Jose Earthquakes in a match which really does see the home side drinking in that famous saloon bar called The Last Chance. 

After dominating the Western Conference scene last season, this has been a fairly abject campaign for the Rapids, who even with a win here would be in a best case scenario four points off a place in the play-offs with just three matches remaining. 

The positive for Colorado is that they have got the perfect dance partner to begin to close that gap because San Jose have only won once on their travels all season and that was in a bonkers California derby with LA Galaxy. Even that came at a time when the Galaxy were in a real mess. 

Such a poor away record is a warning sign for the Earthquakes in this one because for all Colorado have struggled to emulate last season, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park has still been a tough place for visiting sides to go, especially in recent times. 

While the Rapids sit well down the Western Conference table, only three teams in it have more points on home soil than them and only two teams have left with all three points. They were Austin FC and Nashville SC who are decent sides in their own right. 

Home wins tend to be regular in this league in midweek games with the travel distances making preparation almost impossible and this one looks perfectly setup to continue that trend with Colorado keeping their faint play-off hopes alive with a much-needed victory.

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