Minnesota United are currently one point ahead of Los Angeles FC, who sit in eighth, with a game in hand on their nearest playoff rivals, potentially giving Adrian Heath's side the opportunity to climb up to fourth starting with a win against Sunday's opponents Houston Dynamo.
The visitors have recently broken a poor run of form by going three games unbeaten heading into this Western Conference fixture, but they have most probably left themselves with too much to do to reach the top seven.
Match preview
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Minnesota ensured that they did not lose three games back-to-back last time out when they welcomed fellow playoff contenders Los Angeles Galaxy to the Allianz Field.
Despite the visitors dominating possession on that occasion, Heath's team were efficient in front of goal, converting the three shots they registered on target.
Emanuel Reynoso scored a first-half brace before Ethan Finlay netted his second goal of the season to seal the 3-0 win for Minnesota, who still remain the second lowest scorers in the Western Conference.
Last Sunday was the first time Minnesota had managed to score three goals in a single game this season, and Heath will be pleased with his side's attacking performance after drawing a blank in their previous two matches which they lost.
This weekend's fixture against Dynamo presents a chance for Minnesota to open a bigger gap between themselves and the chasing playoff pack, and they will be confident as they are on home soil which is where nearly 70% of their points have been earned this campaign.
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Houston Dynamo are edging closer to moving up a few positions in the league table, especially after beating 11th-placed Dallas in their last outing.
The second fixture between Dynamo and Dallas this season ended as a 2-2 draw, but Tab Ramos's side bettered that on Sunday, running out as 3-2 winners at the BBVA Stadium.
Goals from Griffin Dorsey, Fabrice Picault and Darwin Quintero meant that the home side were three goals to the good by the hour mark, and a late brace from Jader Obrian was not enough for the visitors to complete a comeback.
That result means that Houston have scored three goals in their last two home games, but they are yet to record a victory away from home this season, making Minnesota strong favourites for this clash.
Dynamo finished 12th in the Western Conference last season, and they have put themselves in a good position to better that this campaign, as they are closing in on Dallas in 11th.
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Team News
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Minnesota winger Niko Hansen is closing in on a return to action, after being sidelined since the middle of August with a hamstring injury, but Sunday's game is likely to have come too early for the 27-year-old and he will remain absent from the squad.
Justin McMaster and Juan Agudelo will also be unavailable for Minnesota this weekend, and the attacking pair are likely to be ready for selection at the beginning of next month.
Heath made four changes to the starting lineup for their last game, and he is likely to name the same 11 that beat LA Galaxy last weekend, which will mean that Robin Lod is expected to lead the line for the home side, with creative midfielder Reynoso behind him.
Nico Lemoine is the only certain injury concern for Houston, but left-back Adam Lundqvist was forced off after 35 minutes last time out and is a doubt for Sunday's match.
Ramos will hope Lundqvist is fit enough for selection which will allow Houston to lineup with the same back four which has started the last three games, including Teenage Hadebe, Tim Parker and Zarek Valentin.
Darwin Ceren came into the side in place of Joe Corona against Dallas, and Houston are expected to name the same lineup given their positive result and performance last time out, and Picault will be looking to score in his fourth consecutive game for Dynamo.
Minnesota United possible starting lineup:
Miller; Gasper, Dibassy, Boxall, Metanire; Alonso, Trapp; Fragapane, Reynoso, Finlay; Lod
Houston Dynamo possible starting lineup:
Nelson; Lundqvist, Hadebe, Parker, Valentin; Ceren, Vera; Picault, Quintero, Dorsey; Urruti
We say: Minnesota United 2-1 Houston Dynamo
Minnesota will take confidence from their result against LA Galaxy, and will be aiming to follow that up with another victory at home, and Dynamo's unbeaten run could be ended, taking into consideration their poor away record.
The front four were all involved in all three of Minnesota's goals against Dallas, and they will fancy their chances against a Houston defence which has conceded 39 goals in 26 matches this season.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Minnesota United win with a probability of 65.62%. A draw had a probability of 20.7% and a win for Houston Dynamo had a probability of 13.63%.
The most likely scoreline for a Minnesota United win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.97%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (12.69%) and 2-1 (9.61%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.82%), while for a Houston Dynamo win it was 0-1 (5.02%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 12.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Minnesota United would win this match.
