Minnesota United will look to extend their unbeaten run to six Major League Soccer games on Sunday, when they travel to take on Portland Timbers.
The hosts picked up a point in a 2-2 draw with Houston Dynamo last time out, while Minnesota extended their strong run of form with a 2-0 win over Austin FC on Thursday.
Match preview
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Portland Timbers come into this game having enjoyed a fairly impressive start to the campaign, picking up 13 points with four victories and a draw from their opening nine games.
After an unexpected 3-0 loss to Philadelphia Union prior to the recent international break, Giovanni Savarese's side bounced back with a 2-1 win over Sporting Kansas City as Dairon Asprilla and Marvin Loria got on the scoresheet after Jaylin Lindsey had put their opponents ahead.
They then came from behind to draw 2-2 in a dramatic encounter away against Houston Dynamo last time out, having trailed 2-0 at half time with Fafa Picault and Tyler Pasher scoring for the hosts.
Asprilla pulled a goal back early in the second half for the Timbers, yet they still looked set to fall to a defeat until Jeremy Ebobisse popped up with a goal in the 91st minute to earn a vital point for his side in the dying minutes.
That saw them keep hold of fifth spot in the Western Conference after Houston looked set to overtake them with a win, and Savarese's men will be desperate for a victory at the weekend to cement their place in the playoff spots.
Their opponents currently find themselves outside of the top seven but have enjoyed a rise up the table thanks to a strong run of form.
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Prior to the three-week break, Minnesota United recorded back-to-back 1-0 wins over Vancouver Whitecaps and FC Dallas, followed by a 1-1 draw with Real Salt Lake, seeing them start a rise after a poor start to the season.
They then kept up their improved form upon their return to league action, firstly drawing with FC Dallas before beating Austin 2-0 last time out.
Goals from Franco Fragapane and Adrien Hunou gave the Loons a two-goal lead inside the first 20 minutes, and they stood strong to see out their third league win of the season, all of which having come in the last five outings after losing their opening four matches of the campaign.
As a result of their upturn in form, Adrian Heath's men have quickly risen to ninth spot in the Western Conference, now sitting just one point off the playoff places and two points off sixth-placed Houston Dynamo with a game in hand.
The Loons will now go in search of another win that would see them leapfrog their opponents and likely move into the top seven, showing an impressive recovery after a poor start to the campaign.
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Team News
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Portland Timbers remain without a long list of players through injury, as Ismaila Jome, Jeff Attinella, Jaroslaw Niezgoda and Cristhian Paredes are all set to continue spells out of action.
Andy Polo recently joined them on the sidelines, while Sebastian Blanco could also miss out having come off soon after appearing off the bench in the draw with Houston Dynamo.
Jeremy Ebobisse will lead the line with renewed confidence, having netted the 91st-minute equaliser in that draw.
Minnesota United may look to field an unchanged side after a convincing victory last time out.
Adrien Hunou will lead the line after finding the net in that 2-0 win, alongside star man Emanuel Reynoso.
Franco Fragapane will also offer plenty of attacking threat from the left-hand side, having scored in both of his first two games since moving from Talleres in May.
Meanwhile, Romain Metanire, Michael Boxall, Bakaye Dibassy and Chase Gasper should again line up across the back four after a clean sheet in their recent win.
Portland Timbers possible starting lineup:
Ivacic; Bonilla, McGraw, Zuparic, Tuiloma, Bravo; Loria, WIlliamson, Zambrano, Asprilla; Ebobisse
Minnesota United possible starting lineup:
Miller; Metanire, Boxall, Dibassy, Gasper; Hansen, Trapp, Dotson, Fragapane; Hunou, Reynoso
We say: Portland Timbers 1-1 Minnesota United
While the start of the MLS campaign may point towards a Portland Timbers win, their visitors have improved hugely in their last five games and come into Sunday's clash with plenty of momentum.
We see them earning another creditable point in a draw between two sides on a fairly level playing field considering all of the factors at play.
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 Portland Timbers win with a probability of 47.5%. A win for Minnesota United had a probability of 29.45% and a draw had a probability of 23%.
The most likely scoreline for a Portland Timbers win was 2-1 with a probability of 9.32%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (7.59%) and 2-0 (6.8%). The likeliest Minnesota United win was 1-2 (7.12%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.39%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 5.8% likelihood.
