St Louis City and Seattle Sounders draw the curtains on their 2023 Major League Soccer campaign when they go head to head at CityPark on Saturday.
The home side sit top of the Western Conference table with 56 points from 33 matches and will head into the weekend looking to break the regular-season league points record by an expansion side.
Match preview
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With the thrill from clinching the Western Conference title still in the air, St Louis City suffered their biggest league defeat since July as they were beaten 3-0 by Vancouver Whitecaps just before the international break.
Following a goalless first half at BC Place, Vanni Sartini's side ran riot in the second period as Brian White, Sebastian Berhalter and Richie Larves all found the back of the net to fire the Whitecaps to their first win in five matches.
Prior to that, St Louis were unbeaten in four consecutive matches, picking up two draws and two wins, including a 4-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City on October 1 which saw them secure top spot in the West.
With their loss to the Whitecaps last time out, Bradley Carnell's men have now managed just one win in their last eight away matches across all competitions while losing five and picking up two draws since mid-July.
While results have proven hard to come by on the road, the Missouri outfit now return home where they are unbeaten in each of their last six league matches, claiming five wins and one draw since June's 3-1 defeat against Real Salt Lake.
St Louis currently boasts the second-best point tally on home turf in the Western Conference and the second-most by an expansion franchise, having picked up 35 points from their 16 matches at CityPark so far.
Carnell's side, who hold a five-point cushion at the top of the Western Conference table, set out in search of all three points this weekend as they look to break the regular-season league points record by an expansion side set in 2018 when Los Angeles FC finished with 57 points.
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Like this weekend's hosts, Seattle Sounders have enjoyed an impressive regular season campaign and will head into the season finale looking to leapfrog Los Angeles FC into second place.
Twelve months on from a disappointing 11th-placed finish in the Western Conference, Brian Schmetzer's men have picked up the pieces and secured post-season football with a fine show of determination.
Seattle Sounders won 13 of their 33 league matches while picking up 11 draws and losing nine to collect 50 points and sit third in the conference table, one point behind second-placed Los Angeles FC.
While the Green are not a force to reckon with when it comes to goalscoring, they have been defensively resolute this season, keeping 13 clean sheets — the second highest in MLS this season — and conceding the second-fewest number of goals so far (32).
This was highlighted last time out as they played out a goalless draw with Vancouver Whitecaps when the side squared off at Lumen Field in their final outing before the international break.
With that result, Seattle Sounders have now gone eight consecutive games without defeat, picking up five draws and three wins since a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Atlanta United on August 21.
Team News
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St Louis City's teenage midfielder Miguel Perez has been out of action since coming off with an ankle pack in August and will play no part in this weekend's game.
Carnell will also be unable to call upon 26-year-old defender Lucas Bartlett, who is set to sit out his sixth straight game after picking up a shoulder injury in September.
Meanwhile, Seattle Sounders will have to cope without veteran striker Raul Ruidiaz, who has been sidelined since coming off injured against FC Dallas back in September.
He is joined on the club's injury table by 19-year-old defender Cody Baker, who picked up an injury in August, while midfielder Sota Kitahara continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Off the back of another solid defensive display, we expect Schmetzer to name an unchanged back four of Alex Roldan, Yeimar Gomez, Jackson Ragen and Nouhou Tolo, with 37-year-old Stefan Frei starting between the sticks once again.
St Louis City possible starting lineup:
Lundt; Nerwinski, Parker, Yaro, Markanich; Ostrak, Blom, Lowen, Stroud; Gioacchini, Adeniran
Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:
Frei; Roldan, Gomez, Ragen, Tolo; Paulo, Atencio; Roldan, Lodeiro, Chu; Morris
We say: St Louis City 1-1 Seattle Sounders
While the Seattle Sounders are unbeaten in nine games on the bounce, they face the stern challenge of taking on a St Louis side who have been near-impenetrable at home in the league. We predict that both sides will cancel out each other's efforts and settle for a share of the spoils.
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Joshua Ojele
