Nineteen Major League Soccer regular-season games are left to be played on Wednesday and Sunday. From the 19, three are scheduled to be screened on national television.
First in line is a fixture between Western Conference elites Seattle Sounders and bottom dwellers LA Galaxy. TUDN USA and UniMas will screen the game on Wednesday, starting at 11 p.m. ET.
A heated Eastern Conference matchup involving the Philadelphia Union and New England Revolution will be broadcasted on ESPN Deportes USA on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Philadelphia would clinch the Supporters' Shield with a win.
Lastly, the Game of the Week involving Los Angeles FC and the Portland Timbers is set for broadcast on Sunday starting at 6:30 p.m. ET.
The remaining 16 games are scheduled to be televised regionally or locally and exclusively available on MLSsoccer.com, ESPN+ and fuboTV.
Game of the Week: LAFC vs. Portland Timbers
LAFC leads the record between them and the Portland Timbers this season 1W-0L-2D. Moreover, the all-time record between the two also belongs to the Black and Gold 3W-1L-3D.
LAFC
Los Angeles FC will play against California rivals San Jose Earthquakes before its game against Portland on Sunday. The Black and Gold are already qualified for playoffs, but they are still scrapping for a higher seed finish.
Los Angeles manager Bob Bradley has his sharpest tools available for their last two games. With Carlos Vela back from injury and the likes of Brian Rodriguez, Diego Rossi, Bradley Wright-Phillips, Eduard Atuesta, Eddie Segura and Latif Blessing all available, Bradley should be comfortable as his team enters postseason.
Portland Timbers
The Timbers also have two games left to play. On Wednesday, they will face the Colorado Rapids, who need a win to seal their playoff spot. And on Sunday, Portland will look to secure their current first place position by defeating LAFC. Despite not playing at home, the Timbers will arrive as favorites at Los Angeles with a good track record (5W-1L-2D) in the past month.
Like Bradley at LAFC, Portland Timbers manager Giovanni Savarese has a deep roster. Not only is his roster deep Bradley's, but Savarese has developed clockwork-like rotations that have ultimately resulted in getting the best out of each of his players. All players understand what their role is, and they will always aim to do what is best for the team.
Talk of the Week: Teams fighting for playoff spots
The races for playoff spots are tight with five teams in the Eastern Conference and four teams in the Western Conference, giving it all out in their last games of the season. Look at what they need to aim for to qualify for the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Eastern Conference
- DC United – Needs a win next game vs. Montreal to overtake them, all while hoping that Inter Miami, Atlanta United and the Chicago Fire drop points.
- Atlanta United – Hoping to win vs. Columbus Crew, for Chicago to lose or draw its last two games and for Montreal to drop points in their last game.
- Inter Miami – Needs a win vs. FC Cincinnati, while hoping that the Montreal Impact loses and Atlanta United, and the Chicago Fire drop points.
- Chicago fire – Can clinch playoffs with a win and a draw vs. Minnesota United and NYCFC.
- Montreal Impact – Can clinch playoffs with a win vs. DC United.
Western Conference
- LA Galaxy – Has to win its last two games vs. Seattle and Vancouver and hope for San Jose, Colorado and Vancouver drop points in their last games.
- Vancouver Whitecaps – Can clinch playoffs if they win vs. LA Galaxy and San Jose, Colorado drop points in both of their last games.
- San Jose Earthquakes – Can clinch playoffs with a win vs. LAFC or Seattle
- Colorado Rapids – Can clinch playoffs with a win in one of their last two games vs. Portland and Houston.
