Just one week until the opening of the 2019 MLS regular season, and no surprise, that means Saturday will be a very busy day in preseason action as teams get their last warm-up matches in.
Here’s a look at a busy Saturday preseason slate.
Orlando City SC vs. Minnesota United FC (12 pm ET)
Minnesota are feeling good in preseason, having gone unbeaten so far. But Orlando feel pretty good themselves, coming off a 6-2 thrashing over New England.
FC Dallas vs. New York Red Bulls (1 pm ET)
Dallas and a split-squad Red Bulls side will clash in Mobile Mini Sun Cup action in Tucson, Ariz., with Dallas in with a shout of winning the preseason tournament with a win. But the Red Bulls aren’t to be trifled with, after they blasted USL Championship side Phoenix Rising 5-2 on the same night the rest of the squad was taking care of business on the road in Concacaf Champions League play.
New England Revolution vs. KR Reykjavik (3 pm ET)
The Revs bounced back from their stinging defeat to Orlando City with a comeback win over USL League One outfit Greenville Triumph. After playing a series of international teams on their preseason trip to Marbella, Spain, New England will take on Icelandic first-division side KR Reykjavik, who finished fourth last season in their domestic competition.
San Jose Earthquakes vs. Seattle Sounders (3:45 pm ET)
The Earthquakes will give local fans their first peek of the Matias Almeyda era as they host the Sounders at Avaya Stadium. San Jose posted a 3-0 win over LAFC last week, erasing the bad taste after a 3-0 loss to USL affiliate Reno 1868 FC the previous week. The Sounders, meanwhile, dropped their last match, a 2-0 loss at CenturyLink Field to Uruguayan club Nacional. But tongues are wagging over 15-year-old Sounders academy player Danny Leyva impressing in the match.
FC Cincinnati vs. Columbus Crew SC (5 pm ET)
The “Hell is Real” derby descends on Charleston, South Carolina as part of the 2019 Carolina Challenge Cup and is likely to be one of the games of the day around MLS. Don’t be surprised if tempers flare a bit in this match, but expect both coaches to keep some of the intensity in reserve with the regular season right around the corner.
Real Salt Lake vs. Portland Timbers (7 pm ET)
The Western Conference foes close out the Mobile Mini Sun Cup after taking losses in their previous matches. The Timbers lost 1-0 to Phoenix Rising, their first defeat of the preseason, while RSL were defeated 2-1 by FC Dallas.
Montreal Impact vs. D.C. United (7 pm ET)
The clubs close out their Rowdies Suncoast Invitational matches by facing each other at Al Lang Stadium in St. Petersburg, Fla. D.C. have a win (over host club Tampa Bay Rowdies) and a loss (to the Philadelphia Union) in their last two games, while Montreal beat the Union and tied the Rowdies in Central Florida.
Charleston Battery vs. Chicago Fire (7:30 pm ET)
The final match of the 2019 Carolina Challenge Cup pits the Fire against the tournament hosts. Chicago most recently posted a 1-1 draw against FC Cincinnati in the tournament. From there, they’ll be traveling to the other side of the country for their season opener against the LA Galaxy, so they’ll be looking to start a run of defeating the home side.
LAFC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC (8:30 pm ET)
LAFC are opening their doors for their final preseason game at Banc of California Stadium and will be welcoming a familiar face in Whitecaps head coach Marc Dos Santos, who was on Bob Bradley’s coaching staff in 2018. The Whitecaps, based in Southern California recently, have played two draws of late, while LAFC were clobbered 3-0 by the Quakes at home last week behind closed doors.
LA Galaxy vs. Colorado Rapids (11 pm ET | TV (LA): Spectrum Sportsnet)
The Galaxy haven’t played many preseason games this year, and will build on their progress at Dignity Health Sports Park against the Rapids. LA could see Zlatan Ibrahimovic get some minutes before the season, while the Rapids have only lost once in preseason and will aim to keep the good times rolling ahead of their season opener.
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