LA Galaxy vs Minnesota United

Dignity Health Sports Park sets the stage for a potentially high-scoring Major League Soccer encounter between LA Galaxy and Minnesota United.

LA Galaxy wasted a glorious opportunity to climb to the top of the Western Conference as a 2-1 home derby loss to Los Angeles FC knocked them down from a four-game winning streak, opening a three-point gap between the teams. That defeat remains the only blemish on Galaxy’s otherwise near-flawless home league record in 2024 (W6, D3), but it was the second time in their last three MLS fixtures at Dignity Health Sports Park to see them concede precisely two goals. That’s particularly ominous, considering they’re up against a Minnesota side they’ve capitulated at least two times against across their last four MLS H2Hs (W1, D1, L2). But there’s a silver lining – Galaxy netted 2+ goals on all four occasions.

Meanwhile, visiting Minnesota United cannot catch a break. A dismal 3-1 home loss to Vancouver Whitecaps in midweek MLS action stretched their abysmal losing run to five games, four of which saw them concede multiple goals. With just one win from their last nine league outings (D2, L6), the visitors head into proceedings as underdogs, seeking only their second MLS victory in Los Angeles at a seventh attempt (W1, D2, L3). That could be an insurmountable task, not least because they’ve conceded at least twice on all six previous visits to Dignity Health Sports Park. On top of that, a four-game losing streak on the road suggests they’ll unlikely close a narrow one-point deficit on the final playoff spot in the Western Conference at the end of this round.