After losing just one of their opening five MLS matches, Orlando City will be looking to continue their promising start to the season when they play host to Los Angeles FC on Saturday.
The visitors, meanwhile, have gone one better than their hosts, with Steve Cherundolo's side yet to taste defeat this term.
Match preview
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Although they have played one game more than most teams, Orlando City will be pleased that they enter the weekend's round of fixtures in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
The Lions started the season on the front foot, picking up four points from their opening two games before they lost for the first time this term against FC Cincinnati.
Oscar Pareja would have been pleased with his side's response to the defeat as they quickly made amends with a 1-0 away victory against Los Angeles Galaxy.
Unlike most teams who were unable to play due to the international break, Orlando City did take to the field last weekend for an away contest with the Portland Timbers, although it proved to be a frustrating outing for the Lions.
A Junior Urso goal had given Orlando City the advantage and when Josecarlos Van Rankin was sent off for the hosts it seemed as though the win was secured, but a Cristhian Paredes spot kick ensured that the spoils were shared, while the late equaliser represented the first goal that the Lions have conceded in the final 30 minutes of a game this season.
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Los Angeles FC may have missed out on the playoffs last season, but if their form from the opening four matches is anything to go by then the 2022 campaign is set to be a much more memorable one.
Saturday's visitors have accumulated 10 points from their first four games, while their last two contests have resulted in victories.
After winning 2-0 away to Inter Miami, Cherundolo's side played host to Vancouver Whitecaps in their most recent outing and it turned out to be another successful outing for Los Angeles FC.
Although Tristan Blackmon netted the opener for Vancouver in the 12th minute, a brace from Ryan Hollingshead and a Carlos Vela strike helped Los Angeles FC claim a 3-1 victory.
Cherundolo's charges will now head on their travels for just the second time this season, with Saturday's visitors hoping to retain top spot in the Western Conference.
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Team News
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Jhegson Mendez, Pedro Gallese and Facundo Torres were unable to feature last weekend due to international duty, but the trio could return to the starting lineup.
Meanwhile, Benji Michel is expected to keep his place in the side after starting the 1-1 draw against the Portland Timbers.
Orlando City will be looking to Pato to provide the goals, with the Brazilian looking to add to the one goal he has scored this season.
As for the visitors, Franco Escobar is unavailable after missing the last two matches due to a calf injury.
Los Angeles FC are also still without the services of Julian Gaines, Erik Duenas and Eddie Segura, who are all suffering with injury issues.
Vela will once again pose the visitors's main goal threats, with the Mexican aiming to add to his four-goal tally for the campaign.
Orlando City possible starting lineup:
Gallese; Ruan, Antonio, Jansson, Moutinho; Mendez, Araujo; Urso, Pereyra, Torres; Pato
Los Angeles FC possible starting lineup:
Crepeau; Acosta, Murillo, Mbacke, Hollingshead; Cifuentes, Sanchez, Blessing; Opoku, Rodriguez, Vela
We say: Orlando City 1-1 Los Angeles FC
Saturday's contest will be the first meeting between the two sides since August 2020, and with both sides enjoying encouraging starts to the MLS season, we think that neither team will want to risk losing the encounter.
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 Orlando City win with a probability of 40.08%. A win for Los Angeles FC had a probability of 35.22% and a draw had a probability of 24.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a Orlando City win was 2-1 with a probability of 8.69%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (8.24%) and 2-0 (6.21%). The likeliest Los Angeles FC win was 1-2 (8.06%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.52%). The actual scoreline of 2-4 was predicted with a 1% likelihood.
