Seattle Sounders will be looking to close the gap on the leading clubs in the MLS Western Conference when they hit the road to take on Sporting Kansas City this weekend.

While Seattle are looking to strengthen their position in the top five, Kansas City are trying to drag themselves back into the playoff conversation after a slight upturn in results.

Match preview

You can find positives and negatives when looking at Sporting Kansas City and their recent form. On one hand, the club have lost just two of their last nine matches, but on the other, they have only won three times.

Putting that to one side, the club will be feeling somewhat confident after picking up two of those victories in their last three games, with the team beating both Charlotte and the Colorado Rapids.

This recent upturn in results has seen Sporting climb to 11th in the standings, sitting just three points adrift of those all-important playoff places.

Picking up a win against Seattle would not only enhance Sporting’s playoff chances, but it would also continue their positive run of results and add to their growing level of confidence.

One thing Kansas City will be encouraged by is their recent goal output, which has seen the club score in seven successive outings, bagging 14 goals during this time.

Speaking of building confidence, Seattle’s time at the Club World Cup appears to have done them a world of good, despite losing all three group games at the competition.

Sounders were beaten by Botafogo RJ, Atletico Madrid and Champions League conquerors Paris Saint-Germain, but rubbing shoulders with the very best in the business has since led the club to four points from two MLS games.

A 2-0 victory over Austin and a 1-1 draw against a strong Columbus Crew side marked a big turning point for a club that suffered a couple of woeful defeats at the hands of Minnesota and the Vancouver Whitecaps before the Club World Cup.

Putting aside a recent injury to goalkeeper Stefan Frei, Seattle appear to be building momentum as the battle for playoff positions continues.

Sporting Kansas City MLS form:

Seattle Sounders MLS form:

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Team News

Jacob Bartlett is out of action for Sporting Kansas City due to his suspension, but Jacob Davies will be available after serving his punishment.

In terms of injuries, the club are without Logan Ndenbe (hamstring), Nemanja Radoja (quad), Dany Rosero (ankle), and Robert Voloder (clavicle).

As previously mentioned, Seattle Sounders will be without Frei, who suffered a head injury against Columbus last time out. Andrew Thomas is expected to take his place.

Joao Paulo recently tore his ACL in training and could be out for the season, while Kalani Kossa-Rienzi misses out through suspension.

Sporting Kansas City possible lineup: Pulskamp; Bassong, Fernandez, Miller, Leibold; Thommy, Garcia, Rodriguez; Shelton, Joveljic, Suleymanov

Seattle Sounders possible lineup: Thomas; Tolo, Ragen, A Roldan, Baker; Vargas, C Roldan, Rusnak; Rothrock, Ferreira, Morris

We say: Sporting Kansas City 2-2 Seattle Sounders

Tough game to call. Sporting Kansas City are on the up, picking up three solid results in recent weeks.

Then again, Seattle Sounders are experiencing a big boost following their Club World Cup campaign. With both teams in good form, we are backing a high-scoring draw.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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