The MLS is Back tournament continues on Monday when three matches are scheduled to take place. We have to be a little careful of what to expect in terms of the schedule as we saw a game cancelled an hour before kick off on Sunday.
That match has been moved to be the opener on Monday and then the first two matches in Group F take place which means that by the time the action ends we will have seen all six groups get underway in the tournament.
The Format
The 26 MLS teams have now become 24 with FC Dallas and Nashville being withdrawn from the tournament after positive Covid tests. The remaining teams have been placed into six groups of four. Each team plays the other three in their group once in the group stage. The results of these matches not only count in this tournament but also towards the regular season when it resumes. At the end of the group stage the top two from each group and the four best third placed finishers go into a 16-team knockout stage. The entire tournament takes place in Orlando with the final scheduled for August 11. There is a Champions League place for the winners which should ensure it is competitive.
Where to watch
All three matches are live on TV in the UK. They can all be seen on Free Sports. They will also be available to be watched on the live streaming consoles on bookmaker websites.
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Toronto FC vs DC United (14.00)
The opening match of the three sees the beaten MLS Cup finalists Toronto FC having a second go at getting their MLS is Back tournament underway when they go up against a much improved DC United team over the last couple of campaigns. These two sides failed to get started on Sunday when some inconclusive Covid tests were returned but they’ll try again here. They have already watched New England Revolution win the first game in the group so they won’t want to lose here.
Toronto started their season in good form with a win and a draw from their two matches while DC United opened up with a win and a defeat from their start to the campaign so there is a platform for both teams to build on. This feels like a big match for DC United. Clearly they are weaker without Luciano Acosta and Wayne Rooney and the ACL injury to Paul Arriola isn’t going to help them either. In saying that they have enough attacking prowess to be competitive here. Nothing really stands out to me from a betting point of view in this one.
LAFC vs Houston Dynamo (01.00)
The second match of the day sees the ‘Group of Death’ getting underway when the reigning Supporters Shield holders LAFC take on a potentially dangerous Houston Dynamo side who made some good signings in the close season and will be expecting a decent campaign here.
LAFC kicked off their season with a win and a draw before the shutdown happened while Dynamo have just one point from their two games, which is a return which will have disappointed them greatly. With LA Galaxy and Portland Timbers to come both teams will know the importance of getting something from this game. In normal circumstances I would be getting involved in the overs here but Carlos Vela chose not to go to this tournament and that will be a big miss for LAFC and that puts me off the goals somewhat. They might still flow but I’ll watch and see what the Californians offer before getting involved in their games.
LA Galaxy vs Portland Timbers (03.30)
The last match of the day may well prove to be the best one as two sides who are regulars in the play-offs from the Western Conference meet when LA Galaxy take on Portland Timbers in a match neither will want to lose given what is to come later in the group.
Galaxy had a tough start to the season with just a point from their first two matches. They drew with Houston Dynamo who they will meet later in this group and then lost to the Vancouver Whitecaps in a real surprise result. Portland Timbers were beaten by Minnesota United in their opener but came good to see off Nashville in their second match. The matches between these two tend to be entertaining and hopefully this one lives up to that.
I’m sure it will because neither team look especially strong on defence and both have plenty of attacking weapons at their disposal, which makes me think that we’ll see some goals in this one. Portland have actually won the last two meetings between the two sides 4-0 so they’ll fancy their chances here, but with Cristian Pavon and Javier Hernandez in their side, Galaxy certainly carry a genuine goal threat. Over 3 looks like the way to play this one.
Tips
PUSH – Back LA Galaxy vs Portland Timbers – Over 3 goals for a 3/10 stake at 1.91 with BetVictor
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