Los Angeles Galaxy vs San Jose Earthquakes — Tips & Analysis

Under 3.5: The Galaxy have stopped scoring at home, and that is what caps this game. They score less than a goal a game at Dignity Health Sports Park, and only 4 of their 18 games this season have had 4 or more goals. The team gets weaker again for this one. Garces is suspended after a red card, Puig and Thommy are injured, Reus is not expected to play, and Klauss has a foot problem. San Jose are the stronger side and they travel well, going 5W-1D-3L away at just over 2 goals a game. Their form is patchy though. They have lost three of their last five, including a 1-3 home defeat by St. Louis, and they let in more than a goal a game themselves. So the likeliest script is a 1-2 to San Jose, with the Galaxy competing and getting on the board. That is a controlled night rather than a shootout, and a home side this short of attackers rarely turns a game into a race. The risk is real. San Jose have had 4 or more goals in 11 of their last 19 games, and the 20 meetings between these two averaged just over 3 goals. If San Jose score early, the Galaxy have to chase and the game can crack open. We still expect a tighter night than San Jose's season suggests.