The Seattle Sounders face the San Jose Earthquakes for the second time this season. We don't need to talk about their first encounter. Nope, nope, nope. Instead, why don't we take a look at what the teams have done since they last met? Here is all the data you need to prep for Saturday's home match.
Scouting Report
Notable Player Absences
The Sounders will be without their scoring duo of Obafemi Martins and Clint Dempsey. Martins has an adductor strain, while Dempsey was suspended three games for tearing up a referee's rulebook. Marco Pappa has returned from national team duty, while Gonzalo Pineda, Osvaldo Alonso and Chad Barrett all practiced and could be available.
For San Jose, both JJ Koval and Mark Sherrod are suspended after picking up red cards last match. The speedy Innocent Emeghara is out with a knee injury, while Ty Harden and Paulo Renato are questionable with hamstring injuries.
Interesting Stats
Chris Wondolowski has scored 9 goals against the Sounders, the most of any opposing player. In addition, the Quakes have recorded 10 goals at CenturyLink Field and are tied for the most goals scored in Seattle by any visiting team.
The data show that the Sounders will likely have the passing and possession advantage over San Jose. While we will have a much different starting lineup tomorrow, I suspect the Sounders will still maintain most of the possession.
One secret to Seattle's success will be to avoid letting San Jose score first. Teams under coach Dominic Kinnear are 121-10-43 when scoring first, a .819 winning percentage. In 34 games with the Earthquakes, Kinnear has only lost one game when his team scored first.
The Sounders rank first in a lot of categories at the moment: wins (9), points per match (1.93), goals (23), goals against average (.73), shutouts (8), and shots on goal percentage (46.7%). We should all be crossing our fingers and toes to ensure they remain on top in these categories after the weekend.
Okay, onto the infographic. What are your predictions for Saturday's match?
