FULL-TIME: The Sounders equaled their worst-ever start to a season in the MLS era, falling 1-0 to the LA Galaxy on Saturday. Gabriel Pec scored the game’s only goal in the 4th minute off a shot that went through Stefan Frei’s arms. The Sounders’ had a couple decent looks at an equalizer, including an open Jordan Morris shot from inside near the penalty spot but ultimately failed to score from open play for the fourth time in five games.

LINEUPS: Albert Rusnák will make his return to the Sounders’ starting lineup along with several other changes. Jordan Morris moves to the left wing, Cristian Roldan slides into defensive midfield, Alex Roldan moves to right mid and Cody Baker enters as right back. The Galaxy, somewhat surprisingly, are bringing Miguel Berry in place of Dejan Joveljić.

Still winless after four games, the Seattle Sounders will face what will probably be their toughest opponent to date. The LA Galaxy are off to a 2-0-3 start, but what’s so impressive is that they’re leading the Western Conference with 12 goals.

Leading the way is Dejan Joveljic, who has tied an MLS record by scoring in each of his first five games to start the season. Almost as remarkable as his five goals is that his xG is already at 5.6, which suggests this may actually be a somewhat sustainable pace.

While Joveljic is a holdover from some pretty bad Galaxy teams, along with Riqui Puig, the addition of Joseph Paintsil seems to be the final piece that has unlocked this offense. The Ghana international came to the Galaxy on a $9M transfer fee in the offseason and seems to be worth the hype, having already scored two goals with an assist.

If the Galaxy have a weakness, though, it’s in defense. They are anchored by several older players and have already allowed nine goals, with four of those coming off set pieces.

Notes

The Sounders have gone 14-10-13 all-time in the regular season against the LA Galaxy, which includes an active 12-game unbeaten streak that dates to 2018. During Brian Schmetzer’s tenure as coach, the Sounders are 10-1-8 against the Galaxy, including a 5-1-5 record at Dignity Health Sports Park.
Jordan Morris and Raúl Ruidíaz each have nine career goals against the Galaxy, tied for the most among active MLS players. Cristian Roldan has seven goals against the Galaxy, the fourth most.
If the Sounders fail to beat the Galaxy, they’ll tie their franchise record for longest winless streak to start a season. They went winless in their first five games of 2013 (0-3-2).