Leagues Cup is into the Knockout Rounds and the Round of 32 begins Wednesday night with two West coast games in LA and Vancouver.
Columbus and Club America join the mix after getting byes through the Group Stage.
Let’s cover the 2 games on Wednesday and 4 on Thursday in our Leagues Cup predictions before diving into the rest later this week.
Leagues Cup Picks and Parlays #1
LAFC vs Austin FC Prediction
LAFC have been one of the top teams in MLS and all competitions all season. In Leagues Cup they beat Tijuana 3-0 before fighting back to draw Vancouver 2-2 before going on to lose in PKs.
Still, they’re 14-2-2 in 18 overall matches and have scored multiple goals in 13/18.
After a run that saw them win only 2 games in 11, Austin are one of the surprises of the tournament beating Pumas 3-2 while being down a man and then beating one of the giants of Mexico, Monterrey, 2-0.
Having drawn Charlotte 2-2 before Leagues Cup they’ve now scored 2+ in 3 straight games.
Osman Bukari made a brief appearance vs Pumas before getting red-carded so we’ll finally get to see more of the new Austin DP winger this game.
Head-to-head this season they drew 1-1 in Austin in June. LAFC won the 3 previous meetings in past seasons 4-2, 3-0 and 3-0.
LAFC should win, but this Austin team has been different in Leagues Cup and LAFC did find themselves down 2-0 to Vancouver. So instead I’ll be on LAFC scoring at least 2 goals in case this turns into a shootout.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: LAFC over 1.5
Vancouver Whitecaps vs Pumas UNAM Prediction
This is their first-ever meeting.
The Caps enter the Round of 32 after beating LAFC in PKs after drawing 2-2 and then beating Tijuana 3-1.
Take out a friendly loss to Wrexham and the Caps are 7-1-1 in 9, outscoring opponents 23-14. Their games have been open with BTTS & Over 2.5 hitting in 7/9.
Of course Vancouver’s offense loses some firepower with Ryan Gauld still out injured.
Pumas’ Leagues Cup campaign saw them lose to Austin 3-2 despite being up a player more most of the game. They then drew Monterrey 1-1 and went on to win in PKs.
It’s been a strong start in the Apertura for Pumas at 3-1-0, sitting 2nd, but tied overall in 1st with Cruz Azul and Tigres on 10 points.
They’ve scored 9 and conceded just 3 in their 4 games.
Go back further and Pumas has just 2 losses in 14 games now. They’ve scored in 11/13, scored multiple in 5/7, but conceded in 7/8 and BTTS is 6-1.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: Both Teams to Score
- Parlay Picks: LAFC over 1.5 / VAN vs PUM btts (+116) dropped from +125
Leagues Cup Picks and Parlays #2
Inter Miami CF vs Toronto FC Prediction
Playing without some of their stars didn’t matter in Game 1 of Leagues Cup for Miami as they beat Puebla 2-0. But on MD2 it wasn’t enough vs Tigres as they lost 2-1. Messi is still injured from Copa America and Luis Suarez has a knock as well, but the Herons still have plenty of stars.
That shutout of Puebla is their only clean sheet in 12 games. The BTTS & Over 2.5 has gone 11-1 in that time.
TFC won 2/3 in MLS prior to the tournament and have continued to build momentum in Leagues Cup drawing the Red Bulls and winning in PKs and then beating Champions Cup winners Pachuca 2-1.
On July 17 Miami beat Toronto 3-1 in Miami. Last season both won at home, Toronto 2-0 in March before the roster was made-over for Miami, and Miami won 4-0 later in the season.
Toronto may have some improved results and have won 4/5 (one needing PKs), but that 1 loss in these 5 games was vs this Miami team.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: Miami over 1.5
San Jose Earthquakes vs Necaxa Prediction
This is their first-ever meeting.
We just talked about how Seattle has been strong of late, but they did lose 3-1 to this Necaxa team on MD3.
Nexaca lost 1-0 in their first game to Minnesota but were stonewalled by Dayne St. Claire who made 16 saves.
Necaxa now has just 2 wins in 6, but only 7 losses in 26.
They’ve scored in 19/21 but also conceded in 19/21, including in 9 straight.
The Quakes know all about conceding, they’ve done so in 27 of 29 overall matches this season, including multiple goals in 8/12.
In their last 16 games in all comps they have just 2 wins. One of those was this tournament vs Chivas when they drew Chivas 1-1 before going on to win in PKs. Still, that’s 1 regulation win 16.
San Jose can often score, and coupled with their poor defense it’s rare we don’t see 2+ goals in their games, something that’s happened in 12/14.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: Over 1.5
Tigres UANL vs Pachuca Prediction
Tigres beat Puebla 2-1 before also beating Miami 2-1 in this tournament.
Tigres is off to a strong start at 3-1-0 undefeated and 3rd in the Apertura. This after a 1-0 win, 1-1 draw, 1-0 win and 3-0 win.
In all comps they have just 4 losses in 17 games and those have come to Club America, Monterrey, Columbus and Pachuca.
Pachuca drew New York Red Bulls 1-1 and won in PKs before losing 2-1 to Toronto in their second game.
Pachuca is off to a slow start in LigaMX in 12th at 1-1-2 and their games have all been close scoring just twice and allowing just 3 times.
Between these teams Pachuca won most recently 3-0 in April. Last year they drew 1-1 and Tigres won 4-1 in LigaMX and Tigres won 2-1 in the Campeon de Campeones.
Pachuca isn’t the same team right now that won Champions Cup with just 1 win in 6, this should be a Tigres win. They just beat Miami and didn’t even start Gignac.
Tigres win or to simply score in this parlay.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: Toigres to score
- Parlay Picks: MIA over 1.5 / SJ vs NEX over 1.5 / TIG to score (+104)
Seattle Sounders vs LA Galaxy Prediction
Seattle beat Minnesota 2-0 on MD1 but that was 0-0 until late and Minnesota took a red card. On MD2 they surprisingly lost 3-1 to Necaxa.
Seattle now has just 4 losses in 21 games in all comps and just 2 losses in 11.
The Galaxy beat San Jose 2-1 and drew Chivas Guadalajara 2-2 before winning on PKs.
In their last 14 games, they’re 11-0-3, but 10-1-3 in regulation. They’ve scored 29 goals and conceded 18 goals. That’s made BTTS and Over 2.5 bets 10-4. With recent scores of 2-2, 2-1, 3-2, 3-2, 2-0, 2-1, 2-1, and 3-0, there’s been a boatload of goals on each side of the pitch in their games.
Seattle’s games are bit less open, as 4/7 recent games have gone Under 2.5 and BTTS is only 2-5 in that time.
In two games this season LA won 1-0 at home in March and they drew 0-0 in Seattle in May.
These recent meetings have been very tight and low-scoring but the previous 5 all saw BTTs & Over 25 and the previous 7 BTTS.
- Leagues Cup Predictions: Draw (+240)
Ryan Métivier is a seasoned editor, writer and communications professional with years of experience in all fields. When it comes to covering sports, he’s written for numerous outlets and organizations including the OHL, CHL, SportsXpress, Sports Betting Dime, Cleveland.com, MassLive, FanSided and others.
While he’ll always cheer for his hometown Toronto teams, when it comes to betting, his only allegiance is his bankroll. Ryan specializes in global soccer, the NFL and the NHL, but if there is a bet to be made, he’ll make it. As the founder of Shred The Spread, Ryan focuses on combining storylines, trends, analytics and good bankroll management to creating simple bets that make sense.
When not making a case for why both teams will score in an MLS soccer match, he can be found focusing his efforts on fitness, attempting to learn Spanish, cooking or planning his travel adventure.
