MLS Picks & Predictions

MLS Odds Analysis & Weekend Preview

New York Red Bulls (+140) to Win at Montreal Impact (+190)

The New York Red Bulls’ defense of their Supporters’ Shield did not have the best of starts as they fell to a 0-2 defeat at the hands of the highly fancied Toronto FC. While the Red Bulls mustered 10 shots on goal, only one of those was on target which needs to vastly improve when they head to Montreal Impact’s Saputo Stadium on March 12.

Montreal Impact kicked their season off with a 3-2 victory on the road at the Vancouver Whitecaps, the first time the Impact has won on their travels in Canada. Much was made about the absence of star striker Didier Drogba, but Ignacio Piatti chipped in with two goals and an assist, one of his goals being scored in spectacular fashion.

Bookmakers are pricing this as a tight contest with the Red Bulls slight favorites in the early betting at +140 and the Impact at +190. However, the Red Bulls are unbeaten in six against the Impact with four wins in that time, with Montreal’s only victory in the series being a 1-0 win the first time the teams met in 2013.

Pick: Red Bulls (+140)

New England Revolution (-141) to Win at DC United (+395) and Both Teams to Score

New England Revolution

DC United went 1-0 up after only five minutes in their opening fixture away at LA Galaxy, but conceded four second-half goals to lose 4-1. There is no way that Ben Olsen is going to let his defenders get away with gifting their opponents a victory like they did.

New England Revolutions’ fans enjoyed a six-goal thriller as their team drew 3-3 away at Houston Dynamo, although they needed a goal from Daigo Kobayashi in the third minute of stoppage time to secure a point. Like his opposite number, New England coach Jay Heaps will be looking to plug the gaps in his leaky defence.

While New England are huge favorites (-141) going into the game, parlaying the bet with both teams to score (-125) makes more sense than outright moneyline betting; a $25 bet would return $76.91 at these odds.

Pick: New England (-141)

LA Galaxy (+126) to win at Colorado Rapids (+219) and Over 2.5 Goals

The Colorado Rapids fell to a 1-0 defeat at San Jose Earthquakes on the opening day to keep up an unwanted record of not recording a win on Week 1 since 2012. The Rapids’ defeat was not due to a lack of effort: they enjoyed 58.2% of possessions and had 18 shots to San Jose’s seven, but conceded within a minute of the second-half starting and simply could not score.

LA Galaxy, on the other hand, seemed to find it easy to put the ball in the back of the net with a 4-1 thumping of DC United. Galaxy have a four-match unbeaten run against the Rapids, winning three times and drawing one, scoring 14 goals in that time and conceding seven so expect this latest encounter to have goals.

You will find Galaxy priced at around +126 to beat the Rapids, who are +219. The Over 2.5 Goals should come in around -133, again making for a good opportunity for a parlay bet.

Pick: Galaxy (+126)