Philadelphia Union v Toronto FC

The first match of 2019 MLS season will take place at Talen Energy Stadium, where we will see Philadelphia Union hosting Toronto FC.

First, let's check Toronto FC, who have lost their star player Giovinco for Saudi Arabia team Al-Hilal. While it may not seem like a big deal, it kind of is. If we look at how Toronto performed in 9 games without him last season they went 1-1-7. With his departure, Toronto have a hard task of trying to rebuild the team around another player and hope for a successful season. While their last season was filled with injuries, they do not look too promising this season either, especially with Giovinco and other key players leaving the club.

The home side, Philadelphia Union, unlike Toronto retained most of the squad from last season. The only exception being Rosenberry trade to Rapids and Dockal departure to Sparta Prague. On the other side, Philadelphia brought in Collins at the back and Fabian from Frankfurt to add some strength up front. Fabian alongside Burke performed well against DC, where they created plenty of chances, which I believe they will be able to do against Toronto as well, if not even with higher success.

With Toronto missing some of the key players from last season and Philadelphia Union's additions proving to be a good fit for the team, I believe Union should be able to win the opening match of the MLS in front of their own fans.

Prediction: Philadelphia Union to win
BetScorum Link: https://betscorum.com/en-us/game/3689



Seattle Sounders v FC Cincinnati

Seattle Sounders are the first team to test out the new side FC Cincinnati, who did not look too promising in the preseason, where the Crew walked all over them. If we take that match as a ground zero for our prediction, I could argue Seattle Sounders are a much better side than the Crew, and well.. they undoubtedly are.

Cincinnati as a whole look very disorganized and as a team that lacks quality. They might improve as the season advances and they find their own rhythm, but for now, they seemingly can't find a way to utilize their best players. In my opinion, FC Cinncinati are one of the worst new teams that have entered MLS, which is disappointing.

Seattle on the other side ended the preseason with results that do not look like results Seattle we know would put up. They lost to Atalanta by 6 goals (7:1), but we must take into consideration, Seattle did not play with their best players on that day. In fact, they played academy players and trialist, so expecting anything more than a defeat would be just silly. All in all, if I had to rank Seattle, they are surely one of the best Western teams and I do believe they will show us that against FC Cincinnati.

Seattle are clearly a better side here, and the fact that their opponents need to take a long trip just to play their first MLS game will only add to the home field advantage and a better team Seattle has. This match should end in Sounders favour, and I am not talking about a 1:0 win, but more like a 2:0 or 3:0 win. I feel comfortable predicting this match ending with more than a goal margin separating the teams. Expect Sounders to start off the new season strong, with a high win.

Prediction: Seattle Sounders -1.00 Asian Handicap
BetScorum Link: https://betscorum.com/en-us/game/3704