LA Galaxy v Houston Dynamo: Beckham and co worthy favourites
Published:LA Galaxy boss Bruce Arena rates their chances of retaining David Beckham for next year at 50-50, whereas the English press are less certain. Victory tonight will ensure that he has the blessing of the fans, whatever he decides…
Match odds
LA Galaxy were the stars of the regular season by some distance, but Houston Dynamo – having been mediocre in that process – have been as impressive as anyone in the play-offs, and head to Los Angeles on a five-match winning streak.
The 2006 and 2007 champions even beat their opponents in Texas during that run, however they are 9/2 outsiders to repeat the feat at the Home Depot Center, and it is difficult to dispute the logic that sees LA Galaxy rated 4/7 favourites.
Arena’s side have been flawless in front of their fans for over a year now and have recorded 13 successive victories as hosts, triumphing over Houston on both of the last two occasions that they have entertained them.
The visitors have beaten some decent franchises to get this far in Philadelphia Union and Sporting Kansas City, yet neither possess the class of the Galaxy, who have Beckham, Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane producing the magic.
Other markets
It’s advisable to expect goals as LA Galaxy, for all their great results and attacking strength, have kept just one clean sheet in five in their own stadium, while Houston have struck in each of their last nine fixtures.
In netting twice or more in nine of their last 11 as hosts, the Galaxy have shown that they are strong enough to survive one defensive blip, so 2-1 (7/1) and 3-1 (9/1) are correct score bets worth considering.
When looking for a first scorer, it may be wise to shun the big names in the home dressing room and instead turn to Mike McGee at 7/1. The 27-year-old is proving to be a play-off hero having fired in all three of their post-season games.
