The top four teams in the MLS Eastern Conference will face off in a pair of intriguing matchups in a weekend slate that also features Seattle's visit to Portland.
Major League Soccer may not be calling this weekend's slate of games a 'rivalry week', but a pair of important rivalry clashes make the label an appropriate one.
The Seattle Sounders take the trip down the I-5 to take on the Portland Timbers in a clash of teams trying to overcome disappointing first halves of the season. Both Cascadia clubs are currently sitting outside the playoff places in the Western Conference, and a loss on Sunday will only dig a deeper hole for one of them.