The New York Red Bulls travel West to face the San Jose Earthquakes at PayPal Park.
New York clinched a playoff spot on the final day of the season in 2021 to end the season with 48 points, earning their 12th straight postseason appearance, longest current streak in MLS.
San Jose finished 10th in the Western Conference with 41 points, well out of the playoffs, missing out on the postseason for the fourth time in the last five years.
Team news
Nathan is questionable with a right knee injury while Shea Salinas will miss out also with a right knee issue. George Asomani is also missing with a left hip injury.
Andres Reyes and Wiki Carmona will miss out with foot injuries while Tom Edwards and Luquinhas are awaiting their visas, which will force them to miss this game.
Predicted lineups
San Jose: Marcinkowski; Lopez, Beason, Calvo, Thompson; Cowell, Gregus, Monteiro, Yueill, Espinoza; Ebobisse
New York Red Bulls: Coronel; Tolkin, S. Nealis, Long, D. Nealis; Clark, Amaya, Yearwood, Edelman, Morgan; Kilmala
Ones to watch
Jamiro Monteiro (San Jose)
Acquired via a trade from Philadelphia, the Cape Verde international brings a dynamic element to the club at both ends of the pitch as well as an exciting style of play that should fit San Jose well.
Caden Clark (New York Red Bulls)
His passing vision and eagerness to take shots will be key in what is likely to be his last year with the club as he looks to spearhead the team. That ability will likely be put on display against a porous San Jose defense.
Previous meetings
This is the 43rd all-time meeting between the two clubs, but San Jose is 13-3-3 against the Red Bulls at home.
Their last matchup was a 4-1 win for New York in 2019, but 2018 was the last time they faced off in San Jose with the Red Bulls coming out on top 3-1.
New York made the breakthrough just before the half-hour mark, as Alex Muyl pushed a ball just over the line at the far post to open the scoring.
Moments later, Bradley Wright-Phillips doubled the lead, following up on a shot off the post on a free kick with a finish from a very narrow angle, just in front of the end-line.
The Red Bulls extended their advantage early in the second half, as a corner kick was flicked on by Tim Parker to Aaron Long, whose header made it 3-0.
While the outcome was out of reach for San Jose, there was a late silver lining, as Chris Wondolowski came off the bench to score his 144th regular-season goal just one behind the all-time record of 145 held by Landon Donovan.
How to watch
Coverage in San Jose will be on NBC Sports California while MSG Network, MSG GO, and New York Red Bulls Radio in English and Spanish via TuneIn, the New York Red Bulls app and NewYorkRedBulls.com will be the carriers in the New York area.
Coverage begins at 6pm Eastern time.