St. Louis City SC midfielder Jaziel Orozco is relishing the battle for places among his team-mates as they try to find their rhythm in MLS with the Seattle Sounders up next.

St. Louis are still chasing their first win in MLS this season, following up a 1-1 draw with Charlotte FC in their opener with a 2-0 loss to San Diego FC last time out.

It means they remain one of just two Western Conference teams yet to taste victory, with them sitting 14th in the table.

And Orozco, who is playing his first full campaign with St. Louis, says the players are working hard to improve and get the best out of each other.

"Everyone is competing for a spot here," Orozco said. "It's a healthy competition.

"We're all in the same boat: We're gonna back each other up, and we know that whoever steps up will perform at the maximum level.

"If it's me on the spot, I'm going to run with it. If it's someone else, I'll support them right away."

Seattle, meanwhile, are sat ninth in the West and are looking to get back to winning ways after a 2-1 loss to Real Salt Lake last time out.

Having won their opener 2-0 against the Colorado Rapids, there have been positives for the Sounders so far, including the return of Paul Arriola from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

He has only managed to play 11 minutes so far in 2026, but he is excited to get back out from the start, saying he is fit enough to be in the starting line-up.

"I think the work for me has been more on the training ground, during the week, trying to prepare my body and trying to continue to get the rhythm so that when I get the opportunity for more minutes, I'm ready to go," Arriola said.

"I'm hungry, I'm anxious. I've had some good conversations with our coach this week, and we're on the same page. I'm itching to get in and try to help the team."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

St. Louis City SC – Roman Burki

St. Louis kept four consecutive clean sheets to begin the 2025 season, including a shutout win over Seattle on March 15, 2025.

Since then, they have managed only two clean sheets in 32 regular-season matches, and Roman Burki will be keen to improve on that record.

Seattle Sounders – Cristian Roldan

Cristian Roldan's goal Saturday ended his run of 32 straight MLS appearances (including playoffs) without scoring, a run that dated back nearly a year (previous goal: March 8, 2025).

It was the second-longest streak of Roldan's MLS career after a 41-match stretch to start his career (March 2015 – July 2016).

MATCH PREDICTION: SEATTLE SOUNDERS WIN

Seattle have won five of six all-time meetings with St. Louis, including a 4-1 home win the last time the sides met, in May 2025.

St. Louis' only result against the Sounders was a 1-0 home win in March last season, which is also the only time City have held Seattle under two goals in a match.

St. Louis are winless in their last five regular-season home matches dating back to last August (D3 L2), including a 1-1 draw with Charlotte FC to open this season at Energizer Park.

Their four home wins since the start of last season are tied for the fewest among Western Conference teams (Sporting Kansas City).

Since the beginning of last season, Seattle have posted a record of W5 D6 L9 in away MLS matches (including playoffs), averaging 1.2 points per match while totalling 12 wins, five draws and one loss at home, for an average of 2.3 points per match.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

St. Louis City SC – 24.6%

Draw – 23%

Seattle Sounders – 52.4%