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Houston Dynamo vs San Jose Earthquakes: Predictions, Picks, Odds & Lineups

Houston Dynamo vs San Jose Earthquakes predicted formations

Houston Dynamo host San Jose Earthquakes at Shell Energy Stadium on Saturday, August 29 (8:30 PM ET / 7:30 PM CT / 5:30 PM PT).

Houston Dynamo have a clean bill of health to call upon at Shell Energy Stadium, with Guilherme spearheading the attack after his 12 goals from 57 shots this season, backed by Mateusz Bogusz and Jack McGlynn supplying from midfield — Bogusz has fired 58 shots of his own while McGlynn’s 46 chances created lead the group. Héctor Herrera continues to marshal that midfield too. San Jose Earthquakes are similarly unaffected on the injury front, and Preston Judd should lead their line again after his 11 goals from 62 shots, with Timo Werner and Ousseni Bouda offering support in behind him.

This one looks built for an arm wrestle, not a track meet. Houston sit second in the Western Conference with 38 points from 21 games, a return built on tight margins. Every one of their last five results has been decided by two goals or fewer. San Jose arrive fourth in the West but winless in five, well beaten at home by Minnesota United last time out, and asking that defence to withstand another dose of Houston control feels a stretch too far. Back Guilherme’s movement and a moment of quality to prove decisive in a tight, low-scoring night at Shell Energy Stadium.

Houston Dynamo vs San Jose Earthquakes: Best Bets & Predictions

Houston's meaner defence should have the edge in a tense Western Conference derby at Shell Energy Stadium

Houston DynamoTop pickHouston sit second in the Western Conference with 38 points from 21 games, a platform built on defensive solidity (+4 goal difference) that should be enough to see off a San Jose side struggling for form.
47%win prob.opening soon @ bet365
1-0 Houston DynamoHouston have made a habit of grinding out low-scoring wins this season, and with San Jose short on confidence in front of goal, 1-0 fits the shape of this fixture perfectly.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐chanceopening soon @ bet365
NoHouston boast the healthier goal difference at +4, and that defensive solidity should be enough to shut out a San Jose attack too inconsistent to guarantee a goal here.
45%chanceopening soon @ bet365
Under 2.5Houston's own results this season have regularly finished with two goals or fewer, and a cagey affair at Shell Energy Stadium points to another low-scoring night.
47%chanceopening soon @ bet365
Guilherme to Score AnytimeGuilherme leads Houston with 12 goals from 57 shots this season, comfortably the club's most productive forward and the most likely name on the scoresheet.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐chanceopening soon @ bet365

Our approach: we weigh conference standings, recent form and underlying numbers — shots, chances created, minutes played — into a single stat-backed scoreline, then build our picks outward from there.

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Season Form & Standings

Houston Dynamo sit second in the Western Conference with 38 points from 21 games, while San Jose Earthquakes are fourth in the same conference and still hunting the form to match that spot.

Western Conference

TeamPosGPWDLGFGAGDPts
Houston Dynamo22112273026+438
Team News Predicted

Houston Dynamo vs San Jose Earthquakes Predicted Lineups

Predicted XI — updated for the latest team news.

Houston Dynamo

3-2-3-1
J. Bond
Lucas Halter
A. Resch
L. Ennali
D. Samassekou
Artur
M. Bogusz
A. Bouzat
J. McGlynn
D. McGuire

San Jose Earthquakes

4-2-3-1
A. Gunn
Vitor Costa
R. Roberts
D. Munie
B. Kikanovic
B. Leroux
J. Gonzalez
T. Werner
N. Tsakiris
O. Bouda
P. Judd
    Squawka · Team News

    Potential Match-Winners

    • Guilherme (Houston Dynamo): Houston’s talisman leads the club with 12 goals from 57 shots this season, 26 of them on target — the most likely source of a goal at Shell Energy Stadium.
    • Jack McGlynn (Houston Dynamo): McGlynn’s 46 chances created lead the Dynamo group, and his passing range from midfield underpins Houston’s control of games like this.
    • Preston Judd (San Jose Earthquakes): Judd’s 11 goals from 62 shots make him San Jose’s biggest threat, though he will find few sightings of goal against a mean Houston backline.

    Recent Form

    Houston Dynamo: W W W W L

    • 2026-08-23: St. Louis City SC 2-1 Houston Dynamo (L, away)
    • 2026-08-20: Vancouver Whitecaps 0-1 Houston Dynamo (W, away)
    • 2026-08-16: Houston Dynamo 1-0 LA Galaxy (W, home)
    • 2026-08-08: New England Revolution 0-2 Houston Dynamo (W, away)
    • 2026-08-02: Sporting KC 0-2 Houston Dynamo (W, away)

    Houston have won four of their last five. That run included victories at Sporting KC (2-0), at New England Revolution (2-0), at home to LA Galaxy (1-0) and away at Vancouver Whitecaps (1-0), before a 2-1 defeat away to St. Louis City SC last time out.

    San Jose Earthquakes: D L L L L

    • 2026-08-23: San Jose Earthquakes 1-5 Minnesota United (L, home)
    • 2026-08-20: LA Galaxy 1-0 San Jose Earthquakes (L, away)
    • 2026-08-16: San Jose Earthquakes 1-3 St. Louis City SC (L, home)
    • 2026-08-02: FC Cincinnati 4-2 San Jose Earthquakes (L, away)
    • 2026-07-26: San Jose Earthquakes 1-1 LA Galaxy (D, home)

    San Jose have lost four of their last five. That sequence included a 1-1 draw with LA Galaxy, a 4-2 defeat at FC Cincinnati, a 1-3 loss at home to St. Louis City SC, a 0-1 defeat away to LA Galaxy and a heaviest 1-5 defeat at home to Minnesota United last time out.

    Houston Dynamo vs San Jose Earthquakes Prediction

    Houston Dynamo’s position in the Western Conference tells its own story: Second with 38 points from 21 games, built on a defence that rarely concedes freely. San Jose Earthquakes sit fourth in the West but arrive out of form, winless in five and well beaten at home by Minnesota United last time out. Guilherme offers this game’s likeliest source of a goal, and we make it 1-0 to Houston Dynamo in a tight, low-scoring night at Shell Energy Stadium.