The Western Conference of the MLS is back in action this weekend as the Seattle Sounders take on a resurgent San Jose Earthquakes side at the Earthquakes Stadium. Both sides have been excellent over the past months and will want to win this game.The Seattle Sounders are at the top of the Western Conference table with a game in hand and will want to leave the Portland Timbers behind with a victory in this game. The Sounders suffered a shock defeat against Los Angeles FC last week and will want to be back at their best in this game.The San Jose Earthquakes are drawing closer to a top-four finish at the moment and are currently in seventh place in the MLS standings. The Earthquakes thrashed the Los Angeles Galaxy by a 4-0 margin during the week and are in excellent form going into this game.Wednesday was pretty fun.#BeatLA | @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/3UnqKMjKvC— San Jose Earthquakes (@SJEarthquakes) October 17, 2020San Jose Earthquakes vs Seattle Sounders Head-to-HeadThe Seattle Sounders have a slight advantage against the San Jose Earthquakes as far as the head-to-head is concerned and have won 14 games out of a total of 31 matches between the two sides. The Earthquakes have managed 11 victories and will look to take something away from this fixture.The Seattle Sounders massacred the Earthquakes by an astonishing 7-1 margin in the previous meeting between the two sides last month. The away side has to do without several players in this game, however, and will face a resurgent San Jose side this weekend.San Jose Earthquakes form guide in the MLS: W-L-W-W-WSeattle Sounders form guide in the MLS: L-W-W-W-LAlso Read: Top 10 attacking trios in football historySan Jose Earthquakes vs Seattle Sounders Team NewsThe San Jose Earthquakes need to be at their bestSan Jose EarthquakesDanny Hoesen is suffering from a torn muscle and has been ruled out for this game. Guram Kashia, Valeri Qazaishvili, and Marcos Lopez were on international duty over the past week and are unavailable for this fixture.Injured: Danny HoesenDoubtful: NoneSuspended: NoneNot Available: Guram Kashia, Valeri Qazaishvili, Marcos LopezThe Seattle Sounders need to win this gameSeattle SoundersThe Seattle Sounders have several players missing for this game with Danny Leyva and Joevin Jones on the sidelines. Gustav Svensson, Xavier Arreaga, and the talismanic Raul Ruidiaz are currently in quarantine and will not play a part against the San Jose Earthquakes.Injured: Danny Leyva, Joevin JonesDoubtful: NoneSuspended: Joao PauloNot Available: Gustav Svensson, Xavier Arreaga, Raul RuidiazSan Jose Earthquakes vs Seattle Sounders Predicted XISan Jose Earthquakes Predicted XI (4-3-3): James Marcinkowski; Tommy Thompson, Florian Jungwirth, Tanner Beason, Nick Lima; Judson, Jackson Yueill, Andres Rios; Cristian Espinoza, Carlos Fierro, Chris WondolowskiYou deserve this one, Coach. On Thursday, former Sounders Head Coach Sigi Schmid was announced as a member of the 2021 @UnitedCoaches Hall of Fame class. 💚📝 https://t.co/FG3RwpeZSw pic.twitter.com/DhA8UQ1Oij— Seattle Sounders FC (@SoundersFC) October 17, 2020Seattle Sounders Predicted XI (4-3-3): Stefan Frei; Brad Smith, Shane O'Neill, Yeimar Gomez, Kelvin Leerdam; Cristian Roldan, Jordy Delem; Jordan Morris, Nicolas Lodeiro, Miguel Ibarra; Will BruinSan Jose Earthquakes vs Seattle Sounders PredictionThe San Jose Earthquakes will want to exorcise their demons in this fixture and have a point to prove this weekend. The home side picked up a massive victory last week but will face an uphill battle in this game.The Seattle Sounders will have to deal with the absence of several crucial players in this game and cannot afford to drop points against the San Jose Earthquakes. The away side does have the upper hand and should be able to manage a hard-fought victory in this game.Prediction: San Jose Earthquakes 1-2 Seattle SoundersAlso Read: UEFA Champions League 2019/20: Team of the season