DC United hosts the New York Red Bulls at Audi Field in the second Atlantic Cup match of the season on Saturday night.
The Black and Red have played to three consecutive draws with Gabriel Pirani's first MLS goal rescuing a point in a 1-1 draw against Atlanta United.
Wayne Rooney's side sit in the ninth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of NYCFC.
Similarly, New York drew 1-1 against Austin, an own goal from the Verde and Black canceled out by Sebastian Driussi's header from a corner late in the first half.
Time is running out for the Red Bulls to continue their league-best streak of 13 consecutive playoff appearances as they are five points out of a postseason berth with five games to go.
Defensively, New York are one of the best teams in MLS, allowing the sixth-fewest goals (34) and fewest shots (80) in the league.
The Red Bulls have also held their opponents to less than 10 shots in 24 of their 29 matches this season, which is the most in MLS for a single season since Opta began collecting data of MLS in 2010.
Team news
Starting goalkeeper Tyler Miller will miss the remainder of the regular season after undergoing surgery for a torn rotator cuff.
Mohanad Jeahze and Martin Rodriguez will both miss out with knee injuries while Derrick Williams is sidelined with a calf issue.
Steve Birnbaum (hip), Ted Ku-DiPietro (thigh) and Andy Najar (thigh) are all questionable.
Forward Dante Vanzeir is out for the rest of the season after suffering a lumbar injury against Austin.
Lewis Morgan (hip) and Serge Ngoma (hamstring) join Vanzeir on the sidelines while Steven Sserwadda is questionable with a knee injury.
Predicted lineups
DC United: Bono; Davis, Pines, Hines-Ike, Najar; Klich, Canouse, Asad; Pirani; Ku-DiPietro, Benteke
New York Red Bulls: Coronel; Tolkin, S. Nealis, Reyes, Harper; Luquinhas, Amaya, Edelman, Fernandez; Manoel, Barlow
Ones to watch
Christian Benteke (DC United)
The former Aston Villa striker leads the club with ten goals in 28 appearances this season and has been DC's best overall player in 2023.
Six of those ten goals have come at home and his physical presence will create additional problems for the Red Bulls defense.
Frankie Amaya (New York Red Bulls)
The midfielder quietly leads the club with four goals for an offensively-challenged New York side.
His play on both ends, whether it's linking up with the strikers, starting the offense from midfield with Omir Fernandez and Luquinhas, or containing the DC attack, will be key.
Previous meetings
The 100th regular-season meeting between the Atlantic rivals last month featured a dramatic finish as John Tolkin scored in the 88th minute to give New York a 1-0 victory.
Jose Fajardo fouled Tolkin and the defender scored on the ensuing free-kick as he beat Miller inside the right post.
The win, New York's fifth in their last six games against DC, pulled the Red Bulls within a point of the Black and Red with goalkeeper Carlos Coronel recording his seventh clean sheet of the season.
How to watch
The match will be streamed nationally on Apple TV + with Chris Wittyngham serving as the play-by-play announcer and Lori Lindsey as the analyst.
Kickoff is set for 7:30pm Eastern time.