After 3 straight home league matches, FC Cincinnati heads on the road for some retribution against Orlando City B. The “Baby Lions” came away with a 2-0 win over FCC earlier in the season. The Orange & Blue are in a much better run of form and look to pick up 3 points on the road. Each and every game we do our best to predict the outcome of the FC Cincinnati match. Here’s how some of the staff here at CST feel things will transpire Saturday night vs. Orlando.
Bryan Weigel
The “little lions” packed a lot of bite when they traveled to Cincy early in the season. Two defensive miscues led to both goals for Orlando including a PK and a breakaway goal. Coach Koch has seemed to find some stability in the defensive end with the new 3-man back line, but will Berry & Delbridge be able to play Saturday? My guess is 1 of them will. Our midfield should be relatively good to go with Kenney Walker rested Wednesday and Bone, McLaughlin and Wiedeman playing limited minutes. Hopefully, Djiby will play, but that is a toss up. I’m picking a 1-1 draw because Orlando may have some MLS guys down again and the speed of this squad might be tough to handle.
Bryan Griffin
Heading south, FCC begin their road trip by facing OCB. I feel very confident in our chances as long as we can keep the players from getting too distracted from the 5pm Orlando Pride kickoff. We might have to keep Jimmy on lockdown so he doesn’t go chasing after Alex Morgan. Our second matchup against the baby lions will be different than the first. At Nippert in May, the lead official went on a carding frenzy affecting the play beyond belief. This was also the first match for Danni after the trade with the Energy. With spirits high and chemistry higher, Koch and Club leave Orlando with a 3-1 victory.
Ken Hoetker
I think FCC has hit that turning point in their season with the new 3 back system. The month of June has been a great month for the club, only 1 loss and two victories over MLS teams in the USOC. FCC now travels to Florida for a week long road trip to face Orlando City B and followed by the Tampa Bay Rowdies. FCC coming off a shootout victory over the Chicago Fire now needs to focus on the Orlando City B squad. I imagine Alan Koch will have K Walker, Djiby, Nicholson and Polak in their lineup. This is a solid core to rely on for the OCB game. Once the team settles into a rhythm FCC will slide one by Orlando and the defense will continue it clean sheet ways for a 1-0 victory.
Yosief Tzeghai
We saw what was probably the greatest match in FCC history on Wednesday, but now the team must come back down to earth and travel down to Orlando in hopes of carrying this momentum through in league play. There are two things to watch out for in terms of the FC Cincinnati lineup. Will the squad be forced to revert to a four man backline to give the mainstays Austin Berry and Harrison Delbridge some much needed rest? Will Djiby be healthy enough to contribute and if not who covers the striker role? Konig was gassed by the end of his last appearance and I highly doubt we’ll see him this weekend. If FC Cincinnati wants to maintain their playoff positioning or even ascend to home playoff spot midtable OCB are the perfect example of team FCC cannot afford to lose to. I think the Cincy Rough Lads ride their current form to a 1-0 victory this weekend.
Check out our live show from this Tuesday for the rest of our staff picks!
Other Staff Picks: Seubs 2-0, Brad 2-1, Bill 2-0, Ken 1-0
Standings
ICYMI: Check out our 5 Things to Know before Saturday’s match.
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