Preview

FC Cincinnati looks to keep pace in the east out in Utah

By Jacob Holton

Posted on July 18, 2025

After a tough loss in the Hell is Real derby, FC Cincinnati needed to respond in a big way. Inter Miami came to Cincinnati on Wednesday night in sensational form. The Herons had won three straight and Lionel Messi was scoring for fun. But FCC got exactly what they needed though with a massive 3-0 victory. They will look to carry that momentum to Salt Lake City to try and keep pace for first place in the East with the Philadelphia Union.

Real Salt Lake

Way back in January, Real Salt Lake made the decision to sell their best player Christian Arango to fellow Western conference side San Jose Earthquakes. It was a move that was shocking to a lot of people considering he scored 17 goals for the club in the previous season and was a big part of the 2023 side that went to the playoffs. Failing to bring in a player of Arango’s status RSL struggled mightily in the first half of the MLS season.

In the first 17 matches this season RSL looked like contenders for the wooden spoon. They compiled just four wins, three draws, and 10 losses. Despite the slow start things have begun to turn around for RSL. They are unbeaten in their last five matches, tying one and winning four. Those wins came against DC United, St. Louis City, Houston Dynamo, and Portland timbers. RSL also drew Sporting Kansas City 1-1. There has been a real uptick in scoring for the club as well. In the first 17 matches the club scored just 16 goals. Through the first five matches, RSL has already notched eight goals.

RSL has also been a much better team at home than they are on the road. In the 10 matches they have played at home this season they have a record of five wins, one draw, and four loses. Their goal differential is significantly better as well. Away from home RSL has a GD of -7, and at home it’s +3. This uptick in form at home might have something to do with having to play at elevation. American First Family Field sits at 4,450 feet above sea level. That is a tough adjustment to make, especially for East Coast teams.

Despite scoring more goals recently, RSL is still one of the lowest scoring sides in the Western Conference. The only clubs who have scored fewer goals are St. Louis City with 23 goals, and Austin FC with 17 goals. However, defending is real strength of this RSL squad. In all of MLS, RSL ranks fifth in goals allowed. The only clubs ahead of them in that category are Philadelphia, Nashville, Vancouver, NYCFC, and Minnesota. All of those teams ahead of RSL in goals allowed are playoff teams at this moment. That means if RSL can figure out how to score more goals the rest of the season they could also be looking at a place in the playoffs.

RSL doesn’t have a ton in the way of stars to keep an eye on leading into this match, but here are a couple players to look out for:

Diego Luna – Luna is a lightning quick winger who can be deadly in front of goal. It’s imperative that FCC has an answer for him.
Johnny Russell – the long time Sporting Kansas City man joined the club at the end of April. He’s got loads of experience, he can be a handful on the wing, and he’s pretty good at scoring goals.
Rafael Cabral – this is Cabral’s first season in the MLS, but he has been great in goal for RSL this season. You don’t concede so few goals without a dominate keeper.
Zavier Gozo -this is a young man who made his debut at 16 years old and now he’s starting just about every match at 18 years old. There has been some buzz about a potential move to Europe, so he is definitely one to watch.

FC Cincinnati

What a win for FCC on Wednesday night against Inter Miami! The Orange and Blue put together what could be argued as the most complete performance of the season. FCC had a new injury to deal with as well. Their 16-million-dollar man Kévin Denkey was out with a leg injury. Despite being shorthanded FCC played their socks off and came away with a 3-0 victory.

When you look at FCC’s form over the last five matches, this is still one of the hottest teams in all Major League Soccer. Before the heartbreaking loss to Columbus Crew, FCC had won four matches in a row. With the win over Miami, FCC has now won five of their last six matches.

FCC was far and away the best road team in MLS last season, and that trend has carried over to this season. The Orange and Blue are tied for the most away wins with newcomers San Diego FC. Both clubs have seven wins away from home. But this will be FCC’s third match in just seven days.

Unfortunately, FCC will once again be without Kévin Denkey for this match. Pat Noonan revealed that Denkey picked up an injury just 20 minutes into the Hell is Real derby this past weekend. Denkey had this to say on social media about his injury: https://x.com/KevinDenkey9/status/1945874667170083076

Gerardo Valenzuela stepped up big in the Inter Miami match in place of Kévin Denkey, and maybe FCC will deploy him again this weekend in a similar role.

This is another big opportunity for FCC to stay hot and keep the pressure on Philadelphia, as well as San Diego FC in the race for the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the Supporters Shield race. FCC have just two matches left before the Leagues Cup starts, so the club needs to stack as many wins as possible before the home stretch of the season begins.