The games are coming in fast these days for FC Dallas. The team is on its way to Ohio to battle FC Cincinnati for the first time at TQL Stadium.
To get ready for tomorrow's match, we've asked Laurel Pfahler of Queen City Press to help give us with a preview of FCC. Be sure to give her a follow on BlueSky to stay up to date on everything in the Queen City.
Injury report
Nick Hagglund is out with two fractured ribs and a collapsed lung. Yuya Kubo has been dealing with discomfort in his knee and Achilles/calf areas and was out Sunday at Atlanta. He wasn't in training Tuesday so likely out still.
Recent Form
FC Cincinnati has been playing better in stretches, but it hasn't been showing in the results. The team remains second in the Eastern Conference and has won seven of its last 10 games, with two losses and a draw mixed in there. The defense has been the strong suit during that stretch, despite a $28.2 million investment into the acquisitions of Evander and Kevin Denkey this offseason. Evander and Denkey have individually been outstanding, sitting among the league leaders for goals scored this season with seven and eight, respectively, but before Sunday's loss at Atlanta, FCC was pretty much relying on those two for the production in the attack. Denkey has scored five goals in the last seven games. Sunday was a big improvement for the offense with 27 shots, but Brad Guzan had seven saves, and finishing could have been better with some really close chances. The defense played uncharacteristically badly in that game in the aftermath of losing Nick Hagglund in the 10th minute, and overall this season, FCC has just struggled to put together two good halves and complete performances. The pieces are there for a great team. Chemistry is still building.
Projected Starting Lineup/Formation
3-4-1-2:
Celentano
Flores - Robinson - Powell
Smith - Bucha - Anunga - Yedlin
Evander
Denkey - Santos
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Key players to watch out for
I am expecting rotation with the quick turnaround, but it's also hard to predict because they do have two weeks between games coming up after Saturday so maybe they can push guys a little more this week than usual. Kevin Denkey doesn't take time off so I would expect him to still start, along with Evander. They are the keys in the attack, while Pavel Bucha is quietly the underrated facilitator linking play in the middle of the field. It's possible he gets a rest on the bench, but when he hasn't played FCC has not looked as good. Dado Valenzuela is having a breakout season and is probably the preferred second striker (or as second attacking midfielder next to Evander) but he just recently started playing a lot of minutes so I am guessing he comes off the bench. He will be one to watch if/when he gets in the game. He scored his third goal of the season Sunday.
Drew Epperley
One thing FC Cincinnati do better than others
Aside from Sunday's game, FC Cincinnati has been outstanding defending the box. They might get beat with speed or balls over the top but they recover well and one-v-one defending has been pretty solid for the most part. I would also say they have the best free-kick taker in the league in Evander, but FCC hasn't been finishing his service when he's dropped dimes into the box, just far enough away from the goalkeeper that he can't come off his line. Miles Robinson finally scored on one of his corner kicks Sunday, so perhaps that's an area they are improving. When Evander takes a direct kick on goal, he can score from anywhere.
