Playing their first league match since June 6, Interim Head Coach Yoann Damet made five changes from that lineup and six from FC Cincinnati’s 2-1 loss Wednesday night in the fifth round of the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Frankie Amaya, Leo Bertone, Rashawn Dally, Justin Hoyte, Emmanuel Ledesma and Spencer Richey replace Fanendo Adi, Eric Alexander, Corben Bone, Forrest Lasso, Caleb Stanko and Przemysław Tytoń in the Starting XI for Cincinnati’s matchup with the LA Galaxy on Saturday night at Nippert Stadium.
About the starters
Dally will line up as the target forward and is making his MLS debut and second FCC appearance. His FCC debut came in the 2-1 win against Louisville City FC on June 12 in the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup. Amaya, Hoyte and Ledesma’s last starts were also that match.
Bertone is making his first start since May 11 against the Montreal Impact, which was Cincinnati’s last league win.
Richey starts in goal for the first time since the last MLS match: June 6 at New York City FC.
About the subs
Between injuries and international call-ups, the Orange and Blue will only have six available players on the bench. Clubs are allowed seven.
This is the first time in FC Cincinnati’s four-year history that the club won’t use all 18 spots in a matchday squad for a league match.
About the absences
The number of players injured or on international duty explains a limited pool of players for Damet to pick from.
Adi is out after sustaining a hamstring injury against Saint Louis FC on Wednesday night in Open Cup play. Roland Lamah (hamstring) and Greg Garza (calf) are also unavailable. Jimmy McLaughlin (knee) has been ruled out of playing in 2019.
FCC have four players away on international duty during the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup: Allan Cruz (Costa Rica), Kendall Waston (Costa Rica), Darren Mattocks (Jamaica) and Alvas Powell (Jamaica).
Kenny Saief out of the country awaiting the termination of his loan deal between Cincinnati and R.S.C. Anderlecht, his parent club. The clubs mutually agreed to end the loan but are waiting for paperwork to finalize. Saief has an injury that will keep him out of matches between now and the loan’s completion in early July. His last appearance was May 4 in San Jose.
