Orange and Blue to close out two-match road trip and month of August.
FC Cincinnati (16-3-6, 54 pts.) will conclude a stretch of three matches in eight days when they play a road contest against the 12th-place Tampa Bay Rowdies (7-10-7, 28 pts.) on Saturday.
Cincinnati has earned points in each of the last 14 matches, posting a 10-0-4 record since June 2 in the club’s longest undefeated run. With a win or a draw, FCC would finalize a third consecutive unbeaten month.
Saturday’s match is set for 7:30 p.m. at Al Lang Stadium and will be televised on WSTR 64, as well as streamed on ESPN+.
While Tampa Bay is currently fighting to qualify for the USL Cup Playoffs, the Rowdies will present a unique challenge according to FC Cincinnati goalkeeper Spencer Richey.
“A team playing with their backs against the wall with nothing to lose sometimes are the scariest teams to play against,” Richey said, “We know that they’re in kind of a playoff mindset already, they’ve got to climb the table a little bit to get in the playoff hunt, so we’ll be ready for it. You know, we’ve been in good form as well, so it should be a fun game.”
FC Cincinnati comes into Saturday’s match having defeated Atlanta United 2, 5-1, at Coolray Field on Wednesday evening. The Orange and Blue set a single-match club record by recording five goals. Tampa Bay also comes into the weekend following a mid-week game. The Rowdies played Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC to a 1-1 draw on Wednesday evening.
“Tampa is an excellent team,” FC Cincinnati head coach Alan Koch said, “They’re loaded with big-time players, they’ve continued to sign big-time players as the season’s progressed. It’s going to be a tough game … They got a big result [on Wednesday] up in Pittsburgh, so they’ll take a lot of confidence from that, and we know coming down here is not an easy place to play.”
Cincinnati has had a difficult time against Tampa Bay at Al Lang Stadium, and is 0-3-0 all-time across all competitions in road contests against the Rowdies. In the first matchup this season, FCC claimed a 2-0 victory at Nippert Stadium on July 14. With another win, FCC would claim a sixth series sweep of the 2018 USL regular season, and the third consecutive match resulting in a series sweep.
The Orange and Blue will receive a boost in terms of available players as MVP candidate Emmanuel Ledesma is eligible to return to the lineup after missing the last match due to yellow-card suspension. FC Cincinnati’s leading goal-scorer is excited to get back on the pitch.
“I’m so excited, because I’ve never played [at Tampa Bay],” Ledesma said, “I know it’s a big team. I’ve been working hard every single day to get ready for Saturday and then to give my all again and then get the three points.”
With the conclusion of a stretch of three matches in eight days, Cincinnati’s depth will be put to the test. The compressed schedule provided an opportunity for FC Cincinnati defender Pa Konate to make his debut against Atlanta United 2 on Wednesday evening. Konate started at left back and recorded 61 minutes played.
“It was amazing,” Konate said of his FC Cincinnati debut, “I’ve been waiting [for] my debut for a very long time, so it was really amazing to do it two days ago. It was a good feeling.”
