Following the midweek trip to Canada, FC Cincinnati returns to the Queen City on Saturday, June 30, against Ottawa Fury FC in a match presented by Klosterman Bakery.
Things will get started at Nippert Stadium with a 7:30 p.m. kickoff against the USL Eastern Conference foes and while general admission tickets are sold out, reserved seats are still available both online and by calling 513-977-5425. Fans who make it out to Nippert are also encouraged to stick around for the club's first postmatch fireworks display of the season set to take place 30 minutes after the final whistle!
The club's first home match in two weeks is set for a hot evening in Cincinnati, and supporters are reminded they can bring one unopened bottle of water into the stadium to ensure proper hydration while supporting the Orange and Blue.
Those who can't make it to Nippert can also follow the action live on local television on Star 64 (WSTR), streamed online on ESPN+, or on the airwaves on ESPN 1530.
A LITTLE BACKGROUND
Saturday's match will be the second and final regular-season meeting of the year between FCC and the visitors from Ottawa. The previous meeting came back on April 28 at TD Place when the visiting Orange and Blue walked away 3-0 winners. That victory came on the backs of goals from Corben Bone, Emmanuel Ledesma and a long-distance wonder goal from Kenney Walker that landed on the No. 1 spot on that evening's ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 Plays list.
At the time of that meeting, it was a sixth-placed FCC getting the best of a then bottom-of-the-table Ottawa. And since, both sides have experience climbs up the table.
Fury FC currently occupies the 12th position in the Eastern Conference on 18 points after going 5-2-2 since the clubs last played back at the end of April. The latest of those victories came last Sunday when they registered a decisive 3-0 victory of their own on the road at New York Red Bulls II. However, that was one of only two victories they've taken away from TD Place in 2018, going 2-4-1 on their travels.
Meanwhile, FCC have climbed to the summit of the East and have remained there nearly the entire month after an undefeated June so far has seen them go 3-0-2 in league play. Their record since the last meeting with Ottawa looks even better: 7-2-2.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Fresh off of equaling their best performance of the season at New York last weekend, Ottawa will look to Canadian forward Adonijah Reid (#30) and if he can build off of his hat-trick performance. The former No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft is in the second season of a two-year loan from parent club FC Dallas, and at just 18 years old, has loads of promise and a hefty amount of pace. Watch for Ottawa to attempt to play down his left flank as much as they can in their most common 4-3-3 set up.
Reid's three-goal performance last weekend helped him to a share of the team lead in goals alongside a pair of players hailing from Cape Verde: Steevan Dos Santos (#8) and Kévin Oliveira (#88).
The trio frequently spearhead Ottawa's most dangerous attacks which, more often than not, come on the break. In fact, in three of their last four matches, Fury FC have averaged just 32 percent of possession. With the pace of Reid, Dos Santos, and joint assist-leader Carl Haworth up top, plus Oliveira surging from an advanced midfield position, head coach Nikola Popvic likes to bunker in and then hit teams on the counter.
As for the home side, FC Cincinnati will have to do without the services of Irishman Richie Ryan on Saturday. The metronomic midfielder was forced off in his side's 3-3 draw on Wednesday at Toronto after a leg injury in the second half. He is officially listed as “OUT” on Saturday.
