Match Preview: FC Cincinnati vs New York City FC

FC Cincinnati enters the match against New York City FC displaying strong form. The club has recently accumulated 8 points in 5 games, both home and on the road, averaging 1.6 points per tilt. Intriguingly, both teams have scored in 4 of those games. With an impressive 9 goals scored across their last 5 fixtures and a strong streak of 12 undefeated games at home, Cincinnati is primed to maintain their perfect record of scoring in every home game this season.

On the other hand, New York City FC has secured 5 points in their last 5 fixtures, boasting a single point on average per game. Both teams have scored in 3 of those matches. Having racked up four goals in their last five outings, the club presents a worthy challenge, especially with their consistent record of scoring in their past five away games.

Considering FC Cincinnati’s last 8 games have ended with a tally of 2 or more goals, and New York City FC’s previous 4 have followed the same pattern, we can expect multiple goals in the upcoming match. FC Cincinnati, having only lost 1 of their last 5 games, has a robust momentum against New York City FC. Out of Cincinnati’s last 5 games, both teams have scored in 4.

In the season thus far, both FC Cincinnati and New York City FC come into the game with decent form. More often than not, both teams have managed to find the back of the net in their respective matches. Specifically, in 54% of FC Cincinnati’s matches and in 64% of New York City FC’s matches.

Taking into consideration the previous 11 encounters between these two teams, of which Cincinnati triumphed in 3 and New York took 6, the remaining 2 ended in a draw. This reaffirms an average home form for Cincinnati and good away performance by New York.

On a seasonal basis in the MLS, FC Cincinnati averages 1.83 points per home game, and New York City FC registers 1 point per away match. Given their respective records and recent forms, it’s reasonable to look forward to a competitive clash in Cincinnati, potentially with both sides hitting the target. Neither will want to give ground in what shapes up as a nail-biting encounter.

Insights

• FC Cincinnati has a strong performance record, averaging 1.6 points per game over the last 5 games, with both teams scoring (BTTS) in 4 of these games.
• FC Cincinnati showcases a solid scoring record at home games and is currently unbeaten in 12 home games, hinting at high potential for today’s performance against New York City FC.
• In the recent 5 games, FC Cincinnati won 2, drew 2, and lost just 1, maintaining positive momentum coming into today’s match.
• FC Cincinnati games tend to be high-scoring, with the last 8 games ending with more than 2 goals.
• On the contrary, New York City FC averages only 1 point per game in the last 5 matches, with BTTS in 3 of those matches, indicating a lower performance than the home team.
• Despite an average overall performance, New York City FC has scored in every away game they played this season, suggesting they might give a tough fight.
• In their last 5 games, both teams have seen a high percentage of matches with BTTS – FC Cincinnati with 54% and New York City with 64%, indicating a high chance of both teams scoring in the upcoming game.
• In head-to-head counters, out of 11, New York City FC won 6 matches against FC Cincinnati, who won only 3, with 2 matches ending in a draw.
• The last meeting between these teams saw New York City FC beating FC Cincinnati 4-1; however, FC Cincinnati’s recent form and home game advantage signal they could challenge the past stats.
• Statistics from this season show FC Cincinnati averaging 1.83 Points Per Game for home matches compared to New York City’s only 1 Point Per Game at away matches, reemphasizing FC Cincinnati’s home advantage for the upcoming match.
• Matches involving these teams have seen an average of 4.09 goals in their previous meetings, implying a chance of a high-scoring match.

Match Forecast

• Given both teams’ strengths at shooting from direct free kicks, we can expect a lot of goals scored from set pieces.
• Since FC Cincinnati are strong at aerial duels but New York City FC is weak, Cincinnati is likely to use long balls and crosses into the box to create scoring chances.
• Cincinnati’s weakness at defending against long shots and NYC FC’s style focused on possession and width suggest that NYC will try to take advantage of long-range shooting opportunities.
• The aggressive playstyles of both teams and their weaknesses in keeping possession suggest the game will likely feature a lot of physicality and turnovers.
• FC Cincinnati’s rotation of their first eleven and NYC FC’s weak defense against skillful players could result in unexpected scoring opportunities for fresh, skillful substitutes.
• Both teams’ weakness at avoiding offside suggests that the game could see a lot of stoppages and arguments with refs.
• Given that both teams are weak in finishing scoring chances, the match might have fewer goals despite the possibly high number of shots on goal.
• The dual wing attack of NYC FC could exploit the weakness of Cincinnati in defending set pieces as corners are expected from both sides of the field.

Match Facts

Looking back at their last 5 home encounters with New York City FC, FC Cincinnati has emerged victorious twice, once matches ended in draws, and New York City FC has also claimed victory 2 times. On the record of the last 12 encounters, FC Cincinnati came out on top 4 times, 2 games ended in a stalemate, while New York City FC held the upper hand in 6 matches. The previous season saw FC Cincinnati defeat New York City FC in both matches (with scores of 3-0 at home and 3-1 away). New York City FC is currently dealing with a losing streak, having lost their last 3 MLS games, as well as 4 consecutive away fixtures. In fact, they have failed to register a win in their recent 10 outings. In their last 3 confrontations with FC Cincinnati, New York City FC was unable to secure a victory. Playing home matches, FC Cincinnati have not suffered a defeat to New York City FC in their last 3 encounters nor have they scored or conceded a goal this season. New York City FC, representing the away team, has not opened their goal account for this season while they have also been conceding goals consistently in their last 12 matches. FC Cincinnati has the upper hand in 30% of half-time victories compared to New York City FC’s 19%. In their most recent clash, FC Cincinnati outscored New York City FC by 3 goals. FC Cincinnati boasts an impressive 85% win rate when leading 1-0 at home, while New York City FC has a 40% win ratio when in a 0-1 lead away from home. FC Cincinnati and New York City FC have lower win rates of 28% and 0% respectively when they are trailing 0-1 and 1-0 away from home. In the MLS, FC Cincinnati appears to have an edge performance-wise over New York City FC. Among their last 5 head-to-head clashes, FC Cincinnati was the superior side, not losing a single game to New York City FC across all competitions. In these games, FC Cincinnati won 3, with the other 2 ending in draws. The average goal count stands at 2.4 and 1.2 for FC Cincinnati and New York City FC respectively, leading to an average meeting goal count of 3.6 and half-time goal count of 2. Both teams are heading into the next match on the back of a loss in their respective last MLS games, where FC Cincinnati typically scores 2.06 goals at home and New York City FC manages 0.75 goals away on average.