Aiming to move to the top of the Major League Soccer Eastern Conference standings, FC Cincinnati will welcome Austin FC to the TQL Stadium on Saturday.
The hosts suffered a defeat last time out, ending a five-match winning run, while their hosts sit sixth in the Western Conference after back-to-back losses.
Match preview
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FC Cincinnati return to action on Saturday aiming to bounce back to winning ways in Major League Soccer, having suffered a setback last time out after a strong start to their 2025 campaign.
After a third-placed Eastern Conference finish and first-round playoff exit last time around, the Orange and Blue currently find themselves third having earned 22 points from their first 11 games, winning seven of those and losing three.
Five of those wins came consecutively across late March and April after a dip in form in league and continental action, as Pat Noonan's side joined the Conference's frontrunners by seeing off Nashville SC, New England Revolution, DC United, Chicago Fire and Sporting Kansas City.
Then aiming to stretch that run to six victories, the Orange and Blue visited New York City FC on Sunday and left empty-handed, as Julian Fernandez's ninth-minute goal made the only difference in a 1-0 home win.
Still sitting third and only trailing Conference leaders Columbus Crew by two points at this early stage, FC Cincinnati will aim to bounce back on Saturday and strengthen their standing in the leading pack with the chance to take top spot with a victory.
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Their visitors also head into the weekend in search of a return to winning ways in the league, having managed a cup victory in midweek following back-to-back MLS losses.
After missing out on the MLS playoffs with a 10th-placed Western Conference finish last time around, Austin FC enjoyed a pleasing start to the 2025 campaign, winning 12 points from their first six outings, but they have failed to continue that form since.
Indeed, in their last five attempts, the Verde and Black have added just four more points to their tally, having followed up a 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Vancouver Whitecaps by beating Los Angeles Galaxy 1-0 on home turf in mid-April.
That three-point haul would be followed by a pair of league defeats heading into the weekend, having fallen at the hands of Houston Dynamo and Minnesota United, with Ilie Sanchez scoring an own goal alongside finishes from Anthony Markanich and Joaquin Pereyra in a 3-0 loss to the latter.
Nico Estevez's side do, at least, make the trip on Saturday on the back of a midweek 3-2 US Open Cup round-of-32 victory over El Paso Locomotive thanks to Brandon Vazquez's brace and Myrto Uzuni's goal, and they will aim to build on that at the weekend and bounce back in the MLS with the chance to climb back into the Western Conference's top three.
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Team News
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FC Cincinnati will likely remain without midfielder Pavel Bucha on Saturday, after he missed last week's defeat to New York City FC through injury.
Kevin Denkey will continue to lead the attack, likely alongside Luca Orellano, having already notched up eight goals this season including six in 10 MLS games.
Evander is another danger man in midfield, having also managed six MLS goals this term after hitting 15 alongside 19 assists in 29 league appearances for Portland Timbers last time around, while Matt Miazga, Nick Hagglund and Miles Robinson should all keep their spots at the heart of the defence.
Austin FC head into Saturday's trip without defender Mikkel Desler and midfielder Daniel Pereira, both of whom are confined to the treatment room.
Brandon Vazquez will continue to spearhead the attack against his former club, having bounced back from a slow start to the MLS season with a brace in their midweek US Open Cup win.
In the absence of key man Pereira, Ilie Sanchez should again get the nod in the engine room alongside Owen Wolff and Besard Sabovic.
FC Cincinnati possible starting lineup:
Celentano; Yedlin, Miazga, Robinson, Hagglund, Engel; Kubo, Anunga, Evander; Orellano, Denkey
Austin FC possible starting lineup:
Stuver; Gallagher, Svatok, Hines-Ike, Biro; Sanchez, Wolff, Sabovic; Bukari, Vazquez, Uzuni
We say: FC Cincinnati 2-1 Austin FC
Saturday's game promises to be an exciting one with both teams having plenty of optimism from their starts to the season, and we give a narrow edge to FC Cincinnati to make it six wins from seven games with home advantage on their side.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
