Match Preview: Chicago, Cincinnati, Porkopolis

Intern Luke

On Wednesday night, FC Cincinnati will host Chicago Fire at TQL Stadium. Both teams have experienced disappointing results recently, setting the stage for a cagey encounter. Here is your closer look into the upcoming match.

Bouncing Back from a Tough Loss

FC Cincinnati are looking to bounce back from a disappointing 3-1 loss to Charlotte. FCC struggled with passing and failed to convert many opportunities. The team overall was frankly, not good enough. And while it felt like this team was just unlucky, Pat Noonan was quoted by Carter Chapley saying, “We didn’t deserve to be lucky”. To make a bad night worse, Miles Robinson received a red card, so he won’t be available until after the Paris Olympics.

Cincinnati has Been Disappointing at Home

FC Cincinnati is one of the best teams in the league, currently on top of the Supporter Shield standings, but Cincy’s home stadium has been the site of 4 of FCC’s 5 losses. A radical turnaround from a team that rarely lost at home last year. TQL Stadium should be a fortress for this team, but the results haven’t been there so far in 2024. The team will be looking to get back on the right track against Chicago.

Chicago Fire: Struggling away

The foil to FC Cincinnati’s home record is Chicago’s away record. Chicago has only won one away game all season long. Woof. Yes, they are a bad team, but are performing substantially better at home vs away. A very movable object vs daily stoppable force. We will see which trend buckles first.

Key Insights and Matchups

The Penalty Factor

Chicago has been extremely undisciplined defensively. Chicago has conceded the most penalties in the league with seven. Chicago in the last five games has conceded four penalties, two of which were in one match vs Seattle. Chicago conceding a penalty to The FC’s dangerous attack feels likely.

Long-Range Threats and Aerial Prowess

Chicago is especially vulnerable to long range shots. They don’t appear to be tout of position often, but are undisciplined and don’t pressure on shots outside the box. This weakness is something Yuya Kubo and Luca Orellano in particular will be looking to exploit. Also of note is Chicago’s ability in the air, and it is Hugo Cuypers who is the main threat for the Fire. This could cause some serious problems for the home team who have been struggling with set pieces.

Players to watch

Luca Orellano - Cincinnati

Orellano could be extremely dangerous against this Chicago team, especially if he’s able to take advantage of long-range shots. If he can’t finish one of those, look for those shots to make space in the box for other players. With Lucho Acosta likely to be sitting in this one, a lot of pressure will be on Orellano to perform and help carry the Supporter Shield leaders.

Hugo Cuypers - Chicago

Cuypers was a very big signing for Chicago coming into this season, but has had a disappointing start. Recently, he has looked much more threatening, especially after Shaqiri went to the Euros. Against a weakened backline for Cincinnati, he is a threat that Chicago will likely focus their attacks through.

Conclusion

This should be a very tight match. Chicago has underperformed on the season but underlying numbers suggest they could be due to a reversion back to the mean, for the better. If their defense could stop conceding penalties, they would look very different on the table. FC Cincinnati is a very good team, even with key players out, so we a win should be the expectation for home fans. Although it might not be the blowout fans will be hoping for.