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Cincinnati vs New York City Preview, Prediction and Betting Tips | MLS

Cincinnati vs New York City Preview

Cincinnati vs New York City in the Major League Soccer (MLS) will take place on March 25 as two Eastern Conference giants prepare for battle.

The hosts will enter this game on the back of a decent run of form. With just two defeats in their last eight games across competitions, Cincinnati looks pretty decent so far. They have recorded four wins and two draws in the other six games and are third in the East and fourth in the overall table. Their last game was a spirited 2-1 win at New England as they held off a comeback to secure all three points.

New York, on the other hand, have been in shocking form of late. Before a win in their last match, the team was on a seven-game winless run that included three draws followed by four straight defeats. Having been close to the top in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, NY City’s fall from grace has been quite sudden. They did well to go deep and secure a hard-fought 2-1 win against Toronto with 10 men but will have to be at their best again for a result next time out.

With that said, let’s take a look at the team news coming out of both camps.

Cincinnati vs New York City Team News

Cincinnati

Alec Kann in action for Cincinnati
Alec Kann in action for Cincinnati. (Getty Images)

Manager Pat Noonan will have a relatively short injury list to worry about ahead of his team’s next game. Goalkeeper Alec Kann and outfielders Marco Angulo and Obinna Nwobodo have been out for a while and missed the team’s last few games. They will most likely return midway through the campaign.

Apart from that, the rest of the squad has been rotated well over the last few weeks to manage the workload.

New York City

Manager Nicholas Cushing too will have a short injury list to worry about. Attackers Maxi Moralez (cruciate ligament) and Talles Magno (knee) have been sidelined for a while and are set to miss at least a few more weeks.

Meanwhile, midfielder Keaton Parks received a straight red in their last game and will be suspended for at least two MLS games.

Cincinnati vs New York City Predicted Lineups

Cincinnati

Cincinnati have been in decent form and Noonan will look to capitalize on that momentum by fielding an unchanged lineup.

Predicted XI: Roman Celentano (GK); Miles Robinson, Matthew Miazga (C), Kipp Keller; DeAndre Yedlin, Malik Pinto, Pavel Bucha, Yuya Kubo; Corey Baird, Gerardo Valenzuela; Sergio Santos.

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New York City

Cushing will stick with the same lineup but will be forced into making one change in midfield to replace the suspended Keaton Parks.

Predicted XI: Matthew Freese (GK); Mitja Ilenic, Thiago Martins (C), Birk Risa, Kevin O’Toole; Andres Perea, James Sands, Santiago Rodriguez; Julian Fernandez, Monsef Bakrar, Hannes Wolf.

Cincinnati vs New York City Head-to-Head Record

These two teams have locked horns quite often in the recent past, with Cincinnati leading the head-to-head record with three wins, with the teams sharing two draws. However, prior to the last five games, New York City won six-in-a-row in a dominant run.

Last 5 Games

  • Cincinnati 3-0 NY City (08/23)
  • NY City 1-3 Cincinnati (06/23)
  • Cincinnati 1-0 NY City (05/23)
  • NY City 1-1 Cincinnati (09/22)
  • Cincinnati 4-4 NY City (06/22)
Cincinnati vs New York City
Previous meeting between Cincinnati and NY City. (Getty Images)

Cincinnati vs New York City Prediction

Cincinnati are by far the better side based purely on current form, with New York City struggling to find their rhythm and confidence. Add to that the fact that they are playing at home in front of their own support, will surely add more confidence to the team’s preparation.

Prediction: Cincinnati 2-1 New York City.

Cincinnati vs New York City Betting Tips & Odds

Three of the last four Cincinnati vs New York City games have seen both teams score, with three games also seeing at least three goals being scored. Cincinnati have netted 12 times in the last five meetings, while NY City have scored just six.

Tips

  • Both Teams to Score – Yes: 1.77
  • Match Total – Over 2.5 Goals: 1.94
  • Match Result – FC Cincinnati: 1.98

Match Odds

  • FC Cincinnati Win: 1.98
  • Draw: 3.45
  • NY City FC Win: 3.85

Cincinnati vs New York City Timings & Telecast

  • Date & Time: Saturday, March 23 at 11:30 PM (GMT).
  • India: MLS Season Pass.
  • UK: MLS Season Pass.
  • US: MLS Season Pass (Match), Apple TV (HLs). 

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