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FCC Hits Road Aiming to Build on 13-Game Streak

By NICHOLAS MURRAY - nicholas.murray@uslsoccer.com, 08/22/18, 3:12AM EDT

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Eastern Conference leader visits ATL UTD 2 on Wednesday night to open two-game trip


FC Cincinnati defender Forrest Lasso and Head Coach Alan Koch congratulate each other on Saturday's victory against the Charleston Battery. | Photo courtesy Brett Hansbauer / FC Cincinnati

CINCINNATI – With a 13-game undefeated streak in tow, FC Cincinnati heads to the Southeast this week for a pair of games that it hopes will allow the side to maintain its momentum as it closes in clinching a place in the 2018 USL Cup Playoffs.

But while 16th-place ATL UTD 2 might not seem a big test for the first-place side, the memory of the first game between the clubs that saw FCC emerge with a 3-2 victory at Nippert Stadium is still at the back of their minds going into Coolray Field on Wednesday night. (7 p.m. ET | Match Center | ESPN+).

“You could see their class when they came and played us here,” said FCC Head Coach Alan Koch. “I thought we played very well against them at our place. We’ve also watched a lot of games of teams that have played at their place. It’s not an easy place to play, there’s nowhere easy on the road in this league. We’ve also got to make sure we have a plan, put it in place, and go out and execute.”

After its 3-0 victory against the Charleston Battery on Saturday night saw Cincinnati open up a seven-point gap at the top of the Eastern Conference standings, the bigger picture sees the side locked in what looks like a two-horse race for the USL Regular Season Championship, with Western Conference-leader Real Monarchs SLC sitting one point back in the overall standings with each side having 10 games remaining in the season.

The goal of claiming the first silverware of the 2018 season is certainly enough motivation for FCC’s players to keep their foot on the gas and put pressure on the Monarchs to match them result by result. While Cincinnati will be without standout midfielder Emmanuel Ledesma on Wednesday night due to a one-game suspension for caution accumulation, the squad’s depth has the side confident regardless of which players earn a spot in the starting lineup.

“Obviously, we are in a great position,” said FCC defender Dekel Keinan. “We have a great squad and [the] guys proved it in the last few weeks. For me, at the moment, it doesn’t matter which 11 is going to start the game. We are a very strong, very solid team. We have to make sure we aren’t giving away [points], keep winning.”


ATL UTD 2's AJ Cochran and FC Cincinnati's Jimmy McLaughlin battle for possession in the first meeting between the clubs on May 5 at Nippert Stadium. | Photo courtesy Brett Hansbauer / FC Cincinnati

For Atlanta, Wednesday’s game could see a debut for veteran addition Tyler Ruthven, brought aboard to try and help add stability to the club’s back line. If so, there will be a few familiar faces on the other side for the 30-year-old to reconnect with after competing alongside the likes of FCC midfielders Richie Ryan and Michael Lahoud and defender Blake Smith in Miami.

“It’s kind of ironic that my first game here for ATL UTD 2 will be against them,” said Ruthven. “It will be an interesting experience. Cincinnati is setup similar to how Miami was doing things. It will be a good test, and even though I’m new here, hopefully my experience with those players will help our younger guys along in a tough matchup.”

And while Cincinnati enjoyed the home comforts of Nippert Stadium as it maintained its lead in the Eastern Conference standings, the energy that comes from a weeklong road trip is something Koch is looking forward to.

“I’m excited to go back on the road, to be honest,” said Koch. “It was fun playing at home, it was fun having our fans behind us. I know we’ll have fans down there obviously supporting us in Atlanta, which is awesome. But, it’s nice to go on the road with the team. It brings a group together, I think with a couple of changes we’ve made in the last week, it’s going to be good to have everybody there and go fight for each other.”

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