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New York City FC welcome FC Cincinnati on Saturday night at the Red Bull Arena, Harrison, New Jersey. The Pigeons are unbeaten in the last four fixtures and with a record of four wins, five losses and one draw, are seventh in the Eastern Conference.
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Their opponents, FC Cincinnati are the only side in the Eastern Conference without a win in the regular season. The only scorelines Jaap Stam's side have had since their return from the MLS is Back Tournament is two 3-0 defeats and three 0-0 draws.
The visitors desperately need a win here but have not scored a goal for almost 500 minutes now and another disappointing result might be on the cards for them.
New York City FC vs FC Cincinnati Head-to-Head
The Cityzens have only faced Cincinnati twice with both of their meetings coming in the previous season in which NYCFC have inflicted two huge losses on Cincinnati.
Cincinnati's previous visit to the Yankee Stadium last June ended in a 5-2 loss and the home side will be looking to achieve the same result at the Red Bull Arena.
New York City FC form guide: L-W-W-W-D
FC Cincinnati form guide: D-L-D-D-L
New York City FC vs FC Cincinnati Team News
New York City FC
For manager Ronny Deila there has been good news and bad news before the fixture as defender Sebastien Ibeagha returned to team training following a long absence due to a hamstring injury but midfielder Gudmundur Thorarinsson suffered a twisted ankle in training and has thrown his future availability in doubt.
Gedion Zelalem remains out with a knee injury and apart from the two midfielders, Deila has a full squad to choose from.
Injured: Gedion Zelalem (knee), Gudmundur Thorarinsson (ankle)
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
FC Cincinnati
A lot has been happening at the Ohio based club over the last week. Unfortunately, most of it does not bode well for the Orange and Blue. Midfielder Adrien Regattin has left the club to return to his native France for personal reasons, while Frankie Amaya will be out due to a yellow card suspension and Jimmy McLaughlin is still not medically cleared to play.
New South African signing Kamohelo Mokotjo is also unavailable as he is yet to receive his required work visa and is not even in the country yet as he waits to receive the necessary documentation.
We can expect a few new faces in the lineup for Jaap Stam's team, with Yuya Kubo moving to the midfield and giving up the striker's place to Siem de Jong.
Injured: Jimmy McLaughlin (knee)
Doubtful: None
Unavailable: Kamohelo Mokotjo (No work permit)
Suspended: Frankie Amaya
New York City FC vs FC Cincinnati Predicted XI
New York City FC Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Sean Johnson; Anton Tinnerholm, Maxime Chanot, Alexander Callens, Ronald Matarrita; James Sands, Alexander Ring; Maximiliano Moralez, Keaton Parks, Alexandru Mitrita; Héber
FC Cincinnati Predicted XI (4-4-2): Przemysław Tytoń; Mathieu Deplagne, Maikel van der Werff, Kendall Waston, Greg Garza; Haris Medunjanin, Brandon Vazquez, Allan Cruz, Yuya Kubo; Jürgen Locadia, Siem de Jong
New York City FC vs FC Cincinnati Prediction
NYCFC have a tremendous record against Cincinnati and given the current form of both sides, the hosts are looking like they will have no problem seeing off Cincinnati and making it three wins in a row against them on Saturday.
Prediction: New York City FC 3-0 FC Cincinnati
