FC Cincinnati, coming off a 2-1 win at LA Galaxy, host Orlando City SC in a high-stakes Major league Soccer Eastern Conference showdown the night of Sept.28 at TQL Stadium.Kickoff for Sunday night soccer is set for 7 p.m.as the league’s showcase match of the week airs on Apple TV+ and MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Sunday’s game is FC Cincinnati’s annual Noche Latina as the club celebrates the rich and diverse traditions of Latin American culture.
the table remains tight in Major League Soccer. Cincy is in a close race for the MLS Supporters’ Shield and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, an
Eastern conference
1. Philadelphia 60 (69), at D.C. United
2. Cincinnati 58 (67), vs. Orlando
3. Miami 55 (70), at Toronto
4. Charlotte 53 (62), vs. Montreal
5. NYCFC 53 (62), at NY Red Bulls
6. Orlando 51 (63), at Cincinnati
7. nashville 50 (59), vs. Houston
7. Columbus 50 (59), at Chicago
Western Conference
1. San Diego 57 (66), vs. San Jose
2. Vancouver 56 (68), at Seattle
3. Minnesota 54 (63), at Colorado
4. LAFC 50 (65), at St. Louis
A look at Orlando City SC
The visitors have made the playoffs each of the last three seasons and lost in the conference final last year.
Orlando has been up and down of late. Thay split two recent meetings wiht Nashville, winning 3-2 last weekend after losing in Tennessee, 5-1, Aug. 23. They beat Miami 4-1 at home Aug.16, then lost in Miami in the Leagues Cup semis, 3-1, then fell to LA Galaxy 2-1 in the third-place match, failing to come away with a CONCACAF Champions Cup spot.
Orlando is second in the league behind Miami in total goals scored with 58. Martin Ojeda (16 goals) and Marco Pasalic (11) are one of the top duos in the league. Ojeda is an MVP candidate with 14 assists. Luis Muriel has nine goals.
“They’re a very strong team,” said FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan. “We have good matchups against them. I think they’ve had a lot of consistency with their group personnel wise, with their performances. There’s consistency in their play, they always compete well, but they have a lot of really strong players all over the field to give them a good balance.They’ve been one of the best teams in our league for years, in my opinion, you know even with the ups and downs that teams experience, they’ve always been a very solid team.”
In Cincy’s 2-1 win in Florida june 28, Evander scored both goals for Cincy. Pasalic scored late for Orlando.