Louisville City FC didn’t need a match last week to hold its post atop the United Soccer League’s power rankings, taking advantage of Saturday’s scoreless draw between the New York Red Bulls II and Rochester Rhinos while idle.
New York narrowed its gap in the standings by only a point and, as the USL office’s Nicholas Murray wrote, “Louisville will kick off Week 16 with the knowledge it can extend its lead at the top of the Eastern Conference with a win against FC Montreal.”
Game time between LouCity and FC Montreal is 7:30 p.m. Monday at Louisville Slugger Field. It’s the first match for the home club since playing FC Cincinnati to a draw on June 25.
In the league table, Red Bulls II have tallied 32 points having played one fewer match than Louisville, which enters Monday with 35. The two clubs sport the same goal differential of +15 with New York defensive-minded and LouCity the USL’s scoring leader.
“The Red Bulls II were on the back foot for good portions of the game against the Rhinos, who held a 6-1 advantage in shots on goal, but defensively the side remained solid as it kept its best defensive record in the league intact,” Murray wrote.
Still, New York dropped from No. 2 to 4 in Murray’s power rankings, passed by the Western Conference’s Sacramento Republic and FC Cincinnati, which notched a 1-0 win over Bethlehem Steel FC.
The red-hot Charleston Battery, winners of their past three and on their way to Slugger Field for a meeting Saturday with LouCity, also advanced a spot this week to No. 7 in the power rankings.
Week 15 USL Power Rankings
1. Louisville City FC
2. Sacramento Rebublic
3. FC Cincinnati
4. New York Red Bulls II
5. Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2
6. LA Galaxy II
7. Charleston Battery
8. OKC Energy FC
9. San Antonio FC
10. Orlando City B
