Louisville City FC has clinched a spot in the United Soccer League’s playoffs, but the club will continue to play for improved standing — and a home opener to the postseason — starting Saturday at FC Montreal.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at the 3,500-seat Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard. FC Montreal fell 2-0 to LouCity on July 4 but is playing its best soccer as of late, riding a five-game unbeaten streak into Saturday, with four of those results wins.
Team Records
LouCity: 14-4-8 (50 points) in 26 games; 2nd in the USL’s Eastern Conference standings.
FC Montreal: 6-18-2 (20 points) in 26 games; 13th in the USL’s East.
Follow Along
Saturday’s game will air, as with other LouCity games, live on Youtube with the steam available at www.loucity.com.
For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Find us at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.
Vote for LouCity’s Modelo Man of the Match starting at the 75th minute on Twitter.
Links
- LouCity looking to slow red-hot Montreal
- Video: Coach O’Connor previews Saturday’s game
- Dobrowolski “hopeful” he’ll make his pro debut
- Hoffman shares his Robby Keane memories
- Know the foe: FC Montreal
- Official watch party set for Against the Grain
- O’Connor keeping starting goalie a secret
Notes
Playoff-bound: For the second straight year, LouCity has clinched a spot in the United Soccer League’s postseason. Eight teams apiece from the Eastern and Western conferences will compete in the single-elimination playoffs starting later this month. Better-seeded teams host playoff matchups, which LouCity is on pace to do in the opening round. Four games remain for the club in the regular season.
Ranjitsingh called up: LouCity’s starting goalkeeper left Sunday for Trinidad and Tobago, his father’s home nation and the country he’s representing in two World Cup qualifiers. Greg Ranjitsingh will be active for Friday’s game against Guatemala and Tuesday’s showdown with the United States on Fox Sports 1. T&T needs just a point from either matchup to advance.
Goodwin’s return: Needing another keeper for Saturday’s game at Montreal, coach James O’Connor called upon fan favorite Scott Goodwin. The Harvard Medical School student will come out of retirement for a game as an option for LouCity along with Tim Dobrowolski, a rookie who would make his pro debut should he see the field Saturday. Goodwin last played July 4, also against Montreal, making three late saves to seal a 2-0 win.
Rasmussen returns: Offseason hip surgery led Magnus Rasmussen to miss LouCity’s preseason and more. The attacking midfielder — also Louisville’s top returning scorer from 2015 — caught up on his conditioning enough to earn his first start of the year in last Saturday’s 1-0 win over Bethlehem Steel FC. Rasmussen figures to hold the spot, as he’s what O’Connor calls a “natural No. 10.”
Abend to Team of the Week: The goal scorer in LouCity’s Bethlehem win played just 15 minutes but left his mark. Guy Abend left after scoring on an early header, then colliding with an opposing player in the box. Still, the USL named him to its Team of the Week. Abend, who ranks second on LouCity’s roster with five goals, will miss the FC Montreal trip as LouCity follows concussion protocol.
Caution counts: O’Connor will also have to deal with the absence of Paolo DelPiccolo, who picked up his fifth yellow card in the Bethlehem game and will sit out due to accumulation. It’s either Abend or DelPiccolo typically playing alongside of captain Aodhan Quinn in the central midfield. Who takes their place Saturday remains unknown. Winger George Davis IV and right back Kyle Smith sit on four yellows.
A change up top: Cameron Lancaster played sporadically throughout the first two-thirds of LouCity’s season but has over the past four games become a mainstay in the starting lineup. He most recently took regular striker Chandler Hoffman’s position and has also played behind the forward in the 10 spot. This year, Lancaster has scored two goals from 11 shots on target and tallied a pair of assists.
Stat stuffers: Hoffman continues to challenge for the USL’s Golden Booth award a year after Matt Fondy — he scored 22 goals in 28 regular-season games — also claimed it for LouCity. Only Jack McBean, a former LA Galaxy II star now on loan in Europe, has more goals than Hoffman’s 14. One more would tie the LouCity striker for the league lead. Rookie defender Kyle Smith’s six assists are two off USL leader Daniel Barrera of Sacramento Republic FC.
The streak: LouCity went into its July 23 game at FC Cincinnati riding a string of 17 straight games unbeaten, five off the USL record set by the 2013 Richmond Kickers. While the roll ended, the club has tallied only four losses this season and remains in contention for a USL title. LouCity suffered back-to-back defeats to end July but is 2-1-2 since then. The previous franchise-best undefeated streak was six games in 2015.
