FC Cincinnati and Nashville SC will meet on Wednesday, in a clash between two sides whose fate this season is all but sealed, albeit at opposite ends of the Major League Soccer standings.
The hosts have now lost nine matches in a row, and they sit at the foot of the Eastern Conference as a result, while the visitors remain third despite battling through a six-game winless run.
Match preview
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After finishing at the bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference for the last two years, Cincinnati have had another poor campaign this time around, and they remain stuck to the foot of the division with just 20 points from 31 league games.
The Orange and Blue now find themselves in their worst run of the season, having lost their last nine league games while conceding 26 goals and only scoring 10.
Tyler Blackett looked to have rescued an unlikely point when he brought their home clash with Chicago Fire back level to 3-3 in the 91st minute last Thursday, but the visitors retook the lead two minutes later to leave Cincinnati empty-handed.
They then lost far more convincingly last time out, as Federico Higuain, Gonzalo Higuain, Indiana Vassilev, Lewis Morgan and Julian Carranza all got on the scoresheet in a dominant 5-1 win for Inter Miami.
While their points tally means they have very little to play for, Tyrone Marshall's side will, at least, look to end the season on a high with a string of positive results, and they meet an out-of-sorts Nashville side.
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With 44 points from the opening 25 games, Nashville SC had all but secured their spot in this year's playoffs, and, despite a disappointing run in recent weeks, they are one point away from confirming their passage.
Gary Smith's side began their largest winless run of the season at the end of September, as they played out five consecutive draws, before suffering a disappointing defeat to Philadelphia Union last time out.
Kacper Przybylko netted the only goal of the game from the penalty spot to hand the Six-Strings just their fourth league loss of the season - a tally that is not bettered by any side across the MLS.
While their progression is all but confirmed, with a six-point lead over CF Montreal in eighth place, Smith's men will ideally look to keep a hold of their place in the top three to gain a more favourable draw, and they may see Wednesday as a great chance to get back to winning ways.
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Team News
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FC Cincinnati will come into the game without midfielder Allan Cruz, who was sent off in the dying minutes of the defeat to Inter Miami.
Attacking midfielder Luciano Acosta will continue to play a key role going forward, having contributed seven goals and seven assists in the MLS this season.
Former Manchester United defender Tyler Blackett should again feature in a back three alongside experienced centre-back Geoff Cameron and Edgar Castillo.
Nashville will be missing attacker Daniel Rios, who was forced off with an injury in the first half of their clash with Philadelphia Union last time out.
In his absence, Benfica loanee Jhonder Cadiz may start at the top end of the pitch.
FC Cincinnati possible starting lineup:
Tyton; Bailey, Cameron, Blackett, Castillo, Matarrita; Medunjanin, Mokotjo; Acosta; Brenner, Vazquez
Nashville SC possible starting lineup:
Willis; Miller, Maher, Romney; Johnston, Anunga, Godoy, Leal, Washington; Loba, Cadiz
We say: FC Cincinnati 1-3 Nashville SC
While Nashville are in a difficult run of their own, we do not see the hosts having enough to arrest their slump on Wednesday.
Cincinnati have been outclassed by the majority of sides in the league this season, and we see the same happening when they welcome Gary Smith's side, who will hope to carry momentum into the playoffs.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Nashville SC win with a probability of 47.32%. A draw had a probability of 26.9% and a win for FC Cincinnati had a probability of 25.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Nashville SC win was 0-1 with a probability of 13.01%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (9.22%) and 1-2 (8.95%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.63%), while for a FC Cincinnati win it was 1-0 (8.91%). The actual scoreline of 3-6 was predicted with a 0% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Nashville SC would win this match.
