MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER expert Kyle Worthington (@SM_Kyle) analyses the action from the weekend's football from across the pond.
FC Cincinnati v LA Galaxy | Sunday 23rd June 2019, 00.30 | Sky Sports
The opening match of this mini round of MLS games starts with rookies Cincinnati hosting the might of the LA Galaxy – a David vs Goliath match-up if you like in terms of club stature. On the pitch I fully expect it to play out in a similar sort of fashion, I personally can’t see past a comfortable three points on the road for the Galaxy.
The hosts come into this having been on the end of a shock Open Cup exit to Saint Louis FC; they suffered a 1-0 defeat at USL side on Thursday night in what was a lacklustre performance from start to finish, culminating in a 93rd minute goal for Saint Louis.
Now before the break for the Cup games, Cincinnati were in terrible form and after what was a fairly decent start to their debut season, they’re now in free fall and performing terribly on all fronts.
Cincinnati's record from their last 10 MLS games reads W1-D0-L9. They really have been extremely poor and I don’t see any reason for that to change this weekend. Those 10 tussles have seen the hosts ship 25 goals, it really is shocking.
Galaxy, on the other hand, also suffered a defeat in the Cup this week- in their case it was against fellow MLS side Portland Timbers. They traveled to Portland and fell 4-0 in what was all-round a terrible day at the office. MLS-wise they’ve blew hot-and-cold all season, conceding far more than expected and subsequently they’ve been dropping points in games that really should be more comfortable.
I’ve been very impressed with Galaxy's last two road games in the league, most notably the 2-0 win away to Sporting Kansas City – not many teams will go there this season and win, let alone keep a clean sheet – and all in all I just think that the price on Galaxy is too big to ignore against such a poor Cincinnati side whose confident has been obliterated.
Yes, Galaxy are underperforming but this is their perfect chance to right a few wrongs and make a statement.
Best Bets
FC Cincinnati v LA Galaxy – La Galaxy to win (6/4 BetVictor)
FC Cincinnati v LA Galaxy – La Galaxy to win and Over 2.5 Goals (5/2 Ladbrokes)
FC Cincinnati v LA Galaxy – La Galaxy to score Over 1.5 Goals (21/20 BetVictor)
