Cincinnati is eight points clear in the race for the Supporters’ Shield, and in the last game, before MLS takes a hiatus for the Leagues Cup, they have the opportunity to get one hand on that trophy.
To do so, though, they’ll have to face the Music. Nashville has been erratic of late, but this is still one of the most talented sides that will visit TQL Stadium this season, and they boast MLS’ reigning Player of the Year to boot.
Jack Collins here from The Game Day to look at a matchup between two of the East’s finest this season ahead of Matchday 26.
FC Cincinnati vs Nashville SC Odds
FC Cincinnati vs Nashville SC betting lines are current as of Wednesday, July 13, at 12 p.m. ET and were found at bet365 Sportsbook.
- Three-Way-Moneyline: Cincinnati (-110) • Tie (+240) • Nashville (+300)
- Total Goals: Over 2.5 (-106) • Under 2.5 (+118)
- Both Teams To Score: Yes (-125) • No (-106)
FC Cincinnati vs Nashville SC Match Prediction
FC Cincinnati vs Nashville SC
Cincy went on the road to New York midweek and struck late again to pick up another three points and extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference. It means that the Garys have lost just one of their last 14 games, and they feel quite clearly the best side in the league.
They’re just behind record-setting pace, have a significant gap to the cluster of teams tussling behind them, and to add what must feel like an insult to injury to the rest of MLS, they’ve added Aaron Boupendza to lead the line and add more goals to a forward line already dripping in talent.
Brandon Vazquez will soon return from international duty too, with the USMNT’s Gold Cup run coming to an end against Panama, so Cincy will have options of Boupendza, Vazquez, Sergio Santos, young Quimi Ordóñez, and… oh, and star man Lucho Acosta, who continues to dazzle and delight in equal measure.
Only Hany Mukhtar (more on him later) and Denis Bouanga boast more goals than Cincinnati’s Argentine No. 10 this season. At the same time, only five players sit ahead of him on the assist standings, highlighting the brilliance and importance of Acosta to this Cincy system.
That system has been crucial too. Pat Noonan deserves significant credit for how he has built his team, with Cincy’s go-to 3-5-2 formation bringing the best out of various players.
Acosta shines as the free 10, but Álvaro Barreal has been sensational at wing-back, Yerson Mosquera brilliant in the back three, and Obinna Nwobodo a rock in the midfield.
Terrifyingly for everyone else, this Cincinnati side sometimes feels like they have another gear to go to, which they just haven’t needed to operate yet.
The movement of the front line, the interchanges in the middle of the park, and the fact the defensive line operates so high up means that, at times, they just suffocate their opponents.
It all feels ominous - but Nashville can take heart that while Acosta is usually the best player in the park, whoever he’s up against, that probably won’t be the case here. Hany Mukhtar tends to grab the spotlight in almost any game he plays.
The German is on a two-and-a-half-year run that feels nearly unparalleled in MLS history. Since the start of the 2021 season, he’s played 83 games, scored 58 goals, and registered 25 assists.
He’s running at a goal contribution a game over two and a half seasons. Drink that in for a moment - it’s ludicrous ability and consistency.
In truth, though, if Nashville is going to get anything out of this game, he will have to do it by himself. After a bad-tempered encounter in a 2-0 home loss to Philadelphia, Daniel Lovitz and Shaquell Moore will be suspended due to red cards picked up in that game.
That’s the peak of the iceberg, though - a win over DC United has been the only win in Nashville’s last five, a spell that includes road losses to Montréal, Columbus, and Chicago that all contribute to an uncomfortable 3-5-3 record on their travels this year for Gary Smith’s side.
So all signs point to another Cincinnati win at TQL Stadium, but if anyone could throw a spanner in the works, you know it would be the irrepressible Hany Mukhtar.
FC Cincinnati vs Nashville SC Best Bet
Cincinnati to Win (-110) • bet365 Sportsbook
The Union are a very good side, but Cincy are genuinely excellent. Only a highly in-form Revs side at full capacity have got anything from a game at TQL this year, and with the suspensions from midweek kicking in, Cincinnati should again have too much at home.
Luciano Acosta Anytime Goalscorer (+175) • bet365 Sportsbook
In the battle of Number 10’s, most people will (entirely fairly) side with Nashville’s star man, but Acosta is a gem of his own and also takes penalties for Cincy. With Nashville’s poor disciplinary record of late, it makes him a sensible bet as an anytime goalscorer.
