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Louisville City FC

LouCity Seeks Return to Form against FC Tulsa

May 27, 2022 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Louisville City FC defender Amadou Dia
Louisville City FC defender Amadou Dia
(Louisville City FC, Credit: EM Dash Photography)

Louisville City FC will look to bounce back from an uncharacteristic three-game losing streak at 2 p.m. Saturday when hosting USL Championship rival FC Tulsa at Lynn Family Stadium.

Despite a drop in form and Wednesday's exit from the U.S. Open Cup, LouCity (7-2-3, 24 points) still holds second place in the league's Eastern Conference. The quick turnaround leaves no time to dwell on the past, either. With first-place Memphis idle this weekend, a win would push City back into the top spot in the standings.

After four meetings in 2021 in which City and Tulsa both won twice, Saturday's pairing is the first matchup this year.

Tulsa sits ninth in the Eastern Conference, two spots below the playoff line. The Michael Nsien-led club has four wins and seven losses, including a 5-1 defeat most recently at 2021 champion Orange County SC on May 13. Tulsa has conceded 24 goals, the second-most allowed in the USL Championship, while City is second in the league with 23 goals scored.

Saturday's early opening whistle will allow fans to avoid Forecastle Festival traffic and congestion, while ticket holders are also invited to stay and enjoy the UEFA Champions League Final in the Lynn Family Stadium beer garden after the game.

Here's more of what to watch for on the afternoon...

Follow along

The game will air live locally on WBKI and ESPN Louisville's 680/105.7, with streaming via ESPN+ and the WDRB Now app.

For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.

Injury report

- Ian Soler (Out)

- Josh Wynder (Questionable)

Story lines

Dip in form: LouCity has lost three consecutive games for the first time since the club's inaugural 2015 season. That year, it happened twice, with a midseason stumble including an Open Cup loss to MLS' Chicago Fire before another three-game skid to end the regular season. This current run includes losses May 13 at LA Galaxy II, last weekend to Monterey Bay FC and the Open Cup defeat to Nashville SC.

Defensive lapse: Perhaps the most impressive feat to come from LouCity's 10-game unbeaten streak to open the USL Championship regular season was the seven clean sheets from goalkeeper Kyle Morton and the Louisville defense. In that stretch, the boys in purple conceded just four goals. The team has conceded eight goals, however, in the past three matches.

Goals amiss: City has only twice been held scoreless on its home turf since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted at Lynn Family Stadium last June. Before last Saturday's 2-0 loss to Monterey Bay, the only other shutout had been a 1-0 loss on Sept. 3, 2021, coincidentally against FC Tulsa.

Open Cup run: LouCity made this its second-longest stay in U.S. Soccer's annual knockout national championship tournament, winning three times before Nashville SC's 89th-minute game winner did the boys in purple in Wednesday night in the Round of 16. In 2018, the club made it to the quarterfinals, upsetting MLS' New England Revolution along the way.

Fear the Beard: In yet another Man of the Match performance, Brian Ownby notched his fourth goal of the season across all competitions against Nashville SC, flicking on Amadou Dia's cross into the far post side pocket in the 37th minute for City's only goal of the night. Ownby also tallied a team-high six possessions won, six duels won and three crosses.

Gibson's return: After missing City's last two games with a minor injury, midfielder Tyler Gibson returned to coach Danny Cruz's starting lineup. A consistent defensive midfielder whose work often gets overlooked, the 31-year-old put in a shift against Nashville with an 82% passing accuracy, five possessions won and a team-high nine final-third entries.

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Images from this story

Louisville City FC defender Amadou Dia
Louisville City FC defender Amadou Dia
(EM Dash Photography)		   

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 27, 2022


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