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USL Louisville City FC

What to Watch for with LouCity at Hartford Athletic

June 2, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Louisville City FC News Release


Louisville City FC in action
Louisville City FC in action
(Louisville City FC, Credit: One Shot Sports)

A Louisville City FC squad with 12 goals in 11 USL Championship games could kickstart its attack if this weekend's opponent holds form.

LouCity travels to play Hartford Athletic - which has conceded a league-leading 24 goals so far this season - at 7 p.m. Saturday at Trinity Health Stadium in Connecticut.

City (6-3-2, 20 points) continues to hammer out results despite its inconsistent production in the box. The boys in purple, who have scored multiple goals in a game only twice this year, are unbeaten in six of their last seven games.

LouCity enters the weekend third in the Eastern Conference standings, only four points out of first place with a game in hand. Hartford (2-7-2, 8 points) sits at the bottom of the table having lost three of its last four games.

Follow along

- The game will air live locally on WBKI/The CW and ESPN Louisville's 680/105.7.

- If streaming, download the free WDRB Now app to watch the local feed in Louisville. ESPN+ also streams the home feed of all USL Championship games not selected for national TV.

- 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.

Availability report

- Kyle Morton (out)

- Manny Perez (questionable)

- Jordan Scarlett (out)

Story lines

Cruz's connections: LouCity coach Danny Cruz met his Hartford Athletic counterpart, the former U.S. international Tab Ramos, when Ramos served as assistant on Cruz's U-20 national team back in 2009. Cruz also played with and coached Hartford forward Antoine Hoppenot, who spent the 2019-2021 seasons in purple.

Away days: Much is made of LouCity's distinguished record at Lynn Family Stadium, but the boys in purple have proven formidable on the road, too. City is 3-1-2 away this season, with the only defeat an uncharacteristic 5-0 drubbing April 1 at Sacramento Republic FC. The club responded with a five-game unbeaten streak.

Target man: Wilson Harris, LouCity's leading scorer last year with 15 goals, is setting the scoring pace for the boys in purple again this season. Harris netted his third goal of the campaign last weekend to defeat rival Indy Eleven. All three of Harris' goals in 2023 were scored in 1-0 City wins either directly from, or the product of, crosses in on set piece plays.

Stingy defense: The story of LouCity's season can be told in two parts. The boys in purple surrendered eight goals across a pair of games from late March and intro April. But otherwise, they've conceded only five goals in nine games. Rookie Oliver Semmle has taken over as the first choice goalkeeper, registering five clean sheets to rank second in the league.

Impact changes: With his squad its healthiest of the season, Cruz made limited lineup adjustments last week. But each resulted in goals. In a midweek game against FC Tulsa, Manny Perez assisted Jorge Gonzalez. They were the only two lineup changes. Similarly, Ray Serrano slotted in for the weekend victory at Indy and delivered the winning corner to Harris.

Tale of two halves: FC Tulsa snapped LouCity's 14-game streak - dating back to November of 2021 - of taking results from games it led at the half. City similarly led Indy Eleven by a 1-0 score at the break over the weekend but didn't give in a second time, absorbing nine second half shots from the hosts in a gutsy away performance.

Bigger picture: Due in part to the stumble against Tulsa, LouCity's chances of winning the USL Championship title dropped to 15% at numbers-driven FiveThirtyEight.com. The boys in purple are still a slim favorite over San Antonio FC but have seen the gap narrow. The season hits its one-third mark Saturday with City seven points off the league's best record but with a game win hand.

International duty: Star defender Josh Wynder continues to excel with the U.S. youth national team, earning another start Tuesday as the Americans routed New Zealand, 4-0, in the U-20 World Cup's Round of 16. The red, white and blue continue tournament play Sunday in Argentina. Wynder, just 18, was also listed week on the senior national team's Concacaf Gold Cup preliminary roster.

Check out the Louisville City FC Statistics




Images from this story

Louisville City FC in action
Louisville City FC in action
(One Shot Sports)		   



United Soccer League Championship Stories from June 2, 2023


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