Nashville SC are back in action at Geodis Park this weekend, taking on an FC Cincinnati side who at one point may have been considered their primary rival and are now looking to make a late push into the top four spots in the Eastern Conference.
For the latest on the Garys, we checked in with Laurel Pfahler. In addition to being the president of the North American Soccer Reporters organization, she covers Cincinnati in depth for Queen City Press.
Queen City Press takes fans behind the scenes with FC Cincinnati, providing news, features, and game analysis of the Queen City's Major League Soccer club.
Ben Wright (SixOneFive Soccer): Cincinnati are currently top 10 in MLS history for goals scored AND goals conceded per game this season. What has been going on with the team? What’s the vibe like?
Laurel Pfahler (Queen City Press): Those numbers are a little misrepresentative of the team's current form, but we've seen quite a few high-scoring affairs this season.
Early on, the defense was leaking goals at an alarming rate – including a 6-1 loss to New England, a 4-2 loss to New York Red Bulls, a 5-3 loss to Miami, etc. – and the attack was a little slow to get going until around the time Evander finally scored in the eighth game (12th across all competitions). Then, all of a sudden, the goals started flowing. Since the World Cup break, the defense has been better over longer stretches, but FCC have not been scoring quite as many goals.
Consistency in the lineup and a fully healthy squad have contributed to the improvement on defense, but it seems the focus on that side of the ball has taken away from the attack. Evander has been on an incredible run with goal contributions in the last 14 matches, including 12 goals, but he seems frustrated that it hasn't translated into better results.
The team was expected to be a top contender in the Eastern Conference and sits in sixth. The gap to fourth is narrow, but Cincinnati aren't satisfied at all.
BW: How has Evander continued to progress in Cincy?
LP: Evander is a completely different player than we saw last year. He obviously has always had the talent, and he scored a lot of impressive goals last year, but he's really taken the team on his shoulders this year. He was given the armband in April, and that added sense of responsibility, I think, has really taken him to a whole new level.
He's pressing harder, dropping back on defense, and making tackles with a sense of urgency, and of course, he's scoring goals and assisting teammates with a lot of really great passes. He wants to win and is doing everything he can to achieve his and the team's goals.
