Who: Toronto FC II (1-2-2) at Louisville City FC (3-0-2)
When: Saturday, April 29. 7:30 PM ET
Where: Louisville Slugger Stadium
Live Stream: tfc2.ca
The Young Reds will look to extend their unbeaten streak to three matches as they travel south to take on powerhouse Louisville City FC.
Jason Bent’s team is currently riding a shutout streak of 220 minutes following consecutive scoreless draws. The team sits tied atop the USL in clean sheets with three. Last season, TFC II recorded just a single clean sheet.
This will be the fifth meeting all-time between the two clubs. Louisville has defeated the Reds on all four previous occasions, including twice last season.
Louisville City FC currently sits in second place in the Eastern Conference. James O’Conner’s side once again looks to be a contender. Coming off a 2016 season that saw City finish second in the East and come within penalty kicks of reaching the USL finals expectations are high in the derby city.
Last week, City strolled into Cincinnati and stole a point in front of 20,000 fans at Nippert Stadium. Lou City has yet to be defeated in 2017 and has conceded just three times. If there is a knock on this year’s Louisville squad, it is its lack of weapons going forward. The team lost their leading goal scorer Chandler Hoffman to the Real Monarchs in the offseason. Hoffman scored a quarter of Louisville’s goals last season.
Jason Bent should have a full squad of players to pick from come Saturday night. Lars Eckenrode remains the only player out due to injury.
Players to watch:
George Davis IV: The veteran of over 150 USL games has scored three goals for City this season. The 29-year-old forward is in his second season with Lou City. Davis has generated 11 shots so far this season, good for 10th in the league.
Paolo Del Piccolo: The midfielder is in his second season with Lou City. The native of Wheat Ridge, Colorado is the main man in the midfield for City. He has completed a team-leading 279 passes at an 81% pass accuracy. Del Piccolo has completed 93.4% of his passes in his own half.
