IT is second against first in the Eastern Conference as Cincinnati host Inter Miami in an MLS fixture. Miami continue to impress, especially on their travels and with Cincinnati not particularly convincing at home lately, the leaders should have the upper hand here.
Cincinnati are coming off a 3-2 victory over DC United last time out in the MLS with Pavel Bucha netting a brace after Kevin Kelsey had opened the scoring. That was the fourth win in five matches for Pat Noonan’s men, who are just two points off the pace in the Eastern Conference standings.
The strange thing about Cincinnati is that they seem to fare better on their travels and have been a bit unconvincing at home lately. They have lost two of their last three matches at TQL Stadium and were beaten 2-1 by struggling New England in their previous fixture in front of their fans.
Inter Miami were also victorious in their previous MLS fixture as they triumphed 2-1 at Charlotte. Goals in each half from Robert Taylor and Benjamin Cremaschi were enough to earn them all three points.
Gerardo Martino’s team continue to show their quality and are still setting the pace in the Eastern Conference even without Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. They have been particularly impressive on their travels and are unbeaten in their last eight away matches, claiming seven wins in that run.
How the bookies view it: Cincinnati heavily fancied
Cincinnati have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 5/6 by Betfred to claim the win. A victory for Inter Miami is valued at 13/5 while Betfred are also offering odds of 5/2 for a draw.
Head to head: Miami with the edge
Inter Miami have a 5-3 advantage with just one draw from nine previous matches against Cincinnati. However, Cincinnati claimed a 1-0 victory in the last meeting between both teams back in October.
Players to watch: Campana to step up
Leo Campana was not on target in the win over Charlotte but remains a major attacking threat for Inter Miami having scored five MLS goals this season. The forward grabbed a brace on his last visit to the TQL Stadium and is priced at 7/4 by Betfred to find the net on Sunday.
Luciano Acosta is the leading scorer for Cincinnati with nine MLS goals and could be the one to watch on Sunday. The attacker is priced at 13/10 by bet365 to get on the score sheet.
Probable line-up
Cincinnati are still without defender Matt Miazga, who remains sidelined with injury. The hosts are unlikely to make too many changes to their team with Luciano Acosta expected to feature in attack alongside Kevin Kelsey.
Inter Miami have learned to cope in the absence of Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, and should keep faith with the team that won at Charlotte. Leo Campana should lead the line once again while Robert Taylor is expected to retain his place following his goal last time out.
Cincinnati: Castellano, Yelling, Keller, Murphy, Orellano, Kubo, Bucha, Asad, Valenzuela, Acosta, Kelsey
Inter Miami: Callender, Weigandt, Aviles, Kryvstov, Alba, Busquets, Gressel, Cremaschi, Gomez, Taylor, Campana
Anything else catch the eye?
It was a five goal thriller in Inter Miami’s previous fixture and another high-scoring encounter could be on the cards. Over 4.5 goals is priced at 100/30 by Betfred, who is also offering 6/4 for over 3.5 goals.
Inter Miami have opened the scoring in three of their last four away matches and could be backed to grab the first goal on Sunday at 11/8 by Betfred.
This MLS match between FC Cincinnati and Inter Miami will be played on Jul 7, 2024 and kick off at 00:30. Check below for our tipsters best FC Cincinnati vs Inter Miami prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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