FC Cincinnati Beat: Orange and Blue look to extend winning streak in the “Hell is Real Derby” Saturday night

CINCINNATI — When it comes to rivalries in Cincinnati, the “Hell is Real Derby” between FC Cincinnati and the Columbus Crew has quickly become one of the Queen City’s signature matchups on the calendar.

In a city defined by Bengals-Steelers and the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout, the “Hell is Real Derby” is now one of Cincinnati’s most anticipated rivalries. Saturday night at TQL Stadium will be no different when the two teams battle in an Eastern Conference showdown between two of the conference’s top four teams.

With TQL Stadium planning to be decked out in orange, Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan knows that the atmosphere will be a reminder of what makes this rivalry so palpable.

“The fans typically help define what that feels like,” Noonan said before FC Cincinnati’s training session on Thursday. “I’ll speak to our environment at TQL Stadium, those games feel different, and it’s fun to be a part of. I think both teams have been successful over the last few years, and that’s made for, I think, entertaining games.

“It’s just an exciting game to be a part of, I think, for both clubs, for the state and for the league. So I think each club is representing themselves and the league in a good way and trying to approach the game with the right mentality to entertain and to make your respective fan bases and clubs proud.”

Both clubs have finished in the top three of the Eastern Conference table in each of the last two seasons, and both clubs have MLS All-Stars that are leading their respective clubs in goals coming into Saturday night.

Cincinnati midfielder Evander has been on a tear since being named to the MLS All-Star roster, scoring five goals in the club’s previous three matches. A goal on Saturday night would tie the FC Cincinnati record for consecutive matches with a goal at four straight.

This is Evander’s first season with FC Cincinnati (13-5-3, 42 points), and this will be the first time he plays against the Columbus Crew at TQL Stadium.

“When we play at home, it’s a totally different atmosphere,” Evander said after training on Thursday. “We have the fans on our side, [and] we play with them. They’re there to support us, and they give us that extra motivation, extra push. So it’s important to have them on our side and play at home, because there’s no atmosphere better.”

Cincinnati is 6-1-2 at home this season, its only loss coming against D.C. United on May 31st.

It will need to be at its best against a Crew club that is unbeaten in its previous four matches. The Crew are led by All-Star forward Diego Rossi, who leads the Crew with 10 goals and four assists on the season.

Rossi has been a thorn in Cincinnati’s side for the past few seasons. His 54th-minute penalty kick goal tied the match between the two clubs in Columbus on May 17th. That match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Worse, though, was his 86th-minute goal that tied the Eastern Conference Finals match between the two clubs in 2023. Columbus overcame a 2-0 deficit at TQL Stadium to win 3-2 in extra time, and it went on to win the MLS Cup the following week.

Columbus (10-3-8, 38 points) leads MLS with 59.4 percent possession on average, according to Spotrec Solutions. It has won the possession battle in all but two matches this season.

“I think the way they can handle pressure, they’re, for me, one of the top if not the best in the league at being able to play under pressure, be able to make adjustments and move players around in different ways to create advantages to attack,” Noonan said. “So even if you have compressing ideas and a good defensive structure, they can still play through you if you don’t get the press right.

“If you don’t make them uncomfortable at the right time and step as a group, if you’re a piece off, they’ll find it, they’ll find that space, that weakness. So I think that’s what has made them very successful.”

It’s not known who will be starting at goalkeeper Saturday night for the Crew, whose top two goalkeepers are dealing with injuries. Third-stringer Evan Bush, a Cleveland native, has started the last four matches for Columbus.

Cincinnati is unbeaten in its last three “Hell is Real Derby” matches. Last year’s match in Cincinnati was played to a scoreless draw.

A win Saturday night would give FC Cincinnati their fifth straight win, which would be the second time they’ve won that many consecutive matches this season and would tie their most consecutive wins this season.