Louisville City FC carries a three-game unbeaten streak into Wednesday’s 8 p.m. meeting with rival Indy Eleven, begging the question this time of year: Is another August turnaround in the works?
In 2018, LouCity went 3-1-3 this same month en route to a second straight USL title. Last year, the boys in purple limped into August with work to be done to secure a playoff spot. They went 4-1-0, fueling a run back to the USL Championship’s Final.
“I go back to the fact that this group constantly wants to improve,” said coach John Hackworth. “When we have the idea to come off a performance and look to improve on it and then apply it, I think that’s what really shows that our growth continually gets better as the season goes on.
… “I think we have learned how to adjust to our fantastic digs at Lynn Family Stadium and we will have to see if we can build on that.”
At one point 1-3 after the USL restarted in July, LouCity is 2-0-1 this month with a 1-1 draw against Indy Eleven (Aug. 8), 2-0 win over Loudoun United FC (Aug. 15) and 4-1 victory most recently against Sporting KC II (Aug. 19).
Finally, LouCity’s players say, they’re responding to the type of pressure that comes with playing for such a successful club.
“I think we had a tough start in the production,” said outside back Oscar Jimenez. “Goals weren’t being scored, but if you look back at the stats and all the numbers, we’re getting shots off, we’re getting crosses off, and we’re not hitting the target very much. I think that’s getting better, and it takes game by game to get better.
“…In any season, some teams start off slow and some start out fast. This year we started out a bit slow. It’s not in production. It’s in confidence.”
August concludes with two key contests inside the USL’s Group E play. On Wednesday, with its 19 points, first-place Indy visits Lynn Family Stadium. The boys in purple go back on the road for the first time since the restart on Saturday versus second-place Saint Louis FC, which has tallied 14 points.
LouCity has 13 points with a game in hand over the pair of clubs it’s chasing for second in the group — a playoff spot.
“We always see it as there’s no game you can take off or one game is more important than another,” said midfielder and captain Paolo DelPiccolo. “They are all equally important and you need three points every time you play and sometimes you get it and sometimes you don’t. The process has to stay the same.”
“The biggest thing is adjusting what we’ve been doing the last couple games — the things we did right and the things we did wrong, just kind of following the process and keep getting better,” Jimenez added “…Once we start scoring goals, like in Loudoun and last week we got four goals, it’s just a confidence thing. The more you can score and hit the target, the more you can win. Confidence elevates the play.
“Right now, it’s just the mentality. Confidence has grown on the team and I think we can carry on that momentum.”
