Traditional USL Championship powers Louisville City FC and Phoenix Rising FC meet Saturday in a game that could prove pivotal to reversing either side’s form.
Both clubs will enter a 10:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Arizona’s Phoenix Rising Soccer Stadium without a victory in consecutive games.
LouCity (6-4-3, 21 points) slipped to fifth on the Eastern Conference table with last weekend’s home defeat to Memphis 901 FC. Phoenix Rising (4-4-5, 17 points) meanwhile sits eighth in the Western Conference, on the current playoff cut line, having scratched out a draw Saturday when twice rallying from losing positions to level with Oakland Roots SC.
Louisville and Phoenix have historically dominated their half of the country’s competition, with LouCity winning Eastern Conference titles four times, including last year. Rising FC has won two Western Conference crowns, plus finished with the West’s best regular season record as recently as 2021.
City and Phoenix have clashed twice: first when Louisville prevailed by a 1-0 score in the 2018 USL Championship Final and again last year when the teams played to a scoreless regular season draw on an exceptionally hot July evening at Lynn Family Stadium.
Meetings figure to be more often under a new USL Championship scheduling format that this year sees clubs play their in-conference foes once home and away, then each club from the other conference once. The changes have seen LouCity already make multiple other trips west for late-night, west coast kickoffs.
Follow along
• The game will air live locally on MyTV 58 and ESPN Louisville’s 680/105.7.
• If streaming, download the free WDRB Now app to watch the local feed in Louisville. ESPN+ also streams the home feed of all USL Championship games not selected for national TV.
• For Starting XI and in-game updates, follow @loucityfc on Twitter and Louisville City FC on Facebook. Also find the club at louisvillecityfc on Instagram.
Player availability report
Jorge Gonzalez (out)
Niall McCabe (questionable)
Carlos Moguel Jr. (questionable)
Kyle Morton (out)
Brian Ownby (out)
Manny Perez (out)
Jordan Scarlett (out)
Story lines…
It’s a dry heat: LouCity could play in triple-digit temperatures Saturday, with the National Weather Service forecasting a high of 102 degrees in Phoenix. Humidity, however, will be low, similar to the conditions the boys in purple have seen from spring into early summer in Louisville.
Away days: City leads the USL Championship in attendance, welcoming an average of 10,906 fans per game. But its record away (3-1-3) has actually been stronger than at home (3-3-0) near the 2023 season’s one-third mark. The boys in purple are on a four-game road unbeaten streak dating back to early April.
Taking chances: While LouCity has scored only 12 goals in 13 games, numbers indicate an attack on the upswing. According to leading data provider StatsBomb, City’s expected goals against Memphis measured at 2.33, the second-best number this season behind an April 8 win over Detroit City FC that came in at 2.8.
Harris’ heroics: Wilson Harris — LouCity’s leading scorer a season ago, when he knocked in a career-high 15 goals — is back at it again. Harris subbed on just seconds before netting City’s lone goal against Memphis, making it a team-high four conversions this year. Going back to 2020, Harris, now 23, was named the USL Championship Young Player of the Year while with Sporting KC II.
Impact subs: LouCity faced a halftime deficit against Memphis, prompting two changes at the break. While Enoch Mushagalusa and Ray Serrano didn’t score, they did jump start the offense by quickly creating a pair or near misses from their winger roles. City took 12 of its 13 second half shots from in the box and created three big chances, according to Stats Perform.
Strong starts: Newcomer Maarten Pouwels and LouCity Academy grad Owen Damm both benefited from LouCity’s change to a 3-5-2 formation to open the Memphis game. Pouwels got in behind the defense to have a breakaway shot saved in the 20th minute of his first club start, while Damm marked his first start of the year by registering his first goal contribution, assisting Harris’ strike.
Injury woes: After some respite, the injury bug is back in the LouCity locker room. Regular starting right winger Brian Ownby and right back Manny Perez are on their way back but will miss again on Saturday. The wait figures to be longer for defender Jordan Scarlett and midfielder Jorge Gonzalez, who are in the process of being evaluated for more serious injuries.
