Here’s what to know ahead of kickoff at 7:30 p.m. Saturday inside Lynn Family Stadium…
Preseason roundup: With head coach Danny Cruz motivated to turn around last season’s 6-5-5 away record, the boys in purple spent most of the preseason competing on the road. A 5-2 victory over El Paso Locomotive and a 2-2 draw with Phoenix Rising FC rounded out the side’s 12-day swing through Arizona, followed by a 1-1 draw at Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC and 1-0 loss at St. Louis CITY SC last weekend.
In the stands: It’s been since March 23, 2019 that LouCity has played in front of a full capacity crowd for its home opener, as 8,561 fans at Louisville Slugger Field watched City defeat Hartford Athletic 2-1. A new record, however, is likely on the horizon this weekend at Lynn Family Stadium. This comes as no surprise, of course, as LouCity last season led the league in attendance, averaging more than 10,000 spectators per game, about 2,300 more than second-place New Mexico United.
Home field advantage: All that to say that the boys in purple are excited to be back at Lynn Family Stadium on Saturday night. With the 10,000+ behind them last season, City suffered just one defeat on its home turf last season after capacity restrictions were lifted in June while sporting a 20+ goal differential in that time span.
Cruz control: While Cruz spent close to all of City’s 2021 campaign at the helm, this will be the first complete preseason and campaign under the 32-year-old’s guidance. With that, he’s begun to put his own mark on the program with 10 signings while also installing some new tactics, including a highly favored 3-back system.
Injury update: Cruz revealed earlier this weeek that LouCity will be without striker Cameron Lancaster due to “a lengthy injury” to his leg during last Saturday’s preseason finale against St. Louis CITY SC. This comes after Lancaster’s second career 20-goal campaign as the Englishman netted a team-high 21 goals in 2021.
Wilson at the 9: It’s a next-man-up-mentality for 2020 USL Championship Young Player of the Year Wilson Harris as he looks to step into the starting role at striker in Lancaster’s absence. A product of the Sporting Kansas City academy program, Harris signed his first pro deal with SKC in 2018 and netted 25 goals across 66 appearances for the club’s USL Championship side. A dozen of those came in 2019 as he was America pro soccer’s highest scoring teenager.
Youth movement: Cruz’s first offseason at the helm was a busy one, with a majority of incoming players in their teens or early-to-mid 20s. It’s also of note that there are now four players – Owen Damm, Carlos Moguel Jr., Elijah Wynder and Josh Wynder – from the Louisville City FC Academy program that have now made the first team roster as pros.
From the XI: Despite the busy offseason, LouCity still retains the bulk of the core that won the 2021 USL Championship Central Division title and advanced to a seventh straight Eastern Conference Final. Of the 15 returning players from that roster, nine of them were starters during that final six-game stretch, many of who will look to fill those roles again on Saturday.
Between the posts: The retirement of Chris Hubbard this past offseason led Cruz and his staff to two-time USL Championship Goalkeeper of the Year finalist Kyle Morton, who spent last season with Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo. Cruz announced during a meeting with the media on Monday that the 6-foot-4 Pennsylvania native had earned the starting job over fellow newcomer Danny Faundez and returnee Parker Siegfried.
Replacing JoGo: It’s no easy task for someone to step into the role that USL Championship Young Player of Year Jonathan Gomez held last season on the left flank of LouCity’s defense, but it seems newcomer Amadou Dia has welcomed the challenge. The Phoenix Rising FC club Defender of the Year in 2018 and 2019 has been a bright spot among City’s back line this preseason, starting in three of the club’s friendlies.
