Pick details
| MATCHUP | FC Cincinnati FC | Columbus Crew |
|---|---|---|
| Team Records | 5-5-5 | 4-4-8 |
| Where | ScottsMiracle-Gro Field, Columbus, Ohio | |
| When | Saturday, July 25, 2026 | |
| Time | 07:15 PM EDT | |
| TV | FS1 | |
Columbus Crew Preview
Columbus has 16 points this season with a 4-8-4 record, and sits in 11th place of the Eastern Conference. They have a 3-3-2 home record and a 1-5-2 away record. Columbus is coming off a 1-2 loss against New York City at home, where they had 59% possession of the ball and 11 total shots, 4 of them on target. They had 89% completed passes, and more expected goals, with 1.66 compared to New York City’s 1.41.
Columbus is scoring 1.38 goals per game, which ranks 18th in MLS, while allowing 1.56 goals per game, which ranks 13th in MLS. Diego Rossi is Columbus’ top scorer with 6 goals, followed by Wessam Abou Ali with 5 goals and Maximilian Arfsten with 4 goals. Maximilian Arfsten is Columbus’ top passer, with 4 assists.
FC Cincinnati Preview
Cincinnati has 23 points this season with a 6-5-5 record, and sits in 5th place of the Eastern Conference. They have a 5-2-1 home record and a 1-3-4 away record. Cincinnati is coming off a 4-3 win against Vancouver at home, where they had 38% possession of the ball and 10 total shots, 6 of them on target. They had 83% completed passes, and fewer expected goals, with 1.60 compared to Vancouver’s 1.75.
Cincinnati is scoring 2.50 goals per game, which ranks 2nd in MLS, while allowing 2.50 goals per game, which ranks 29th in MLS. Ahoueke Denkey and Evander are Cincinnati’s top scorers with 10 goals each, followed by Tom Barlow with 5 goals and Pavel Bucha and Kenji Mboma Dem with 4 goals each. Evander is Cincinnati’s top passer, with 7 assists.
FC Cincinnati vs Columbus Crew Prediction
Both teams are a perfectly balanced 4-4-3 in their last 11 meetings and the over is 3-1 in their last 4 meetings. Columbus has five wins, one draw and one loss in its last six home meetings against Cincinnati and the over is 7-2 in their last 9 meetings at home.
In this FC Cincinnati vs Columbus Crew Prediction, Columbus is coming as -150 home favorites. Columbus has been mediocre at home this season and will be facing a Cincinnati team that has back-to-back wins and has been undefeated in its last five games on the road. Cincinnati also has the second-best offense in the whole MLS and I like them as road dogs in this spot. Take FC Cincinnati by +0.5 goal in this one.
Nikos Lagouretos's Pick: FC Cincinnati +0.5
