Preview: FC Cincinnati, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC vie for U.S. Open Cup semifinal berth

FC Cincinnati is on the cusp of club history and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC of the second-tier USL Championship is what's separating FCC from its second-ever appearance in the semifinal round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

FC Cincinnati on Tuesday will reset its collective focus on the U.S. Open Cup when Pittsburgh visits TQL Stadium for a quarterfinal-round match (7 p.m.). The team that progresses from the contest will advance to an Aug. 23 semifinal.

The winner of Tuesday's game at TQL Stadium will face the winner of the corresponding quarterfinal match between Inter Miami CF and Birmingham Legion, another USL Championship club.

More: Pittsburgh Riverhounds up next for FC Cincinnati in U.S. Open Cup. What you need to know

More: Takeaways: FC Cincinnati wins again vs. Chicago Fire to go 9-0-0 at TQL Stadium

Here's a look at the major storylines, players and themes to watch for during Tuesday's quarterfinal:

FCC's busy stretch drags on

Tuesday represents FC Cincinnati's 20th competitive match of 2023. A year ago at this time, FCC had only played 16 competitive games across all competitions. It didn't play its 17th match until June 18.

But even with the busy, pre-League Cup portion of the season complicating FC Cincinnati's path through the Cup, the team has admirably walked the tightrope of rotating players on and off the field in the name of rest and recovery while still getting positive results. That's evidenced in FCC's 14-1-4 record across all competitions.

"I like where we're at in terms of going after a trophy. We've been kind of taking the competition game by game to see where we're at in terms of personnel," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said. "Guys have stepped up in different ways to allow us to be in the quarterfinal and we're at home. We have an opportunity to play in a semifinal and then, depending on how the draw works out, you're two games from being a champion. We're approaching this like we have a chance to win it and that should be the approach. Like I said, we have to get through a very difficult opponent tomorrow and we'll see how the cards play out with a path to the final."

FCC's tightrope walk continues, though. Even at the tail end of 10 matches across 35 days, perhaps the most demanding of those 10 matches is the final one Saturday. The club will travel nearly 2,500 miles to BC Place in Vancouver to face the Vancouver Whitecaps, the sixth-place team in the Western Conference.

As much as FCC wants to take a step further in the Open Cup, it's just as concerned about maintaining its eight-point lead in the Supporters Shield standings.

FC Cincinnati won dramatically on Saturday against Chicago Fire FC. The game was another example of a varied mix of first-team players finding a way to cobble together a win by any means. A similar effort Tuesday by FCC could mean advancing to the second Open Cup semifinal in club history.

Pittsburgh, giant killers

The Riverhounds had an odd start to what's become an unforgettable Open Cup journey. Their opener in the competition was deemed a forfeit when Rochester New York FC ceased operations after the clubs were drawn to play one another. Pittsburgh hasn't looked back on the strange beginnings of its run, though, and is 3-0-0 with three shutouts in the Cup matches that followed.

Pittsburgh on May 9 knocked New England Revolution out of the competition with a 1-0 win. Then, in a May 24 Round of 16 home match against Columbus Crew, Pittsburgh advanced with another 1-0 victory via Albert Dikwa's 22nd-minute score.

Four different players have scored Pittsburgh's four goals in Open Cup play. One of those goal-scorers, Edward Kizza, received a 95th-minute red card in the win against Columbus.

In league play, Dikwa leads the Riverhounds with nine goals over his 11 appearances. That likely makes him priority No. 1 defensively for FC Cincinnati if he's available. Dikwa did not dress for the Riverhounds' most recent game due to injury concerns.

Pittsburgh has 18 goals in USL Championship play − the eighth most in the league − and the club is rolling in the USL Championship where they sit second in the Eastern Conference on a 6-2-5 record partly because of that output.

"Well, they're on a run, like you said, deep enough where they've lost some strikers or will lose one certainly with the suspension (to Kizza) and then potentially a second with injury. Depending on his (Dikwa's) health, if they're down a couple of strikers, which they like you said, I think they're undefeated in nine, six in league play and three and the Cup," Noonan said. "So, they're in good form. And when you have consistency in the group and consistency with the coach, there's an understanding where when a guy steps in, what does it look like in terms of responsibilities? So, you know, he's done an excellent job in preparing their group and being able to have success and both competitions.

"So, you know, they've now beaten New England and Columbus as far as the MLS opponents. So our guys, you know, we're educated on the challenge that they're going to have in front of them tomorrow to certainly not underestimate a really good team."

The rest of the best

Of the eight clubs still alive in the Open Cup, there are no pushovers or accidental inclusions. Still, it's hard to look at the bracket and not think MLS-leading FC Cincinnati should be favored through the rest of the competition.

FC Cincinnati-Pittsburgh and Miami-Birmingham make up one half of the bracket. On the other side, Chicago Fire hosts Houston Dynamo at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois, while Real Salt Lake is set to host Los Angeles Galaxy in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Cincinnati-Pittsburgh (7 p.m.) and Chicago-Houston (8:30 p.m.,CBS Sports Golazo Network) are the matches scheduled for Tuesday. Miami-Birmingham (8 p.m., CBS Sports Golazo Network) and Salt Lake-Galaxy (9:30 p.m., B/R Football YouTube) are set for Wednesday kickoffs.

The other MLS clubs? Inter Miami (5-11-0) and the Galaxy (3-9-3) are in last place in the east and west, respectively. Chicago is two points ahead of Miami in the east and Houston, while punchy, is 5-7-3 and already has a loss to FC Cincinnati this season.

The game

Kickoff: 7 p.m., Tuesday | TQL Stadium, Cincinnati

Stream/radio: B/R Football YouTube/ESPN 1530

All-time series: FC Cincinnati holds an undefeated 6-0-4 record in the all-time against Pittsburgh across all competitions. FCC is 2-0-0 against the Riverhounds in the U.S. Open Cup.

Cincinnati.com prediction: FC Cincinnati 2, Pittsburgh Riverhounds 0.

FC Cincinnati

Record: 14-1-4 overall; 2-0-1 in U.S. Open Cup

Open Cup goals for: Three

Open Cup goals against: One

Coach: Pat Noonan - second year at FC Cincinnati

Projected starting XI:

Alec Kann, goalkeeper

Santiago Arias, right back

Alvaro Barreal, left back

Nick Hagglund, center back

Matt Miazga, center back

Ian Murphy, center back

Junior Moreno, midfielder

Marco Angulo, midfielder

Luciano Acosta, midfielder

Brandon Vazquez, forward

Arquimides Ordonez, forward

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC

Record: 10-2-5 overall; 4-0-0 in U.S. Open Cup

Open Cup goals for: Four

Open Cup goals against: Zero

Coach: Bob Lilley - Sixth season as Pittsburgh head coach

Projected starting XI:

Jahmali Waite, goalkeeper

Patrick Hogan, center back

Arturo Ordoñez, center back

Michael DeShields, center back

Burke Fahling, wing back/midfielder

Kenardo Forbes, midfielder

Marc Ybarra, midfielder

Danny Griffin, midfielder

Langston Blackstock, wing back/midfielder

Tola Showunmi, forward

Albert Dikwa, forward

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FC Cincinnati, Pittsburgh Riverhounds vie for U.S. Open Cup semifinals