Patrick Brennan

pbrennan@enquirer.com

Futbol Club Cincinnati on Wednesday will play Louisville City FC in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The winner of the match will host Major League Soccer's Columbus Crew SC in June – a coveted and highly-valuable opportunity for the Cincinnati and Louisville organizations that, to different degrees, are vying for MLS expansion. There's also the matter of the teams' rivalry, which is now white hot following biting accusations that stemmed from an April 22 match and a resulting six-game suspension for Cincinnati striker Djiby Fall. However, the extent to which FC Cincinnati wants to engage in the forthcoming chapter of the teams' rivalry and the Open Cup remains to be seen. Cincinnati has a Saturday United Soccer League match at the Rochester Rhinos looming and the allocation of resources could prevent the team from deploying its strongest-possible lineup on Wednesday. Make no mistake that Cincinnati's players will play to win and the coaches will coach to win, but will the organization truly go for it?

Enquirer FC Cincinnati beat writers Patrick Brennan and Charlie Hatch agree FC Cincinnati should go all-in on this Open Cup match, but disagree on why.

PATRICK BRENNAN: Your MLS audition awaits.

Major League Soccer expansion is a funny thing in that it's largely a speculative game.

Like all business ventures, it's based on many informed projections. The teams pitching MLS on their expansion candidacy have to be dreamers, too, and MLS has to have faith the projections and dreams can be realized.

And still, no one really, truly knows if MLS will work or look the part in a given market until long after the ink is dried on contracts and can't be erased or smudged out.

A home match against an MLS team in a meaningful game, however, is neither a projection nor a dream – it's a dress rehearsal for MLS.

It's as close to the real thing as FC Cincinnati can possibly get between now and when MLS decision makers select the first two clubs for expansion this fall.

FC Cincinnati can achieve that indelible scene. It's within the club's grasp. A win Wednesday against Louisville City FC will bring to fruition a home date with Columbus Crew SC in a U.S. Open Cup fourth-round match at Nippert Stadium.

Think of that June 14 scene and the days leading up to it: FC Cincinnati would have two weeks to move as many tickets as possible. They'd be aided in that endeavor by what I assume will be more than a couple Columbus fans that would be willing to come down to Cincinnati and see what all the soccer fuss here is about.

Warm night. Packed Nippert. MLS opponent. The visuals that come to mind are fit for a postcard addressed to Don Garber.

And you think MLS might be keeping tabs on such a confluence of events?

Think you'd want to be there for it, perched in The Bailey and shouting down the chants from the traveling Nordecke-folk?

The idea of MLS soccer in Cincinnati can be achieved this summer, and it might be a once-in-an-expansion-bid chance for FC Cincinnati.

You have to at least go all-in with your personnel selections and roll the dice against Louisville. How can you pass on that given what's at stake?

Simple answer: You can't pass on it.

You go all in.

CHARLIE HATCH: Be the bigger club, because you are.

When Louisville City set its attendance record (10,062) last June, City fans thanked FC Cincinnati supporters for making the trip south. Looking back, it’s a funny thought, especially considering the current state of the Dirty River Derby.

The anecdote suggests Louisville knows its limits: A strong USL team soon to have a new 10,000-seat stadium. Fans can take comfort in what they already have.

FC Cincinnati fans, or at least the club’s front office, think differently. The club prides itself at being the best at everything: biggest stadium, the most-MLS team not in MLS, etc.

Last week’s stadium headlines show Cincinnati’s pursuit of testing new ground will expand past the multi-million dollar renovations already constructed within Nippert Stadium. Again, nothing but the best.

MORE: Here's where FC Cincinnati is looking to build new stadium

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With this mindset, it’s not unreasonable to suggest that, come Wednesday night’s Cup match, the win means much more to Cincinnati than to its southern neighbors.

Forget the possibility of hosting Columbus Crew SC. (This is impossible, but Pat already wrote about that aspect, so…). Instead, think of what’s at stake for Cincinnati in the Louisville matchup alone.

Against Louisville, Cincinnati’s best player was delivered a six-match ban for allegedly biting an opponent. Furthermore, Louisville coach James O’Connor went out of his way to do everything possible to keep Djiby Fall out of USL play until June.

Well, he’s available Wednesday, as is Danni König. Add Justin Hoyte and possibly Kenney Walker, and FC Cincinnati’s roster has literally never looked better.

Earlier this year O’Connor openly admitted Cincinnati’s financial situation obliterates that of Louisville. Perhaps this only makes it more critical for an FCC cup win. If not, the underdog prevails. The club with less did more.

FC Cincinnati supporters brag about being better than Louisville City at everything except the current league table. All that talk leaves little room for error — especially with an MLS-tune up match looming with Columbus. Let’s make the “Hell is Real Derby” real.